LOS ANGELES : State Officials to Side With County in Medi-Cal Fight
State officials indicated in a letter released Wednesday that they will side with Los Angeles County in its battle to win reimbursement from the federal government of millions of dollars in Medi-Cal claims. The long-running dispute could leave the county with a huge hole in its budget.
In the draft letter to the Board of Supervisors, officials from the state Department of Health Services call a decision by federal authorities to postpone action on the reimbursement claims “unfair and unjust.”
The letter is expected to be put in final form today and sent to the federal Health Care Financing Administration, which has expressed doubts about reimbursement claims by California counties. According to the letter, federal health care officials fear that paying off California’s reimbursement claims will set a precedent for other states.
The county is seeking $640 million in reimbursements for the administrative costs of running its Medi-Cal program over the last three years. The sum has been included in the county’s 1994-95 fiscal year budget, and its subtraction could force more budget cuts.
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