Latest California Healthline Stories
Exchange-Based Plans Contain Administrative Hurdles for Rx Drugs
A new Avalere Health analysis finds that U.S. residents who purchase health coverage through the Affordable Care Act’s insurance exchanges are twice as likely to face administrative obstacles — such as mandatory screenings or step therapy — for certain prescription drugs as those who have employer-sponsored coverage. Modern Healthcare et al.
80M People Deemed Uninsured, Underinsured in 2012, Study Finds
A report by the Commonwealth Fund finds that nearly 80 million U.S. residents were uninsured or underinsured in 2012. The report notes that many of those residents live in states that have declined to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. NBC News, The Hill‘s “Healthwatch.”
State To Send Voter Registration Materials to Exchange Enrollees
In response to the threat of a lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union, California officials yesterday announced that the state will send voter registration cards to residents who have obtained health coverage through the state’s health insurance exchange. Los Angeles Times et al.
Governor Signs Bill Ensuring Continuity of Care Amid ACA
Gov. Brown has signed into law a bill that aims to ensure continuity of care for Californians with health conditions who are forced to switch health plans because their coverage was canceled due to stricter standards under the Affordable Care Act. The new law went into effect March 20. Sacramento Business Journal.
Proponents of Raising Calif.’s Medical Malpractice Cap Submit Signatures To Qualify Ballot Measure
On Monday, backers of a proposed ballot initiative that would alter state law to increase the limits on medical malpractice compensation to about $1.1 million submitted signatures to qualify the measure. About 830,000 signatures were submitted in favor of the initiative — far more than the 504,000 signatures required to qualify the measure. Los Angeles Times‘ “PolitiCal,” Reuters.
California Doctors Use DNA Testing To Accelerate Valley Fever Diagnosis, Treatment
California doctors at the Community Regional Medical Center in Fresno have discovered a way to diagnose Valley fever through DNA testing, shortening the diagnosis time of the potentially fatal disease from more than two weeks to as few as five hours. Dominic Dizon, an assistant professor at the UC-San Francisco, said the research will soon be published, and the machine to help treat patients will soon be available for purchase. AP/Sacramento Bee.
Biden Predicts All States Eventually Will Expand Medicaid
During at a conference of the National Association of Community Health Centers in Washington, D.C. on Friday, Vice President Biden predicted that Republican-governed states that have declined to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act eventually will succumb to political pressure and reverse their decisions. Biden added, “I’m convinced, as a practitioner of the so-called art of politics, that they … will not be able to sustain the heat.” Washington Post‘s “Post Politics.”
California’s Flu-Related Death Toll Reaches 342; Health Officials Say Flu Season Is Declining
As of March 15, a total of 342 California residents under age 65 had died after contracting influenza this year and an additional 15 deaths are being investigated for possible links to the flu. However, the state Department of Public Health reports that the number of flu cases in California is slowing. Sacramento Bee‘s “Healthy Choices,” KPCC’s “KPCC News.”
Stanford, L.A. Contractor Tentatively Ordered To Pay $4.1M in Lawsuit Settlement Over Data Breach
Last week, a Los Angeles County Superior Court judge tentatively ruled that Stanford Hospital & Clinics and Multi-Specialty Collection Services in Los Angeles must pay a $4.1 million settlement in a class action lawsuit. The lawsuit was filed after the medical information of 20,000 patients treated in the hospital’s emergency department was posted on a public website for nearly a year. San Jose Mercury News.
Lawmakers Likely To Pass Another ‘Doc Fix’ Ahead of Payment Cuts
Lawmakers are reportedly considering another short-term “doc fix” as they work to reach a consensus on a longer term plan to repeal and replace the sustainable growth rate formula for physicians’ Medicare reimbursement before the April 1 deadline. AP/Sacramento Bee, CQ Roll Call.