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.
Consumers coping with the high cost of health insurance are the target market for new plans claiming to be lower-cost alternatives to the Affordable Care Act that fulfill the law’s requirement for health coverage.
Calling it the opportunity of his lifetime, President Donald Trump’s pick for health secretary pledged Wednesday to help lower drug prices and said he’d carry out the Obama-era health law his boss has been unable to erase.
President Donald Trump told Republican senators on Tuesday he supports an Obamacare market stabilization bill offered by Republican Lamar Alexander and Democrat Patty Murray, which may help bolster support for the tax-cut legislation headed for a vote this week.
Many state insurance officials, even some in red states, are warning that repealing ObamaCare's individual mandate in the GOP tax-reform bill would cause damage to their markets.
Nearly 2.8 million people signed up for ObamaCare plans during the first 25 days of open enrollment, but the rate of sign-ups has slowed, the Trump administration announced.
Californians are getting barraged with online pop-up ads, radio spots and television commercials, all aimed at persuading them to sign up for Affordable Care Act health plans during this year’s open-enrollment season.
The percentage of Californians without health insurance reached a record low 6.8 percent during the first six months of 2017, according to new estimates from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
About two months after federal funding lapsed for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, state officials still don’t know exactly when they’ll run out of money or when Congress will renew funding — leaving families that depend on the program increasingly anxious about their benefits.
The fifth open enrollment period under the Affordable Care Act is off to a strong start in California, with 5,900 people signing up for new health insurance plans on Nov. 1 — 25 percent higher than the first day of open enrollment in 2016, Covered California officials said.
The Obamacare-created public health exchange is ramping up outreach, especially to younger people and minority groups.