BILL NUMBER: AB 682 AMENDED
BILL TEXT
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY APRIL 16, 2009
AMENDED IN ASSEMBLY MARCH 26, 2009
INTRODUCED BY Assembly Member Bonnie Lowenthal
FEBRUARY 26, 2009
An act to add and repeal Section 12305.84 of the Welfare and
Institutions Code, relating to in-home supportive services.
LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST
AB 682, as amended, Bonnie Lowenthal. In-Home Supportive Services
program: Fraud.
Existing law provides for the county-administered In-Home
Supportive Services (IHSS) Program, under which qualified aged,
blind, and disabled persons are provided with services in order to
permit them to remain in their own homes and avoid
institutionalization.
Under existing law, the State Department of Social Services is
vested with state administrative authority over the IHSS program.
Existing law permits services to be provided under the IHSS program
either through the employment of individual providers, a contract
between the county and an entity for the provision of services, the
creation by the county of a public authority, or a contract between
the county and a nonprofit consortium.
Existing law provides for the Medi-Cal program, administered by
the State Department of Health Care Services, under which health care
services are provided to qualified low-income persons, including the
aged, blind, and disabled. These services include personal care
option services, which are provided as part of the IHSS program to
those Medi-Cal recipients eligible for IHSS benefits.
Existing law prohibits a person from providing or receiving
payment under the IHSS program if he or she has been convicted of
certain crimes for specified periods. Existing law imposes specified
responsibilities on the State Department of Social Services, State
Department of Health Care Services, and counties with regard to
identifying and investigating fraud within the IHSS program.
This bill would require the State Department of Health
Care Social Services, commencing January 1,
2010, to allocate an unspecified number of personnel positions for
purposes of evaluating the implementation of the above-described
provisions relating to IHSS program fraud , as defined .
This bill would also require the State Department of
Health Care Services department , in
consultation with the State Department of Social
Health Care Services, counties and stakeholders, to
produce and deliver a report to the Legislature by December 31, 2011,
that contains prescribed information relating to fraud in the IHSS
program , with respect to convictions occurring
between January 1, 2005, and January 1, 2010 .
Vote: majority. Appropriation: no. Fiscal committee: yes.
State-mandated local program: no.
THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. (a) The Legislature finds and declares all of the
following:
(1) The In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS) program is one of the
fastest growing programs in the state, providing necessary in-home
care to over 400,000 seniors and people with disabilities.
(2) Due to increases in the population needing services,
particularly because of the "baby-boomer" population reaching
retirement age, the program will continue to grow.
(3) Wage and benefit increases also contribute to overall spending
in the program. However, in most instances wages are little more
than minimum wage and, while some health benefits may be available,
these benefits tend to be fewer than what would be provided in other
jobs. In addition, other common employment benefits, such as sick
leave, are not available to IHSS workers.
(4) Existing law contains provisions intended to combat fraud.
Evidence of fraud within the IHSS program is also believed to be very
low. Nonetheless, with such a large, growing program, it is
imperative that the state and all stakeholders involved adhere to a
zero-tolerance policy on fraud. Fraud has the potential to harm the
IHSS program by removing valuable resources.
(b) It is the intent of the Legislature , in enacting
this act, in enacting this act to determine the
extent and type of fraud that may occur within the IHSS program
, in order to evaluate the existing antifraud provisions of
the law and to make revisions as necessary to ensure that the IHSS
program carries out its mission of providing needed services to
seniors and people with disabilities.
SEC. 2. Section 12305.84 is added to the Welfare and Institutions
Code, to read:
12305.84. (a) Commencing January 1, 2010, the State
Department of Health Care Services department
shall dedicate __ personnel positions for purposes of evaluating the
implementation of Sections 12305.7, 12305.71, 12305.81, 12305.82, and
12305.83. The department may fill these positions by using existing
resources or it may add new positions if an appropriation is provided
by the Legislature for that purpose.
(b) The State Department of Health Care Services
department , in consultation with the
department State Department of Health Care Services
, counties, and stakeholders, including IHSS consumers and
providers, shall produce and deliver a report to the Legislature by
December 31, 2011. The report shall do all of the following with
respect to fraud, as defined in subdivision (a) of Section
12305.8 that resulted in a conviction, or incarceration following a
conviction, for fraud:
(1) Identify the magnitude of IHSS fraud in terms of total dollars
inappropriately spent or removed from the program through
instances that resulted in conviction between January 1, 2005, and
January 1, 2010 .
(2) Identify the magnitude of IHSS fraud in terms of the number of
consumers harmed or placed at risk of harm as a result of fraudulent
activity that resulted in conviction between January 1, 2005,
and January 1, 2010 .
(3) Identify the number of people involved in fraud for each of
the following categories: IHSS providers, IHSS consumers, state
workers, county workers, and others. In the case of "others," the
report shall describe, with specificity, but without revealing
personal identifying information, the function of the persons
committing fraud.
(4) Provide recommendations as to the best means possible to
combat IHSS fraud, taking into account the magnitude of the problem
and the need to protect services for vulnerable populations.
(c) This section shall remain in effect only until January 1,
2012, and as of that date is repealed, unless a later enacted
statute, that is enacted before January 1, 2012, deletes or extends
that date.
SEC. 3. If the report required by subdivision (b) of Section
12305.84 of the Welfare and Institutions Code, as contained in
Section 2 of this act, is not delivered to the Legislature by
December 31, 2011, the repeal of Section 12305.84 shall not terminate
the obligation of the department to prepare and deliver the report.