Perea

BACKGROUND

Medicaid and Administration of the Medi-Cal Program Medicaid is “a federal-state cooperative program for the provision of medical care to certain low-income populations.” (Family Health Centers of San Diego v. State Dept. of Health Care Services (2023) 15 Cal.5th 1, 5 (Family Health Centers); Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital, Inc. v. Kent (2018) 25 Cal.App.5th 811, 815 (Santa Rosa).) “ ‘The program is jointly funded by the federal and state governments and is administered by the states. The states determine eligibility, the types of services covered, payment levels for services, and other aspects of administration, within the confines of federal law.’ ” (Keffeler v. Partnership Healthplan of California (2014) 224 Cal.App.4th 322, 327 (Keffeler).) To qualify for federal funds, each state must submit a detailed Medicaid plan describing the nature and scope of its program to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (a division of the Department of Health and Human Services) for review and approval. (Santa Rosa, at p. 815; Keffeler, at p. 327.) “California participates in Medicaid through the California Medical Assistance Program, known as ‘Medi-Cal,’ which is…