If a child is found to have a medical condition, Medicaid pays for services and treatments to correct or ameliorate the condition. If the child is not eligible for Medi-Cal, CHDP will refer the child to a provider who has agreed to provide diagnosis and treatment for free or at a reduced rate. The program must first refer a child to the child s usual source of health care, and if the child has no usual source, then the program gives the parent a list of three qualified providers. Every child, within 90 days of entrance into the first grade, must provide a certification or waiver, signed by a parent or guardian, that the child has received the health screening and evaluation within the past eighteen months. The program is largely implemented through county governing bodies.
Most counties have a CHDP office, with a few counties sharing responsibility under a joint program.
By March 15 of each year, the advisory board must submit a summary of its activities, a description of the program to be offered in the next fiscal year, and a budget for the year beginning the following July 1. Local programs that fail to comply with federal or state law or regulations regarding the CHDP services can be sanctioned for noncompliance. For children who are not Medi-Cal beneficiaries, the State will reimburse the costs of health assessments and referrals to diagnosis and treatment, limited to funding appropriated by the Legislature. The legislature explicitly will not reimburse counties for treatment of disabilities identified as a result of the program. However, counties may bill third parties or the Medi-Cal program where such billing and reimbursement is appropriate.