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.
A five-day strike that affected hundreds of Kaiser Permanente clinics and hospitals in California and Hawaii came to an end after the union representing workers said it had “new momentum” to head back to the bargaining table, but no apparent agreement has been reached. “This strike may be over — but the fight for patient ...
California this week plans to notify Affordable Care Act marketplace enrollees that their costs could rise sharply next year unless Congress extends subsidies to help people buy health insurance. Health care analysts say the nation’s uninsured population will rise significantly if federal lawmakers do not agree to renew covid-era tax credits, which Congress authorized in 2021 to ...
Changes to prior authorization, charity care screening and corporate influence in medicine are on the way for Californian healthcare organizations. Among the dozens of bills signed this week by Gov. Gavin Newsom ahead of an Oct. 12 deadline were several outlining new requirements or broader enforcement of healthcare practices. The new laws, as well as ...
California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill Saturday that will revamp the laws governing pharmacy benefit managers operating in his state. The bill “represents the most aggressive effort in the country to lower prescription drug costs,” Newsom said in a bill signing statement. The new California PBM law appears to be broader than the PBM laws ...
California, like much of the nation, is not producing enough nurses working at bedsides to meet the needs of an aging and diverse population, fueling a workforce crunch that risks endangering quality patient care. Nearly 60% of California counties, stretching between the borders with Mexico and Oregon, face a nursing shortage, according to state data. Democratic Gov. Gavin ...
California is putting the current Affordable Care Act preventive services coverage requirements into state law. ACA supporters in the state are hoping the move will protect the preventive services benefits mandates.
State-regulated dental plans in California will soon have to comply with new dentist payment rules. California Gov. Gavin Newsom last week signed a dental plan payment rule bill. The law created by the bill will require a dental plan to make the default payment system a system that imposes no service fees on the dentists. ...
a host of federally funded healthcare and nutrition programs that serve low-income Americans will be scaled back, revamped with expanded work requirements and other restrictions or canceled altogether if individual states can’t find alternate funding sources.
On September 17, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 144 (AB 144) into law, a move in response to recent changes in immunization recommendations by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). The bill, which took effect immediately, mandates that health plans cover a wide range of preventive care services, including immunizations, without cost-sharing or utilization ...
Two prior authorization reform bills have passed the California legislature and are headed to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk. The California Medical Association, which supported the legislation, said in a Sept. 11 news release the bills “aim to dramatically streamline the system, ensuring timely access to care for patients.” If signed by Mr. Newsom, Assembly Bill 512 would: ...