California Medicaid BH-CONNECT Waiver Approved To Strengthen The Behavioral Health System & Fill Service Gaps

California’s new Section 1115 Behavioral Health Community-Based Organized Networks of Equitable Care and Treatment (BH-CONNECT) demonstration was approved by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) on December 16, 2024, and will run through December 31, 2029. With this approval, the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) is poised to implement a slate of Medi-Cal (the state’s Medicaid program) initiatives to strengthen the behavioral health system by incentivizing measurable outcomes and filling service gaps to create a more equitable and effective system of care. The initiatives include workforce investments, transitional rent assistance, support . . .