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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 Has The Lowest Coronavirus Rate In The Nation. Here’s What We Know

California has the lowest coronavirus case rate of any state, federal figures show, illustrating the progress made in the ongoing battle against the highly infectious delta variant. The state has been among the national leaders in that metric for the last week, as the number of newly confirmed coronavirus infections continues to tumble from a peak ...

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California’s Reboot of Troubled Medi-Cal Puts Pressure on Health Plans

When Denise Williams’ baby boy was 2 months old, she became alarmed by a rattling sound in his lungs and took him to the emergency room. While undergoing treatment, he spiraled into a disabling neurological disorder. Now 2 years old, Markeano is attached to breathing and feeding tubes. He can’t walk or move his arms. ...

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California Recall Election Day: Will Voters Kick Gov. Gavin Newsom Out Of Office?

Californians are heading to the polls Tuesday to decide whether or not to remove Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom from office, or at least voters who haven’t already cast a ballot by mail.

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Health Care Unions Defending Newsom From Recall Will Want Single-Payer Payback

Should Gavin Newsom survive the Republican-driven attempt to oust him from office, the Democratic governor will face the prospect of paying back supporters who coalesced behind him.

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Blue Shield of California, Walgreens Collaborate to Bring Innovative Healthcare and Wellness Services to Communities in Golden State

Blue Shield of California and Walgreens today announced a new collaboration to expand access to health care, lower costs, and bring innovative services to enhance the consumer experience for individuals, families, and communities throughout California. The initial phase of the collaboration will center on Walgreens Health Corner™ services – a personalized experience for Blue Shield commercial ...

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California Set to Spend Billions on Curing Homelessness and Caring for ‘Whole Body’ Politic

Living unmedicated with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder, Eugenia Hunter has a hard time recalling how long she’s been staying in the tent she calls home at the bustling intersection of San Pablo Avenue and Martin Luther King Jr. Way in Oakland’s hip Uptown neighborhood. Craft coffee shops and weed dispensaries are plentiful here and one-bedroom ...

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ICU Beds Filling Up In California’s Central Valley Amid COVID Surge, Triggering Hospital Order

Hospitals in the heart of California’s Central Valley are running out of beds in their intensive care units, state officials announced Friday, as a more contagious version of the coronavirus continues to spread primarily among the unvaccinated population.

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California Strikes Down California’s “Gig Worker” Proposition 22

An Alameda County Superior Court judge on Friday struck down Proposition 22, the 2020 voter-approved initiative that allows ride-hailing companies to classify their drivers as independent contractors. In a 12-page ruling, Judge Frank Roesch wrote that a provision of the tech industry-backed law illegally infringes on the Legislature’s constitutional authority to decide which workers must be ...

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Democratic Lawmakers Drop Idea For A California Statewide Vaccine Mandate

Democratic lawmakers have dropped a controversial proposal to mandate vaccines in the state, a move that would have been challenging to pass in the final weeks of the legislative session and was already providing fodder for the upcoming recall election.

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Disney Reaches Deal With Unions To Require COVID-19 Vaccinations For Unionized Employees

Disney has reached a deal with its unions to require all of its unionized employees working at Walt Disney World in Florida to be fully vaccinated against Covid-19 by October 22, 2021. The move comes nearly a month after Disney mandated that all of its salaried and non-union hourly employees in the U.S. needed to be fully ...

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