• Place:Zoom (registration required)
  • Time:10 - 11:30 AM (PT)
  • Date:

In this Share & Learn session, we highlighted promising dental care coordination models and covered resources from Medi-Cal Dental. The COHTAC team shared findings from interviews with a subset of LOHPs about their care coordination strategies, successes, and barriers, and you heard more from three LOHPs that leverage different partners to coordinate care: Contra Costa County, Ventura County, and Alameda County. Each LOHP shared details about their program and the successful approaches they have used to coordinate care in their counties. We ended the session with a presentation and Q&A with the Medi-Cal Dental Services team on resources they have rolled out this year to support dental care coordination: the care coordination referral form and the new CHW dental benefit (D9994).

Learning objectives:

  1. Learn real-world best practices from LOHPs implementing dental care coordination strategies in their counties.
  2. Understand how to utilize the Medi-Cal Dental care coordination referral form and CHW dental benefit (D9994).
  3. Consider how to adopt strategies, tools, and resources to strengthen care coordination locally.
Speaker Bios

Lisa Berens, DDS, MPH Professor, Department of Preventive and Restorative Dental Sciences, UCSF School of Dentistry  Dr. Berens is the John C. Greene Professor in Primary Care Dentistry and Chair of the Division of Oral Epidemiology and Dental Public Health. She is also the Vice Chair for Research in the Department of Preventive and Restorative Dental Sciences and Chair of the Dental Research Fellowship Program. She is also a member of the California Oral Health Technical Assistance Center (COHTAC) team, and co-leads CavityFree SF, which works to eliminate disparities in oral health care so all San Francisco children can be cavity-free and healthy. 

Khadijat Alli Research Analyst, Institute for Health Policy Studies, Healthforce Center, UCSF Khadijat Alli is a research analyst at the Institute for Health Policy Studies (IHPS) and Healthforce Center at UCSF. She collaborates with the California Oral Health Technical Assistance Center (COHTAC) to support 60 local oral health programs across California. Her work focuses on driving program improvements and policy reforms in areas such as health workforce stability, dental care coordination, and the development of sustainable health care models. With a background in health education, community outreach, social services, and tobacco prevention efforts, she has worked in diverse settings, including hospitals, clinics, and health departments. Alli holds a bachelor's degree in public health from UC Merced and is dedicated to driving positive change in society through public health, policy, and medicine. 

Maria Ortiz-Padilla, MPA Program Manager, Community Oral Health Program, Contra Costa Health Maria has over 20 years working in the health education field and has been overseeing the Community Oral Health Program for 5 years. She is passionate about the oral health work that is currently taking place in Contra Costa and is looking forward to forming new partnerships to enhance the Local Oral Health Program. 

Harleen Sethi, DMD Dentist, Community Oral Health Program, Contra Costa Health Dr. Sethi earned her dental degree from Tufts University and has always had a passionate interest in community-based oral health initiatives. Since joining Contra Costa Health, she has helped to launch mobile dental clinics, provide evidence-based preventive services at schools, and engage with community partners on the importance of oral health. Currently, she is also helping lead the implementation of the Community Oral Health Improvement Plan for Contra Costa. 

Erika Oseguera Lead Registered Dental Assistant, Community Oral Health Program, Contra Costa Health Erika Oseguera has been an RDA for 26 years and has been working with Contra Costa Health for 20 years. She is currently the Lead RDA for the Community Oral Health Program and oversees program coordination activities with school districts, principals, teachers, and community partners.  

Carmen Cuevas Program Coordinator, Ventura County Oral Health Program Since 2018, Carmen has worked with Ventura County’s Oral Health Program to promote good oral health habits and improve access to oral health services for underserved and vulnerable populations. In this role, she collaborates with schools, community organizations, and public agencies to build capacity, identify resource gaps, and develop initiatives that support the oral health of residents. Carmen's responsibilities include coordinating school-based oral health screenings, facilitating community outreach efforts, developing, and distributing bilingual educational materials. With a strong commitment to cultural competence, she ensures that all materials are tailored to meet the needs of diverse populations, and regularly engage with stakeholders to shape and guide the program's direction.  

Arash Aslami Interim Dental Director, Office of Dental Health, Alameda County Arash Aslami is the Interim Dental Director at the Office of Dental Health (ODH) in Alameda County. Prior to this role, he served as the Dental Transformation Initiative (DTI) Project Healthy Teeth Healthy Communities (HTHC) Director. He has also held the position of Dental Program Manager at the Tri-City Health Center in Alameda County. 

