BHIN 23-059: Justice Involved Reentry Initiative

On 11/13/2023, DHCS published BHIN 23-059 in response to Assembly Bill (AB) 133, which instituted the Medi-Cal Justice Involved Reentry Initiative. This BHIN is the guide to this initiative, which includes two main types of new services:

  1. Pre-Release Services
  2. Behavioral Health Links

Pre-Release Services must be provided by correctional facilities. Some Behavioral Health Plans may choose to contract with correctional facilities to provide these services on their behalf. This would be a separate set of services from other services that Behavioral Health Plans may be providing in the jails or other correctional facilities.

Behavioral Health Links must be provided by the County Behavioral Health Plan. “Upon release, justice-involved members shall be promptly connected to appropriate community-based services, including mental health and substance use treatment through coordinated behavioral health links (BH Links).”

More detailed information about implementing the Justice-Involved Initiative can be found in DHCS’s Policy and Operational Guide for Planning and Implementing the CalAIM Justice-Involved Initiative.

How to Implement Behavioral Health Links in SmartCare

CalMHSA recommends creating a Behavioral Health Links program in SmartCare. When a client is nearing their release date, the county should be notified by the correctional facility. The county would then open the client to this Behavioral Health Links program upon referral, just like any other program. The client can be open to other behavioral health programs while open to this Behavioral Health Links program, as the BH Link staff will coordinate getting appropriate services for this client. Once the client is well linked with other services, the BH Link staff can discharge the client from the Behavioral Health Links program.

When creating this BH Links program, you will have to go through all the required program setup. This includes adding the appropriate procedure codes to this program, associating this program with the appropriate CDAGs, associating this program to the appropriate users, and setting up any specialty rates for this program. It is not expected that additional rates be required, as BH Links services are billed to Short-Doyle Medi-Cal and the current procedure rates should work just fine. 

How to Implement Pre-Release Services in SmartCare

For counties who are considering contracting with their local correctional facilities to provide pre-release services, CalMHSA recommends creating a Pre-Release Service program for each correctional facility. As counties may already be contracting with correctional facilities to provide services in the correctional facility, this separate program will distinguish clients who have begun pre-release services and those who do not yet qualify. Counties can also use the Requested status of this program to track clients that are being screened for eligibility. Once the client is released, or the client’s release date is changed to the point where the client is no longer within the required timeframe for pre-release services, the client should be discharged from the Pre-Release Service program.

When creating this Pre-Release Services program, you will have to go through all the required program setup. This includes adding the appropriate procedure codes to this program, associating this program with the appropriate CDAGs, associating this program to the appropriate users, and setting up any specialty rates for this program. It is not expected that additional rates be required, as pre-release services are billed to Short-Doyle Medi-Cal and the current procedure rates should work just fine. 

Updated 4/25/24