Latest California Healthline Stories
Covered Calif. Announces $10M in Grants for Enrollment Efforts
Last week, Covered California announced that it awarded more than $10 million in grants to nearly 70 community navigator organizations across the state to help boost enrollment during the third open enrollment period, which begins on Nov. 1. KRON4 et al.
Calif. Democrats Reintroduce Package of Tobacco Bills
California Democrats have reintroduced a package of bills that aims to raise the legal smoking age, add restrictions to electronic cigarettes and allow local jurisdictions to tax tobacco, among other things. Advocates have expressed support for the measures, but Republicans say they are hesitant to pass new government restrictions. AP/San Francisco Chronicle et al.
DMHC Director Calls Aetna’s 21% Rate Hike for Small Business Plans ‘Unreasonable’ and ‘Unacceptable’
Shelley Rouillard, director of the California Department of Managed Health Care, said that Aetna’s 21% rate increase for small business plans is “unreasonable” and “unacceptable.” Rouillard added, “We are not seeing this from other plans — which generally do not have double-digit increases — and Aetna has not provided data to us to show this is warranted.” Sacramento Business Journal, Los Angeles Times.
Tavenner To Lead America’s Health Insurance Plans
The board of America’s Health Insurance Plans has unanimously voted to make former CMS Administrator Marilyn Tavenner the insurance trade group’s new president and CEO. Members of the group include Aetna, Anthem, Humana, Kaiser Permanente and several Blue Cross and Blue Shield firms. New York Times et al.
Sacramento County Receives $5.7M for Residential Treatment Centers To Treat Mental Health Crises
The California Health Facilities Financing Authority has awarded a $5.7 million grant to Sacramento County. The funding will be used to establish three new 15-bed mental health crisis residential treatment facilities. The county will pay for treatment once the centers are established. Sacramento Business Journal.
L.A. County Approves $3.1M To Develop Database Linking Department of Health Services, Other Agencies
The Los Angeles County supervisors have allocated $3.1 million for the early development stages of a countywide data system that initially will link the departments of Children and Family Services, Health Services and Mental Health. More county departments are expected to be included in the database later. According to county officials, the system will allow the agencies to collaborate their services more effectively. However, it would not include specific data on individuals’ diagnoses or treatments. Los Angeles Time‘ “L.A. Now.”
Report Suggests DOI, DMHC Should Become One Agency
The California Department of Insurance and the state Department of Managed Health Care should be consolidated into one agency, according to a new report by the California HealthCare Foundation and Kelch Policy Group. California is the only state that has two regulatory agencies for insurance plans. The report suggests that the state could move individual and small-group coverage to DMHC’s umbrella or require Covered California to work solely with health plans licensed by DMHC. Sacramento Business Journal.
CMS Proposes Value-Based Payments for Hip, Knee Replacements
CMS is proposing moving Medicare payments for hip and knee replacements to a value-based system that would require providers to repay part of their reimbursements if patients contract preventable infections or other complications. CMS also says Medicare will now cover joint Pap smear and human papillomavirus testing for women every five years. Washington Post et al.
FDA Extends Compliance Deadline for Calorie-Count Requirements
FDA says it will give certain food establishments until Dec. 1, 2016, to comply with a rule that requires them to display calorie counts on their menus. FDA says it delayed the original December 2015 deadline in response to industry requests for more time to develop systems for accurate nutrition labeling. Washington Post‘s “To Your Health” et al.
Audit: Gun Ownership Backlog Persists, Poses Safety Risk
A state audit released yesterday finds that a California program to identify whether individuals with mental health issues or histories of violent behavior illegally own guns has been riddled with delays. In the first quarter of this year, about 3,600 reports of individuals barred from owning guns were backlogged. Los Angeles Times‘ “L.A. Now.”