By investing $100 million in data-sharing technology advancements, CalOptima’s vision aims to remove barriers to health care access for members by implementing same-day treatment authorizations and real-time claims payments for providers, and annually assessing members’ social determinants of health.

Watch the press conference and read the press release.

CalOptima is collaborating with the County of Orange Social Services Agency to host three virtual CalFresh & Healthy Living presentations in English, Spanish and Vietnamese. Each session will cover the same information and will be held from 6–7 p.m.

The virtual information sessions can be accessed at the following Zoom link: https://bit.ly/3rUOAlq.

Join CalOptima for a virtual Continuing Medical Education (CME) and Continuing Education Unit (CEU) Workshop for physicians and licensed health care professionals on “Treatment for Opioid (OUD) and Alcohol Use Disorders (AUD).” The workshop will take place on Wednesday, April 6, from noon - 1:30 p.m. Click here for the flyer and click here to register.

The Cal MediConnect program is transitioning on December 31, 2022. Starting January 1, 2023, Cal MediConnect members will be transitioned to exclusively aligned enrollment, Dual Eligible Special Needs Plans (D-SNP) and matching Medi-Cal Managed Care Plans. Under exclusively aligned enrollment, beneficiaries can enroll in a D-SNP for Medicare benefits and in a Medi-Cal managed care plan for Medi-Cal benefits, which are both operated by the same parent organization for better care coordination and integration. To learn more about the transition, click here.

CalOptima hosted a virtual InfoSeries on A Local and National Snapshot on Homelessness on March 15. Community-based organizations and providers learned about the United to End Homelessness℠ initiative from Orange County United Way as well as the CalAIM services that support members experiencing homelessness. The recording can be found here.

Children ages 5–11 accompanied by a parent/guardian and unvaccinated community members of all ages are invited to the upcoming CalOptima clinics from 9 a.m.-1 p.m. on:

CalOptima will be on-site to check CalOptima Medi-Cal eligibility, give $25 Member Health Rewards to eligible members and host a resource table. The County of Orange Social Services Agency will be on-site to provide CalFresh and Medi-Cal enrollment. Vaccine event flyers are available in English, Spanish and Vietnamese.

Register at 1-714-834-2000 or www.othena.com. CalOptima Medi-Cal members can arrange transportation at 1-888-587-8088.

To maximize immunity against severe infection, everyone ages 5 and older should get their primary series of COVID-19 vaccines, receive an additional dose if they are immunocompromised (have a weakened immune system), and receive a booster dose when eligible.

The OC Health Care Agency has an infographic that distinguishes the difference between a booster and an additional dose.

On February 24, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) proposed a new “public charge rule” to regulate how it determines inadmissibility for noncitizens requesting admission to the United States or applying for lawful permanent residence from within the United States. The proposed rule would officially reverse much of the public charge rule implemented by the prior administration, which caused many noncitizens to be fearful of accessing public benefits. Due to previous actions taken by the Biden administration, the Trump-era public charge rule has already been paused since March 2021. Under the new rule, when making inadmissibility determinations, DHS proposes that it does not consider noncash benefits, such as food and nutrition assistance programs, including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP); Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP); most Medicaid benefits (except for long-term institutionalization at government expense); housing benefits; transportation vouchers; disaster and pandemic assistance; and benefits received via a tax credit, deduction, Social Security, government pensions or other earned benefits. For more information, please click here.

Books By Mail is a free service that delivers books and audiobooks on CDs through the U.S. Postal Service to

eligible homebound residents in Orange County and Californians unable to visit an Orange County public library because of a physical disability, long-term illness and/or lack of transportation. To sign up for the service, please submit an application. Click here to learn more.

The California Health Care & Homelessness Learning Collaborative is a new initiative led by the Center for Health Care Strategies with support from the California Health Care Foundation. The learning collaborative will support partnerships between health care and homeless service organizations to pilot projects focused on improving care delivery for Californians experiencing homelessness. Launching this June, the two-year learning collaborative will include up to six competitively selected cross-sector teams of California-based organizations. Teams that apply include, but are not limited to: (1) health and hospital systems; (2) Medi-Cal managed care plans; and (3) homeless service providers and other community-based organizations. Selected teams will receive up to $120,000 each to support project activities. Applications are due by April 5, 2022.

CalOptima Customer Service remains ready to respond to member needs as we adhere to guidelines to reduce the possibility of COVID-19 transmission. Our building is closed to visitors. Members can call Customer Service from the safety of their home, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. We have staff who speak their language. Members can also visit www.caloptima.org and access their member portal.