Covered Calif. Addresses Dropped Policies, Stays Neutral on Prop. 45
On Thursday, a Covered California official acknowledged that some consumers have been shifted out of private health plans without proper notification and said that the exchange is working to address the issue, the AP/Sacramento Bee reports.
Earlier this month, the Associated Press reported that some state residents were being abruptly switched from private coverage to Medi-Cal or are losing health coverage altogether after the state checked enrollees' incomes to verify eligibility for health coverage and subsidies.
Covered California Executive Director Peter Lee said, "There have been some cases of individuals where the wires got crossed ... and individuals were removed from Covered California coverage before their Medi-Cal coverage was live, where notices were not as good as they should be."
Lee added that the exchange is "working to improve" notices to affected individuals (Lin, AP/Sacramento Bee, 9/18).
Board Votes Against Taking Sides on Prop. 45
Meanwhile, the exchange board on Thursday voted to refrain from taking an official position on Proposition 45, which would give the state government regulatory authority over health insurance premium rates.
Board members previously had called for the exchange to issue a formal statement against the measure.
Diana Dooley -- chair of the exchange board and secretary of the state Health and Human Services Agency -- said, "I think we have established a reputation of openness, evidence and consumer protection and for that reason I have been unwilling to further make this political by taking a formal board position."
However, Dooley added, "I personally have some very serious concerns about the interaction of the plain language of this initiative and the work that we've invested in making the Affordable Care Act real in California."
During the board meeting, members also chose not to vote on whether they could use their official titles when talking about the initiative (Cadelago, "Capitol Alert," Sacramento Bee, 9/18).
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