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.
When Fabiola Ortiz heard California had granted health coverage to poor children lacking legal immigration status, she felt grateful. Since arriving in the U.S. illegally 12 years ago, she has taken her two youngest children to the doctor only for required school physicals and relied on home remedies for everything else.
State lawmakers last week convened the first hearing of a governor-ordered legislative special session on health care funding.
California insurers have received nearly $1.2 billion through the Affordable Care Act's reinsurance program, according to a Covered California analysis of a recent CMS report, Business Insurance reports (Geisel, Business Insurance, 7/6).
SACRAMENTO — The controversial bill that would give California one of the country’s strictest vaccination laws headed on Monday to Gov. Jerry Brown’s desk, with supporters urging him to sign it and opponents promising to stand vigil around the clock to convince him to veto it. On Monday, a majority of the California state Senate ...
SACRAMENTO, Calif., June 30, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — A new analysis and infographic released today estimate California’s exposure to high-priced Hepatitis C medications could range from hundreds of millions of dollars, even if only 5 percent of Californians infected with Hepatitis C receive treatment through state programs. The analysis, which looks at the costly impact of ...
A state panel expanded health care coverage Thursday for undocumented immigrants and other low-income residents of 35 rural counties, including Yolo and El Dorado counties in the Sacramento region. The move by the County Medical Services Program board promises to fill in health access gaps for people who don’t qualify for low-income health coverage through ...
Immigrant children who are in the country illegally would receive public healthcare coverage in California under a budget deal announced Tuesday by Gov. Jerry Brown and legislative leaders. An estimated 170,000 immigrants 18 and younger could qualify, marking another victory for advocates and lawmakers who have worked to make the state more welcoming to unauthorized ...
California health officials failed to ensure that more than 9 million residents enrolled in Medi-Cal managed care plans had access to doctors when they needed them, the state auditor said in a stinging report Tuesday. Health officials might have learned about those problems from calls to an ombudsman’s office – but thousands went unanswered every ...
The California Public Employees’ Retirement System is poised to raise HMO premiums for state employees an average of 7.21 percent in 2016. The move shows that rising hospital and drug costs could mean higher premiums in the private sector, too. The proposed HMO rate hike is up from a 3.9 percent hike in 2015. Premiums ...
Providing data to insurers on Covered California enrollees’ use of health care services helped to lower premiums, according to a recent study, the Sierra Sun Times reports. Details of Study For the study, researchers from UC-San Francisco, the state Department of Health Care Services and the state exchange examined data from the Office of Statewide ...