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.
Applied Underwriters executives have responded to efforts by the California Department of Insurance to halt the sale of one of its subsidiaries and threaten to upend a reported $920 million deal that’s been in the works for some time.
If you are among the Californians who buy your own health insurance, a surprise may await you as the enrollment period for 2020 coverage opens this week. Starting Jan. 1, California will become the first state to offer subsidies to middle-income people who make too much money to qualify for the federal tax credits that help consumers buy health coverage through Covered California, the state’s Affordable Care Act insurance exchange.
Now that California legislators and Gov. Gavin Newsom are done making new laws for the year, here’s a look at how the policies they created will affect your health care.
People buying insurance through Covered California might see lower prices this time around, following changes in Gov. Gavin Newsom’s most recent state budget. Enrollment for the state’s health benefit exchange begins Oct. 15. Certain low-income Californians are already eligible for subsidies from the federal government to help pay their premiums, but this year there are new state dollars to help low and middle income residents.
CHOICE Administrators announced a new brand identity and refreshed logos for its two businesses, CaliforniaChoice and ChoiceBuilder. The new logos reflect CHOICE Administrators’ larger goal to evolve its brand to reflect a modern approach to small business health care.
California will require health insurance companies to cover the cost of fertility procedures for patients undergoing treatment that can make it difficult to have children, such as chemotherapy, under a bill signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom on Saturday.
A new state law going into effect Jan. 1 requires Californians to have health insurance in 2020 or face a penalty on their state taxes.
Drugmakers fought hard against California’s groundbreaking drug price transparency law, passed in 2017. Now, state health officials have released their first report on the price hikes those drug companies sought to shield.
Open enrollment for Covered California, the state marketplace that sells subsidized health insurance to Californians who do not get insurance through their employer, begins Tuesday and ends Jan. 31.
Starting in January, Californians will be required to sign up for health insurance or face a $695 tax penalty under the new state mandate.