Bee Opposes Bill Allowing Doctors and Medical Groups to Bargain Collectively with Health Plans

California lawmakers should not pass AB 1600 because it would "make a court case out of a run-of-the-mill money dispute between a health plan and a doctor," the Sacramento Bee writes in an editorial (Sacramento Bee, 3/3). The bill would exempt doctors and medical groups from federal antitrust laws and allow them to bargain collectively with health plans over payments (California Healthline, 7/5/01). The Bee states that "[t]his is hardly the time" to add "a whole new layer of litigation" to the health care system. Instead, the editorial states, lawmakers should focus on other health care issues, such as "figuring out how to insure more Californians amid a budget crisis" (Sacramento Bee, 3/3).