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California Watch

News stories in this section spotlight activities in California, including actions by the state Assembly and state Senate; proposed legislation; regulators like the Department of Managed Health Care and Department of Insurance; and the state ACA exchange, Covered California.

Newsom’s Move: Not Yet Health Care for All, but Health Care for More

It was way easier for candidate Gavin Newsom to endorse single-payer health care coverage for everyone than it is now for Gov. Newsom to deliver it.

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Harris Backs ‘Medicare-for-all’ and Eliminating Private Insurance As We Know It

California Sen. Kamala Harris fully embraced "Medicare-for-all" single payer health insurance at a CNN town hall Monday and said she's willing to end private insurance to make it happen.

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Californians Want Leaders to Expand Access to Mental Health Care, Kaiser Survey Finds

Californians indicated In a survey released Thursday that they want state leaders to put a priority on ensuring that people with mental health conditions can get access to treatment, with 49 percent saying it’s extremely important and 39 percent saying it’s very important.

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Dynamex Update: Tech, Labor and Newsom Search for Common Ground on the Future of Gig Workers

When can companies in California classify their workers as independent contractors instead of employees? That’s the question that's been hot on the minds of California lawmakers, labor unions and tech companies since April, when the California Supreme Court ruled that businesses must satisfy three guidelines to classify workers as contractors.

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Pelosi Health Care Strategy

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is laying out her strategy on health care and first up is improvements to "Obamacare" and legislation to lower prescription drug costs. "Medicare for all" will get hearings.

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Can States Fix American Health Care?

Last week, California’s new governor, Gavin Newsom, promised to pursue a smörgåsbord of changes to his state’s health care system: state negotiation of drug prices, a requirement that every Californian have health insurance, more assistance to help middle-class Californians afford it and health care for undocumented immigrants up to age 26.

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Today is the Last Day to Sign Up for Covered California

Officials from state health exchange Covered California are ramping up efforts to enroll people in health coverage as the deadline to sign up looms.

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California Leaps to Obamacare’s Defense in Fight Pitting Blue States Against Red Ones

California is once again defending the Affordable Care Act, leading a coalition of Democratic states against a small army of Republican lawmakers seeking to undo the Obama administration’s signature health care law.

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Covered California Enrollee Fights Blue Shield Plan to Limit Out-of-State Care

Blue Shield of California is unfairly targeting hundreds of thousands of Covered California enrollees with a coverage change that would prevent them from getting routine care when they are working outside of California, one enrollee told The Sacramento Bee.

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New Payment Model Tackles ‘Surprise Medical Bill’ Issue

Even when patients go out of their way to find hospitals and labs in their insurance network, they might end up getting treated by an out-of-network specialist.

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