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.
“This story was originally published by CalMatters. Sign up for their newsletters.” An array of charts buried in the fine print of the state budget, unknown to all but a few fiscal nerds, details what California has collected in revenues and spent over the last half-century. The current charts in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposed 2026-27 budget reveal ...
Assemblymember Ash Kalra has tried a handful of times over the past few years to institute massive changes in the state's health care system.
The Los Angeles County Department of Public Health announced it will be closing seven clinics due to significant cuts in funding. The department said it has faced more than $50 million in federal, state and local funding cuts. A statement from the department said the cuts, along with the increase in operational costs, have led to the ...
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who is eyeing a presidential bid, has incensed both Democrats and Republicans over immigrant health care in his home state, underscoring the delicate political path ahead.
More than 3,000 pharmacy technicians, pharmacy assistants and clinical laboratory professionals joined the strike, which entered its third week on Monday.
Medicare Advantage health plans are blasting a government proposal this week that would keep their reimbursement rates flat next year while making other payment changes. But some health policy experts say the plan could help reduce billions of dollars in overcharges that have been common in the program for more than a decade. On Jan. ...
California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) is making California the front line in the resistance to the Trump administration’s revamped health care policies under Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., in what experts see as a politically savvy move that previews what a “Balkanized” public health landscape could look like as states lose faith in federal agencies. ...
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized a rule Thursday afternoon, clamping down on states’ Medicaid provider taxes. The changes to address what the agency has described as “loopholes” and “a Medicaid financing gimmick” were floated last May in a proposed rule and since codified by the summer’s One Big, Beautiful Bill Act. CMS said ...
More than 31,000 Kaiser Permanente nurses and other health care workers walked off the job early Monday, launching an open-ended strike across California and Hawaii that could disrupt operations at dozens of hospitals and hundreds of clinics. The workers, represented by the United Nurses Associations of California/Union of Health Care Professionals, say the strike was triggered by ...
On January 15, 2026, the California Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) issued new guidance in All-Plan Letter (APL) 26-002 clarifying the obligation of health care service plans, including Medi-Cal managed care plans, to reimburse providers for COVID-19 testing and immunizations. California Medical Association (CMA)-sponsored Senate Bill 510 (2021) requires health plans and insurers to reimburse providers ...