Industry Updates
This broad category includes articles concerning health insurance costs, carrier and health plan news, changing benefits technology, and surveys by the Kaiser Family Foundation and others on employee benefits.
Federal health officials who reported that nearly half of Californians live in “high-risk” counties for COVID-19 were relying on old data, and only a small number of counties now fall into that category, according to local officials. At stake is whether counties considered high risk should keep indoor masking requirements under new guidance from the ...
California’s mighty work-from-home economic engine continues to create massive value for workers, employers and entrepreneurs—and not incidentally for the state treasury. The nonpartisan Legislative Analyst recently released an update to its budget forecast, estimating a revenue windfall for the upcoming budget of between $6 billion and $23 billion. This is on top of Governor Gavin ...
A federal judge has partially revived California’s “pay for delay” law, which prohibits pharmaceutical companies from paying competitors to keep generic drugs off the market. But the law’s author said the latest ruling would still allow companies to sidestep enforcement. The 2020 law, the first of its kind in the nation, was aimed at a ...
The board of Covered California has agreed to hire Jessica Altman — the Pennsylvania insurance commissioner — to succeed Peter Lee as CEO. Lee, the outgoing Covered California CEO, has been leading the public health insurance exchange for more than 10 years and helped oversee the launch of its website in late 2013. Lee announced plans ...
Medi-Cal, the state’s safety net health program, isn’t free for everyone. More than half a million of California’s lowest-income children, pregnant individuals and working disabled adults are required to pay health insurance premiums, ranging from $13 a month to as much as $350. That may change this year under two proposals being floated in Sacramento. ...
On February 17th, 2022, Senators Mark Warner (D-VA) and Rob Portman (R-OH) introduced S. 3673. This bipartisan bill will provide much-needed relief for employers seeking to comply with the reporting requirements under Section 6055 and 6056 for enforcement of the ACA's individual and employer mandates.
Amazon.com Inc. says its medical consultation service is expanding around the U.S., underscoring the company’s determination to become a major player in the health care industry. Amazon Care offers virtual health services nationwide and this year will expand in-person care to 20 more cities, including New York, San Francisco, Miami and Chicago, Amazon said Tuesday in ...
The California Department of Insurance has issued a Cease and Desist Order against First Continental Life & Accident Insurance Company for illegally acting as an insurance company in the state and providing health coverage without the proper certification. The Department also served 13 additional Cease and Desist Orders on multiple entities and licensees that aided ...
California lawmakers passed legislation on Monday to provide most workers with up to two weeks of COVID-19 supplemental paid sick leave, a move policymakers hope will slow the spread of the coronavirus across the state.
Last month, the federal government revealed that the U.S. spent $4.1 trillion on healthcare in 2020, over 20% of GDP and twice as much as the developed-world average. While hundreds of billions of dollars were spent fighting Covid-19, the overwhelming majority went to propping up the country’s broken healthcare system. National healthcare spending has doubled, adjusted for inflation, since 2000.