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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.

Your Drug Costs Might Drop if Lawmakers Can Agree on Why They’re So High

From presidential campaign promises to congressional hearings on the price of EpiPens, 2016 was the year that public anger over the rising cost of prescription drugs boiled into a national outrage.

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Trump Budget Chief: Medicaid Cuts Won’t Affect Anyone Now On Program

White House Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney on Thursday testified that the Trump administration does not believe $1.4 trillion worth of cuts it is proposing for Medicaid would affect children, the disabled or the elderly.

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California’s Coverage Expansion: Fiscal and Political Risks

On May 4, 2017, with the passage of the Republicans’ American Health Care Act (AHCA) in the US House of Representatives, a sharp tremor was felt by California’s vast health system. The AHCA threatens withdrawal of at least $150 billion from the state’s health system over the next ten years, with the sharpest reductions felt from 2020 thru 2022. However, even if the House bill fails to become law, if history is any guide, California’s notoriously cyclical economy may not ultimately sustain the weight of the state’s expanded Medi-Cal program, posing future economic risks to its care system.

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Heller Talks of Effort to Spare Nevadans From Deep Medicaid Cuts

Nevada’s Republican Sen. Dean Heller distanced himself from President Donald Trump’s budget proposal on Wednesday, saying he is working with a bipartisan group to preserve Medicaid spending in states that expanded the program.

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CBO Says Republican Health Bill Would Leave 23 Million Fewer People Insured

The Obamacare replacement bill narrowly passed by House Republicans earlier this month would leave 23 million fewer people insured by 2026, while reducing the deficit by less than previously estimated, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

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$400 Billion Price Tag for California Single-Payer Bill

A California bill that would eliminate health insurance companies and provide government-funded health coverage for everyone in the state would cost $400 billion and require significant tax increases, legislative analysts said Monday.

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Single Payer: CAHU Urges Brokers to take Action

CAHU wants members to be aware the following bill scheduled for hearing in the Legislature is on its way to being signed or vetoed.

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California To Pay About $1.3 Billion For Medicaid Expansion In First Year Of State Contributions

California will contribute about $1.3 billion to its Medi-Cal expansion this year, a new expenditure that will further strain an already burdened health care budget.

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Blue Shield Has Highest Share Of Enrollees In Covered California

Blue Shield of California has the largest number of enrollees in the Covered California health insurance exchange, widening its lead over rivals Anthem Blue Cross and Kaiser Permanente, according to recently released data.

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Word & Brown’s Exclusive API Online Enrollment Integration with EaseCentral Gets Positive Broker Feedback

Word & Brown General Agency announced today it has received an overwhelming, enthusiastic response from brokers using its WBQuote Application Program Interface (API) integration with the EaseCentral online enrollment (OLE) platform. The updated technology enables brokers to easily quote plans at www.wordandbrown.com and quickly move their groups into online enrollment with a click of a button.

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