In California, Medi-Cal managed care is superior to Medi-Cal fee-for-service

This is a comparative analysis of California's "experiment" in Medi-Cal managed care. It compares managed care to fee-for-service in the area of quality. In March 1993, the California State Department of Health Services issued a State Strategic Plan for Medi-Cal Managed Care. The goal: to transfer the delivery of care for the majority of the state's Medi-Cal population from a predominantly fee-for-service payment system to capitated managed care. The state of California has steadily increased its commitment to the large-scale expansion of managed care within the Medi-Cal Program in order to improve beneficiaries' access to quality preventative and primary health care while acting as a prudent purchaser of services. This study examines one Local Initiative--Inland Empire Health Plan--created as a not-for-profit, joint powers, public entity by Riverside and San Bernardino counties, California.