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The federal government will allow Medicaid dollars to treat some people in prisons, jails or juvenile detention centers for the first time ever, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services announced Thursday. CMS will allow California inmates to access limited services, including substance use treatment and mental health diagnoses, 90 days before being released. Since Medicaid was established, federal law has prohibited Medicaid money from being used for people who are in custody, with inmates having access to their health care coverage suspended. (Seitz, 1/26)

KHN: California’s Resolve Questioned After It Grants Medi-Cal Contract Concessions 

California’s decision last month to cancel the results of a long-planned bidding competition among commercial health plans in its Medicaid program has some industry insiders and consumer advocates wondering whether the state can stand up to insurers and force improvements in care for millions of low-income beneficiaries. (Wolfson and Young, 1/27)

A coalition of disability and civil rights advocates filed a lawsuit Thursday asking the California Supreme Court to block the rollout of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s far-reaching new plan to address severe mental illness by compelling treatment for thousands of people. (Wiley, 1/26)

“The CARE Act’s primary purpose is to create a politically expedient legal mechanism for removing a disfavored group of Californians from public view,” the suit said. The organizations said they filed it directly in the state Supreme Court because of “the urgent nature of the issues,” but would pursue their claims in lower courts if the high court denied direct review. (Egelko, 1/26)

Several disability and civil rights advocacy groups in California filed a lawsuit against Governor Gavin Newsom’s (D) new court program targeting mental health concerns that he signed into law last year. Disability Rights California, Western Center on Law & Poverty and The Public Interest Law Project filed a petition with the California Supreme Court Thursday, alleging that Newsom’s CARE Courts program violates the rights to due process and equal protection in the state constitution. The groups said the Care Courts program created a court-ordered system of involuntary outpatient treatment by restricting patients’ “autonomy in choosing their medical provider and where and with whom they live.” (Sforza, 1/26)

The program allows a family member, first responder, or county behavioral health professional to seek court-ordered services for someone with severe mental illness. The court can order a clinical evaluation of the individual and, if they meet certain criteria, mandate they work with county behavioral health officers on a treatment, medication and housing plan. Failure to participate in “any component” of the plan could result in additional hearings and court actions, including conservatorship. (Kort, 1/26)

A California court could soon decide whether social media firms need to pay — and change their ways — for the damage they’ve allegedly done to Americans’ mental health. Plaintiffs’ lawyers plan to file a consolidated complaint in the Northern District of California next month, accusing the tech giants of making products that can cause eating disorders, anxiety and depression. (Reader, 1/26)

California cities are supposed to be cracking down on sales of flavored vapes, which are now illegal across the state. But even cities that have banned such vapes for years are unwilling — or unable — to police the sellers. (Florko, 1/27)