Latest California Healthline Stories
Calif. Groups Push To Enroll Young Adults in ACA Coverage
Covered California and other health care groups are launching initiatives to convince young adults to enroll in health plans under the Affordable Care Act. Some campaigns emphasize how health coverage can boost financial stability. Los Angeles Times.
Report: Iraqi Refugees in Sacramento Struggle To Access Mental Care
A new report by UC-Davis finds that many Iraqi refugees in the Sacramento area struggle to obtain mental health services. Experts say such refugees often are reluctant to discuss their conditions and sometimes find it difficult to navigate the U.S. health system. Sacramento Bee, UC-Davis report.
Assembly Bill To Tighten Charity Care Rules Shelved
On Friday, the Assembly shelved for the year a bill that would have required not-for-profit hospitals to justify their tax-exempt status by providing more details about the charitable care they provide. The bill, by Assembly member Bob Wieckowski, was unable to garner enough votes to pass. The California Nurses Association and other labor groups supported the bill, while the California Hospital Association and business groups opposed the measure. AP/Modern Healthcare.
California Health Care Personnel News Update for May 2013
Leon Panetta, who previously served on Blue Shield of California’s board of directors from 2000 to 2009, has returned as a board member. Anthony Manzanetti has stepped down as chief counsel and deputy director of the California Department of Managed Health Care.
Hospital Insurance Trust Fund Insolvency Date Extended by Two Years
The Medicare and Social Security Board of Trustees estimates that Medicare’s hospital insurance trust fund will become insolvent in 2026. The report attributes the two-year extension to slower growth in health care spending and provisions in the Affordable Care Act. Washington Post et al.
HHS Confirms Delay of Part of Small Business Health Options Program
A final rule released Friday confirms that the Obama administration is delaying for one year a portion of the Small Business Health Options Program in which employees can select from multiple plans because it “is too complex for insurers to implement by 2014.” The Hill‘s “Healthwatch” et al.
Assembly Rejects Bill on Medical Marijuana Regulation
On Friday, the Assembly voted 35-37 to reject a bill, by Assembly member Tom Ammiano, that would have created a state regulatory agency to establish guidelines around the cultivation, sale and taxation of medical marijuana. Ammiano’s office said the measure stalled because of a procedural issue that caused voting to end prematurely. In a release, Ammiano said he would continue to push the measure and work on “getting this to the governor’s desk for his signature this year.” Sacramento Bee‘s “Capitol Alert.”
Report: ACA Might Raise Some Consumers’ Premiums by 40%
The Affordable Care Act might increase premiums for some consumers by as much as 40%, but many other individuals will see their overall costs drop as a result of the subsidies provided under the law, according to a report released by research organizatin Center Forward. The survey corroborates the findings of a March Society of Actuaries report that highlighted wide disparities in the projected claims cost increases among states. The Hill‘s “Healthwatch,” Modern Healthcare.
Columnist Discusses Insurers’ Confusing Rx Drug Pricing
Los Angeles Times columnist David Lazarus writes that an examination of drug pricing practices between insurers and mail-order pharmacies reveals “how difficult it can be for consumers to know whether they’re being charged a fair or even reasonable price for prescription drugs.” He cites a situation where a California resident found that the cost of a 90-day supply of a cholesterol drug through Aetna’s mail-order pharmacy “was nearly four times as costly as the retail alternative,” even though insurers typically tell consumers to buy drugs from mail-order pharmacies if they want cheaper prices. Los Angeles Times.
Realignment Changing Role of Sheriffs, State Agency Says
In a letter to Gov. Brown and legislative leaders on Thursday, the Little Hoover Commission said that a state prisoner realignment law is requiring local sheriffs to act as de facto judges and decide how long convicts should serve and who should make bail. Under the law, many lower-level convicts are sent to county jails instead of state prisons in an effort to reduce prison overcrowding and improve inmate health care. AP/U-T San Diego.