If your child is covered by both primary health insurance and a Medi-Cal managed care plan, are you getting the most out of your benefits? We sat down with Public Benefits Specialist Lisa Concoff Kronbeck and Director of Health Plan Advocacy Leslie Lobel to hear their tips for funding therapies and medical supplies through Medi-Cal. To review what we learned, check out the highlights below!
Use Medi-Cal as secondary coverage
If you already have primary health insurance, Medi-Cal can be used as secondary coverage to minimize the amount you have to pay out of pocket for your child’s therapies. When you see a provider who accepts the type of Medi-Cal coverage your child is enrolled in, you can ask the provider to bill Medi-Cal for the amount not covered by your primary insurance. In the clip below, Undivided Director of Health Plan Advocacy Leslie Lobel explains how this process could work with a service like ABA therapy.
Know how to deal with changes to Medi-Cal enrollment
Many families in California were required to transition to a Medi-Cal managed care plan in January 2023, and this process brought up plenty of questions!
Enrolling in a managed care plan might mean that you have to change providers. If you were told that you need a continuity of care agreement to stay with your current provider, it’s important to know that continuity of care is only a temporary arrangement. In the clip below, Leslie explains when continuity of care is appropriate and what to do if you want to stay with your current provider long-term.
It may also be possible to stay with your current provider if Medi-Cal’s contracted provider has a waitlist. In this clip, Undivided Public Benefits Specialist Lisa Concoff Kronbeck explains the process:
Get incontinence supplies covered through Medi-Cal
Incontinence supplies include diapers as well as items like mattress pads and barrier or diaper cream. If your child requires specific brands, you may be able to get them covered by Medi-Cal or Regional Center. Check out this clip to hear Leslie and Lisa explain:
- How to find out whether your primary insurance covers incontinence supplies
- What your child’s doctor should include in their prescription to get supplies covered by Medi-Cal
- What to do if the supplies Medi-Cal will cover aren’t adequate for your child
- Under what circumstances Regional Center will step in to provide funding
Thank you to Lisa and Leslie for answering questions during our event! You can catch the full recording here.
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