Latest California Healthline Stories
Covered Calif. Receives $155M Federal Grant for Outreach
Covered California announced that it has received $155 million in additional federal funds to remedy customer service issues and increase enrollment efforts, specifically among Latinos. With the new grant, the exchange now has received about $1.1 billion in federal funds. San Francisco Business Times‘ “Bay Area BizTalk,” Los Angeles Times.
GAO: Most Medicare Advantage Plans Met Medical-Loss Ratio
A new Government Accountability Office report shows that Medicare Advantage plans in 2011 spent an average of 86.3% of their revenue on medical expenses, exceeding the Affordable Care Act’s 85% medical-loss ratio requirement. However, it finds that 39% of MA beneficiaries were enrolled in plans that failed to meet the ACA standard. Modern Healthcare, GAO report.
Moody’s Downgrades Insurers’ Outlook in Wake of ACA Rollout
Citing the Affordable Care Act’s rocky rollout and lower-than-expected enrollment among young adults in the insurance exchanges, Moody’s Investors Services downgraded its outlook for the U.S. health insurance industry from stable to negative. Washington Post et al.
Stanford Nabs $3M To Use Big Data To Boost Health Care
On Thursday, the Stanford University School of Medicine announced that it has received $3 million from the Li Ka Shing Foundation to use big data to improve health care. The donation will be used to connect Stanford with the University of Oxford in England, as the two universities search vast amounts of data in an effort to boost medical research. San Francisco Business Times‘ “BiotechSF.”
Yesterday, Gov. Brown asked a panel of federal judges to grant California two additional years to meet a court-ordered cap on the state prison population. Brown requested that the new deadline to meet the order be Feb. 28, 2016. In addition, he suggested that the court appoint a compliance officer who would determine which inmates to release if the state does not meet that later deadline. Los Angeles Times et al.
California Hospital News Roundup for the Week of January 24, 2014
The Daughters of Charity Health System has announced that it will sell six California hospitals. Pomona Valley Hospital Medical Center will lay off 76 employees and reduce hours for another 111 workers. UC-San Francisco Medical Center has confirmed its affiliation with Children’s Hospital Research Center Oakland.
Employers in the 25 states that have declined to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act could face more than $1 billion in total fines annually beginning in 2015, when the law’s employer mandate begins, according to a new Jackson Hewitt Tax Service report. Under the law, employers with at least 50 full-time workers must provide affordable health coverage or face a $2,000 fine per worker after the first 30 employees. If a worker eligible for a federal subsidy uses it to obtain coverage through an exchange, the employers faces a $3,000 penalty. CNBC.
Editorial Argues Covered California ‘Must Do a Better Job’ With Outreach to Latino Population
A Sacramento Bee editorial argues that Covered California “must do a better job” of reaching Latino residents, who account for 59% of the uninsured population in the state. The editorial adds that the low Latino enrollment through the exchange is “disappointing and surprising” and that additional “[i]n-person help clearly is needed” to reach such individuals. Sacramento Bee.
California providers are reporting that they are treating a higher number of patients with respiratory and allergy problems amid near-record dry conditions across the state. Health officials say exposure to fine particles that are trapped near the ground because of the dry conditions also can lead to heart disease, asthma and cancer. UPI.
Oversight Hearing Tackles Backlog of Caregiver Abuse Complaints
Two state Assembly committees held an oversight hearing yesterday to determine how to best handle the backlog of complaints of caregiver abuse at long-term care facilities throughout the state. Health officials say there are 700 backlogged complaint investigations, while reform advocates say the number is closer to 10,000. Center for Investigative Reporting.