Jackson v. Stockdale

In Jackson v. Stockdale (1989) 215 Cal. App. 3d 1503, Division Two of this district ruled that the Department could not exclude from Medi-Cal coverage certain restorative dental services, such as root canal work, because the Legislature had specifically mandated this coverage. Jackson held that the Department lacked the power to restrict this coverage by regulation, because the Legislature had explicitly declined to give the Department authority to determine the scope of coverage for Medi-Cal procedures authorized by statute. (Ibid.) Similarly, in the present case, the Legislature has by statute authorized coverage for durable medical equipment, and the Department lacked authority to restrict the scope of that coverage by its new emergency regulations. ( Jackson, supra, at pp. 1515-1516.)