This is archived content, for historical reference only.

Summary

The California Health Care Foundation (CHCF) is an independent, nonprofit philanthropy that works to improve the health care system so that all Californians have the care they need. We focus especially on making sure the system works for Californians with low incomes and for communities who have traditionally faced the greatest barriers to care. We partner with leaders across the health care safety net to ensure they have the data and resources to make care more just and to drive improvement in a complex system. For more information, visit www.chcf.org.

CHCF is seeking to identify a grantee or grantees to update our Medi-Cal Facts and Figures report, which provides an overview of the Medi-Cal program, including enrollment, benefits, spending, access, and quality.

Background

The California Health Care Almanac (Almanac) provides objective information on health care costs, coverage and delivery system that supports effective decisionmaking. The Almanac is a comprehensive online resource for data and analysis on California’s health care system.

Medi-Cal is the largest Medicaid program in the country, providing health insurance for Californians with low incomes. In September 2024, nearly 15 million Californians — about one in three — were enrolled in Medi-Cal. A majority (68%) was people of color, and 35% reported a language other than English as their primary language. Medi-Cal pays for essential primary, specialty, acute, behavioral health, and long-term care services.

The Medi-Cal program is undergoing significant changes and faces numerous challenges. Medi-Cal must address the needs of an aging population and implement strategies to address disparities in access, quality, and outcomes for enrollees of color.

Project Description

Medi-Cal Facts and Figures will present information about the Medi-Cal program and should include, at minimum, the topics listed below. Grantee should anticipate using publicly available data and leverage existing processes and relationships with the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) and the California Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI) to request additional data as needed.

• Overview. Analysis of the Medi-Cal program, including historical milestones, governance, and funding.
• Eligibility and enrollment. Analysis of eligibility requirements, groups, and enrollment.
• Benefits and cost sharing. Information on benefits offered, premiums and cost sharing, and waivers.
• Delivery systems. Review and analysis of Medi-Cal’s managed care and fee-for-service systems, including a comparison of the two systems, enrollment, and detail on services offered.
• Delivery systems. Analysis of spending by service category and per enrollee.
• Access and utilization. Review and analysis of access-to-care measures compared to other types of insurance.
• Quality. Presentation of quality measures data for the program.
• Major initiatives. Overview of key Medi-Cal initiatives underway and planned, including CalAIM (California Advancing and Innovating Medi-Cal) goals and progress to date, managed care procurement, and major initiatives to reduce disparities in access, quality, and outcomes.
• Challenges. Identification and brief discussion of the biggest challenges facing the program over the next 5–10 years.

Where data allow, a comparison of California data to national averages, and regional and demographic differences within California should be explored. In addition, the publication should include a review of major developments affecting the Medi-Cal program.

The grantee selected under this RFP will need to research and develop a “snapshot” report. The report is intended to be data-intensive and should be weighted toward charts, tables, and graphics. (Please click on the template link below for sample charts used in the Almanac.) The final report shall be completely and correctly annotated. All fact-checking of data shall be the responsibility of the grantee. CHCF will oversee the production and dissemination of final research and any resulting publicity. The grantee should anticipate several rounds of feedback from the program officer and CHCF’s editor and designer; this feedback will depend on the completeness, accuracy, and quality of the work product submitted to CHCF. Please see CHCF’s Almanac Style Guide for more information on the foundation’s publication guidelines. A copy of the template used to prepare the previous report will be provided.

The intended audience for the report includes California policymakers, leaders of health care provider organizations, and the media.

Proposed Timeline

* Respondents may propose alternative deadlines to enable use of difficult-to-access data sources.

Proposal Packet

Proposals should include the following materials:

1. Project cover sheet. Available at chcf.org/grantinfo/solicited. This does not count toward the six-page limit.
2. Proposal narrative. The proposal narrative should be no more than six pages, double-spaced, in a 12-point font and should include a brief description of the Medi-Cal program and significant challenges and opportunities faced by the program, providers, and enrollees.

• • Description of the proposed topics and specific indicators to be included in the report. Proposals should clearly specify which indicators from the 2024 edition of the report are proposed to be cut and what new indicators are being proposed for inclusion.
  • Description of the data sources that will be used for the report, including prior experience with these data sources and whether they are publicly available or will need to be requested from DHCS, HCAI, or another public or private entity.
  • A preliminary list of analyses that will be completed for this project, including where national, regional, or other comparisons will be made.
  • A project work plan and timeline, including a list of anticipated project deliverables and milestones with planned completion dates or date ranges. Please explain any deviations from proposed deadlines for the draft and final reports.

3. Appendices do not count toward the six-page limit.

• • Qualifications of the organization and project staff, including prior experience conducting health care–related research projects and data analysis, and success in obtaining custom data from DHCS, HCAI, or other public or private entities.
  • A detailed budget for the project. The budget form is available at chcf.org/grantinfo/solicited.

Proposals must be delivered as ONE PDF using the submission form below, no later than 5:00 PM (PT) on April 17, 2025. If there are technical issues, contact Diana Banki, program associate, for further instructions.

For More Information

For questions about the project or proposal submission process, contact Robbin Gaines.

Appendix: Sample Template of Snapshot Report

The selected grantee will prepare the draft and final reports using a template provided by the California Health Care Foundation. Sample charts used in the report are in this template.

Submission Form