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.
California voters on Tuesday shot down a ballot initiative that sought to expand the state insurance commissioner's authority after health insurance companies poured millions of dollars into advertising to fight it.
Opponents of Proposition 45 say the measure, which would give the state insurance commissioner authority over proposed health insurance rates, could interfere with Covered California.
Health insurance premiums for Covered California's Small Business Health Options Program (SHOP) have been proposed and submitted to state regulators.
Moving to close what many see as a major loophole in Affordable Care Act rules, the Obama administration will ban large-employer medical plans from qualifying under the law if they don't offer hospitalization coverage.
California's public health department has failed to adequately manage investigations of nursing homes statewide, resulting in a backlog of more than 11,000 complaints - many involving serious safety risks to patients, according to an audit released Thursday.
A "small subset" of applicants to Covered California has been deluged with multiple notices, as many as 20 different letters -- some of them with conflicting eligibility information, exchange officials said.
Less than three weeks before Covered California kicks off its second open enrollment, there are problems with the website.
House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi covered plenty of territory in her meeting with The Chronicle's Editorial Board on Monday, but one issue made her more animated than any other: state Proposition 45's threat to the landmark federal health care law she shepherded through Congress in 2010.
Ouch -- the cost of workers' compensation in California is more expensive than any other state in the nation, a new study says.
Raising fresh questions about healthcare consolidation, a new study shows hospital ownership of physician groups in California led to 10% to 20% higher costs overall for patient care.