Health Access WeBlog

HEALTH ACCESS UPDATE
Tuesday, March 23rd, 2004

NEW HEALTH POLICYMAKERS SET IN LEGISLATURE, ADMINISTRATION
* Cohn Chairs Smaller Assembly Health Committee
* Dymally Heads New Budget Subcommittee on Health
* Shewry Returns as DHS Director
* Ehnes Named DMHC Director

COHN CHAIRS ASSEMBLY HEALTH COMMITTEE

Chair Rebecca Cohn and Vice-Chair Todd Spitzer head the new list of the
Assembly Health Committee, with seven less Assemblymembers serving on the
policy committee that reviews many of the bills of interest to health care
advocates. As promised by Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez, the committee is
smaller, with 18, rather than 25, members. Cohn replaces Assemblyman Dario
Frommer, who now serves as Majority Leader, and is maintaining his seat on
the committee.

Assembly Health Committee
Regular meetings normally Tuesdays, 1:30pm, Room 4202, Capitol

Rebecca Cohn (D-24: Saratoga, Campbell), Chair
Wilma Chan (D-16: Oakland)
Edward Chavez (D-57: La Puente, Industry)
Mervyn Dymally (D-52: Compton)
Dario Frommer (D-43: Los Angeles, Glendale)
Paul Koretz (D-42: West Hollywood)
Sally Lieber (D-22: Mountain View, San Jose)
Cindy Montanez (D-39: San Fernando, Mission Hills)
George Nakano (D-53: Torrance)
Gloria Negrete McLeod (D-61: Chino, Montclair)
Mark Ridley-Thomas (D-48: Los Angeles)
Simon Salinas (D-28: Salinas, Hollister)
Lois Wolk (D-8: Davis, Vacaville)
Todd Spitzer (R-71: Orange), Vice-Chair
Robert Dutton (R-63: Rancho Cucamonga)
Alan Nakanishi (R-10: Lodi)
George Plescia (R-75: San Diego)
Keith Richman (R-38: Northridge, Granada Hills)

DYMALLY CHAIRS ASSEMBLY BUDGET SUBCOMMITTEE ON HEALTH

Assemblyman Mervyn Dymally now chairs the Assembly Budget Subcommittee on
Health and Human Services, which will review all of the proposed budget cuts
on health care. He replaces Assemblywoman Judy Chu, who now is Chair of the
Assembly Appropriations Committee, and will be a leader in budget
negotiations for the Democratic Caucus along with Assemblyman Darrell
Steinberg, the Chair of the full Assembly Budget Committee. Taking Chu's
place on the committee is Assemblyman John Laird.

Assembly Budget Subcommittee #1 on Health and Human Services
Regular meetings normally Mondays, 4:00pm, Room 127, Capitol

Mervyn Dymally (D-52: Compton), Chair
Loni Hancock (D-14: Berkeley, El Cerrito)
John Laird (D-27: Santa Cruz, Monterey)
Ray Haynes (R-66: Murrieta, Temecula)
Robert Pacheco (R-60: Walnut, City of Industry)
Alternates:
Darrell Steinberg (D-9: Sacramento), Chair, Budget Committee
Rick Keene (R-3: Chico), Vice-Chair, Budget Committee

---
GOVERNOR APPOINTS DIRECTORS FOR DHS, DMHC

Last week, after months of speculation, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger
announced the appointment of two directors of critical departments
responsible for health policy. Below are biographies of the two directors,
from the Governor's press releases announcing the appointment, from his web
site at www.governor.ca.gov.

Sandra Shewry will start soon as director of the California Department of
Health Services, which among other reponsibilities oversees the Medi-Cal
program that serves over 6.7 million children, families, seniors, and people
with disabilities.

Lucinda "Cindy" Ann Ehnes will return to the Department of Managed Health
Care as the Director. The department is the main regulator of HMOs, PPOs,
and other managed care plans, with a specific mission to protect the
interest of the millions of Californians enrolled in such health coverage.

SANDRA SHEWRY, Director, Department of Health Services (DHS)

For over 20 years, Sandra Shewry has worked in the health care field, a
majority of which was in California state government. She most recently
served as the director of the Health Division for the National Governor's
Association (NGA) Center for Best Practices in Washington, D.C. Before
joining the NGA, she held several senior health-related positions within
state government. Shewry was a deputy director and then executive director
of the California Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board, which runs the
Healthy Families Program. From 1985 to 1990, she served as an assistant
secretary at the California Health and Welfare Agency (now the California
Health and Human Services Agency). Shewry was a health planning and policy
analyst for the Department of Health Services from 1982 to 1984.

Shewry, 48, earned a Master's degree in Public Health and a Master's degree
in Social Welfare from the University of California, Berkeley and her
Bachelor's degree from the University of California, Santa Cruz. She is a
native of Ferndale, CA, and registered as decline-to-state. This position
requires Senate confirmation and the statutory salary is $123,255.

Shewry will oversee the over 5,000 employees working in its Sacramento
headquarters and the over 60 field offices throughout the state. As part of
its mandate to protect and improve the health of all Californians, the
Department administers a broad range of public and clinical health programs
that provide health care services, including the Medi-Cal Program. The
Department operates under the aegis of the California Health and Human
Services Agency.

CINDY EHNES, Director, Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC)

Since December 2003, Ehnes has served as the division manager of Self-Funded
Health Plans at the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS).
Prior to that, she was the deputy director of plan and provider relations at
the Department of Managed Health Care and the interim executive officer for
the California Board of Optometry. Ehnes also served as the legislative
affairs director for the Commission on Family Medicine in Colorado for two
years and from 1997 to 2000 as the director of enforcement for the Colorado
Division of Insurance. From 1978 to 1984 and again from 1988 to 1996, she
was an attorney in private practice. She served as the vice president of
development for the National Sports Center for the Disabled from 1984 to
1988 and was the chairwoman of the board and consumer representative for
CoverColorado Health Plan from 1990 to 1997.

Ehnes, 53, of Fair Oaks, CA, has a Juris Doctorate from Catholic University
Law School and a Bachelor of Arts degree from George Washington University.
She is a registered Democrat. The statutory salary for this position is
$123,255 and it requires Senate confirmation.

The California Department of Managed Health Care was launched on July 1,
2000 to ensure high quality prevention and health care for Californians
enrolled in managed health care plans. The Department is responsible for the
licensing and accountability of managed care plans through the enforcement
of prevention and care laws, providing an annual report card on quality care
under managed care, developing a public education campaign so consumers know
their rights under managed care plans, and for the development of a
third-party grievance system for consumers. The Department is under the
jurisdiction of the Business, Transportation and Housing Agency.

--
Anthony E. Wright
Executive Director
Health Access
1127 11th St., #234, Sacramento, CA 95814
Ph: 916-442-2308, Fx: 916-497-0921
awright@health-access.org

Labels: Updates

posted by Anthony Wright | Permalink | 11:16 AM

Tuesday, March 23, 2004