Seizing on the massive expansion in Medicaid, Blue Shield of California has agreed to acquire Care1st, a Monterey Park-based health plan with more than 500,000 patients.

Many Californians eligible for Medi-Cal or Covered California -- particularly in families of mixed immigration status -- have been reluctant to seek coverage.

The Obama administration on Thursday said that millions of people with health insurance purchased in the new federal marketplace would need to switch to different health plans to avoid increases in premiums or reductions in the subsidies they received from the government.

Gov. Jerry Brown is considering expanding state-funded Medi-Cal coverage to residents shielded from deportation under President Obama's new immigration policies.

A Senate hearing on Wednesday into the staggering cost of specialty drugs to treat the deadly Hepatitis C virus has once again raised the question of how far the government should go to try to beat down pharmaceutical costs without discouraging research and development or creating drug shortages.

California's initial efforts to move almost 500,000 low-income seniors and disabled people automatically into managed care has been rife with problems in its first six months, leading to widespread confusion, frustration and resistance.