Nandita Yasmin Associate Program Specialist, Office of Dental Health, Alameda County Nandita Yasmin, Associate Program Specialist, has been with Office of Dental Health (ODH) for 7 years. She started working as a Community Dental Care Coordinator (CDCC) for DTI project known as Healthy Teeth Healthy Communities (HTHC). After the project ended, she continued working as a Family Support Care Coordinator (FSCC) for ODH. Currently, she is the Alameda County LOHP manager, ensuring that all work plan activities are being implemented and tracked. Nandita is an avid advocate for the oral health and wellbeing of Alameda County residents. 

Shakalpi Pendurkar, DDS, MPH State Dental Director, Office of Oral Health, California Department of Public Health Dr. Shakalpi Pendurkar is the State Dental Director of California and oversees the Office of Oral Health at the California Department of Public Health (CDPH). Prior to joining CDPH, Dr. Pendurkar was the Dental Health Administrator in the Office of Dental Health at Alameda County Public Health Department. For over two decades she has been Lead Supervising Dentist at Gardner Health Services, a Federally Qualified Health Center in the Bay Area providing services to priority vulnerable populations. Dr. Pendurkar was Dental Director of Health Plan of San Mateo and Director of Oral Public Health Programs at the San Mateo County Public Health Department. Before moving to California, she was an Epidemiology Consultant for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. Dr. Pendurkar is a member of the California Dental Association, American Dental Association, American Public Health Association, and the Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors. She is a Fellow of the American and International College of Dentists. Dr. Pendurkar earned a Master of Public Health degree from Emory University and a Master of Dental Surgery degree in Oral Maxillofacial Surgery and Bachelor of Dental Surgery degree in Dentistry from Nair Hospital, Bombay University. Dr. Pendurkar and CDPH Office of Oral Health are committed to promoting oral health equity for all Californians. 

Adrianna Alcala-Beshara, JD, MBA Chief, IT Strategy Services Division, Chief IT Strategy Services Officer, Department of Health Care Services Adrianna Alcala-Beshara serves as the Chief of the IT Strategy Services Division and the Chief IT Strategy Services Officer at the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS). In this critical role, Adrianna leads the development and implementation of DHCS's comprehensive IT strategy and planning. She oversees IT-related enterprise system architecture, governance, project portfolio management, and administrative operations, ensuring that DHCS's technological infrastructure aligns with its mission to enhance the health and well-being of Californians. Previously, Adrianna was the Chief of the Dental Services Division at DHCS from 2022 to October 2024, where she managed and oversaw Medi-Cal Dental (Dental Fee-for-Service and Dental Managed Care). Under her leadership, the program significantly advanced in the innovation methodology and delivery of essential dental services to over 15 million Medi-Cal beneficiaries. Adrianna possesses over 18 years of distinguished expertise in health care policy planning, development, and implementation with over 18 years of distinguished administrative, technical, legal, and managerial experience across various private and government organizations, including five years as a legal advisor to governor-appointed officials and the Office of the Governor. 

Dana Durham Chief, Medi-Cal Dental Services Division, Department of Health Care Services Dana Durham is the Chief of the Medi-Cal Dental Services Division within the Department of Health Care Services (DHCS). She has full management responsibility for administering the Medi-Cal Dental Services Program (Dental Fee-for-Service and Dental Managed Care), which provides dental services to over 14 million Medi-Cal beneficiaries. Prior to joining the Medi-Cal Dental Services Program, Ms. Durham had over ten years of administrative and managerial experience within DHCS in physical health for Medi-Cal Managed Care. She has extensive experience and knowledge working in health care policy planning, development, and implementation. She has over sixteen years of experience serving Californians as a public servant and additional over 10 years of experience working in the healthcare industry. 

Slides - available upon request

Recording (1:45:39)

Resources shared: (documents not linked are available upon request)

  • Ventura County's care coordination workflow, consent form, and documentation/tracking spreadsheet
  • Alameda County's general care coordination workflow, and modified workflow to coordinate care for pregnant and postpartum people
  • FAQs about Medi-Cal Dental CHWs

Q & A: 

