A Medicaid managed care plan in California's Central Valley is using an artificial intelligence voice agent to call members and walk them through coverage renewals, an approach the plan says does the work of 40 full-time employees at a fraction of the cost, and one that arrives just as federal Medicaid eligibility rules tighten nationwide.
Kern Family Health Care, the largest Medi-Cal provider in Kern County, has spent about $370,000 on software from Careforce, a San Francisco startup. The program, called Angelica, calls members in their preferred language, tells them a renewal is due, asks what has changed in their household or employment, directs them to the right forms, and schedules an in-person appointment with plan staff when needed. It speaks more than 30 languages and operates at all hours.
