WASHINGTON — Millions of people gained health insurance last year as Affordable Care Act benefits took effect, according to the first official accounting by the federal government. In 2014, 36 million U.S. residents, or 11.5 percent of the population, were uninsured on the day they were surveyed, a decline of 8.8 million people and 2.9 ...

Immigrant children who are in the country illegally would receive public healthcare coverage in California under a budget deal announced Tuesday by Gov. Jerry Brown and legislative leaders. An estimated 170,000 immigrants 18 and younger could qualify, marking another victory for advocates and lawmakers who have worked to make the state more welcoming to unauthorized ...

California health officials failed to ensure that more than 9 million residents enrolled in Medi-Cal managed care plans had access to doctors when they needed them, the state auditor said in a stinging report Tuesday. Health officials might have learned about those problems from calls to an ombudsman’s office – but thousands went unanswered every ...

The California Public Employees’ Retirement System is poised to raise HMO premiums for state employees an average of 7.21 percent in 2016. The move shows that rising hospital and drug costs could mean higher premiums in the private sector, too. The proposed HMO rate hike is up from a 3.9 percent hike in 2015. Premiums ...

Providing data to insurers on Covered California enrollees’ use of health care services helped to lower premiums, according to a recent study, the Sierra Sun Times reports. Details of Study For the study, researchers from UC-San Francisco, the state Department of Health Care Services and the state exchange examined data from the Office of Statewide ...

Anthem sees its more than $47 billion bid to buy rival Cigna as a way to muscle up on technology that helps consumers and to strengthen its rapidly growing Medicare Advantage business. Leaders of the Blue Cross-Blue Shield insurer reaffirmed on Monday their commitment to getting a deal done a day after Cigna shot down ...