  1. For the Contra Costa program, how is your program funded and how do you share information with your partners? Our services are free (no reimbursement activities) with funding from OOH, MCAH, and local partner funding. We belong to a dental collaborative run by John Muir Health (Ronald McDonald Care Mobile) with partners La Clínica de La Raza and Lifelong. These two partners agree to take our urgent cases and patients are referred to either one depending on the area of the county they are in.
  2. Are the care coordination workflows available on the COHTAC site? See resources above shared by Ventura and Alameda counties.
  3. Are the providers Alameda County contracts with Medi-Cal Dental providers? Yes.
  4. Who can submit the DHCS care coordination referral form? I would suggest adding school secretaries or staff since many rural schools have high nurse turnover or no nurse at all. Thank you for this suggestion – DHCS will investigate this. There is a long list of identified roles; however, anyone can select the “other” field and enter their specific title there. Please be specific and consistent when entering titles in the “other” field – this is key for data collection to better understand trends for additional outreach and interventions.
  5. Medi-Cal members used to be able to request care coordination over the phone by calling the 1-800-#; can they still do this or do they have to complete the form? Anyone can still call; submitting the referral form streamlines the process for everyone and offers and additional modality to navigate members to the care they need.
  6. For an LOHP to refer a child, do we need verbal or written authorization from the parent? Also, what is the process for the care coordinators? Do they make a certain number of phone calls or mailing attempts? What happens is a parent doesn't answer? Parent authorization is not needed to move forward, though it is best to keep them informed and in the loop because DHCS will call and coordinate with them. DHCS make the outreach to the parent/caregiver several times and will work with a local provider to set up the appointment.
  7. Can the DHCS care coordination system provide information back to the requestor about whether the member was able to receive services (to close the referral loop)? Typically, no, due to protected health information (PHI) requirements; however, if the correct authorizations are on file, this information can be shared and should be included as a request in your submission (something like “requesting closed loop referral”). Be sure to include your contact information to enable this. When DHCS see this, they will reach out to confirm the authorizations are on file in order to provide member information and/or work with the member representative or their authorized legal guardian to release their medical information. Authorizations can include any authorization form that meets HIPAA compliance for the release of medical information.
  8. Can DHCS share aggregate data from the care coordination referral form with counites (e.g., total forms received, by requestor type, total resolved, etc.)? Not at the moment. This is a workload and capacity issue – right now, there’s a lot of manual processing of data and information, but the DHCS team can discuss what is possible in the future.
  9. How are CHWs trained and tested, and how can we get a staff member qualified as a CHW? There are specific DHCS standards for CHWs, which includes trainings and requirements. Page 3 on this CHW FAQ outlines the qualifications to become a CHW for the Medi-Cal Program: https://www.dhcs.ca.gov/providers-partners/frequently-asked-questions-faqs-for-medi-cal-community-health-worker-chw-services-general-information/
  10. Could a Medi-Cal Dental provider who completes kindergarten oral health assessment (KOHA) forms for a school assign a CHW for children that are identified as high urgency or would you recommend using the care coordination form instead to assure that children with urgent needs are going to be seen by a dental provider? To leverage the CHW benefit, the Medi-Cal Dental provider needs be able to leverage the CHW's services (i.e., set up to bill for CHW services, see slides 76-77 above) and the children need to meet specific criteria to be eligible for CHW services (see slides 75-76 above, among other checks like whether they already have an Enhanced Care Management or ECM Provider or existing CHW relationship). This would require the provider to ensure alignment across several DHCS policies. In this case, it’s a good idea to use the care coordination form, which takes under 2 minutes to complete and is a more streamlined way to connect people to dental homes. We understand wanting to use all the tools at your disposal to get children into care that they need – you can ask the DHCS team specific questions and run scenarios by them by reaching out to [email protected].
  11. Can CHWs bill D9994 for large group education more than once a day (e.g., morning and afternoon large groups)? Yes, the billing is based on 30-minute blocks (i.e., each unit is a 30-min block). Be mindful that members have caps on the number of CHW services per year, so you need to ensure that it does not conflict with other limitations (e.g., 12 units a year for a member). There are specific rates for the size of the group of Medi-Cal members – the CHW would report the group schedule (e.g., 9-9:30am) and number of members (e.g., 5 Medi-Cal members). They would individually bill each member, but you are able to have multiple groups a day as part of your practice.
  12. Will there ever be a state EHR system (clearinghouse, billing software) that LOHPs can use to bill Medi-Cal Dental for services? There are major barriers for oral health programs to bill. There will be infrastructure set up with Gainwell Technologies to bill Medi-Cal Dental directly if you are a Medi-Cal Dental provider (will work and operate like a clearinghouse), but there is not an overarching system that works for all (e.g., if you are billing like an FQHC). Partnering with an FQHC is a better option for LOHPs since FQHCs are already set up to bill Medi-Cal Dental. However, FQHCs are not eligible to bill for CHW services unless they do a scope of change services in which they would add CHW services to their daily rate. To leverage the CHW benefit, lean on other groups/organizations (individual dentists, CBOs, schools, and local health departments).