Latest California Healthline Stories
ED Use Growing at Steady Pace in Los Angeles County, Despite ACA Implementation
A Los Angeles Times analysis finds that emergency department use in Los Angeles County continued to increase during the first six months of Affordable Care Act implementation, countering claims that the health reform law would reduce expensive ED visits and that newly insured residents would use less ED care. Data show that ED visits for medical issues that did not require an admission grew 3.9% in the county during the first half of 2014, which is in line with growth in years prior to the ACA’s implementation. Los Angeles Times.
Several Affordable Care Act Provisions To Take Effect in 2015
The employer mandate and several other provisions of the Affordable Care Act are scheduled to take effect for the first time this year. Meanwhile, the health care reform law continues to face legal and political challenges, such as a looming Supreme Court case on the legality of federal subsidies given to U.S. residents to purchase coverage through the federal exchange. The Hill et al.
FDA Clears 41 New Drugs in 2014; Approval Rate Hits 18-Year High
FDA in 2014 approved 41 new medicines, the highest number of U.S. drug approvals since 1996. The increase in drug approvals was primarily driven by cancer drugs and treatments for rare diseases, which accounted for nearly 40% of FDA’s approvals last year. Reuters.
State Has No Plans To Maintain Rate Increase for Medi-Cal Physicians
State officials have no plans to make up for a recently expired federal incentive program that was used to encourage physicians to see more Medicaid beneficiaries. The “Medicaid fee bump” program expired with the start of 2015. Los Angeles Times.
California Hospital News Roundup for the Week of January 2, 2015
About 2,600 Kaiser Permanente mental health clinicians plan to launch a weeklong strike on Jan. 12 at hospitals across the state to protest inadequate mental health care at the health system. St. Helena Hospital will pay $2.25 million to settle claims over the alleged overuse of cardiac operations and overbilling of Medicare.
CDC Officials: Flu Season Has Reached Epidemic Status
CDC has announced that this year’s influenza season has qualified as an epidemic, with a hospitalization rate for all patients of 9.7 people per 100,000, compared with 4.3 people per 100,000 last year. Experts say almost every flu season achieves “epidemic” status, but it was reached unusually early in the season this year. New York Times‘ “The Upshot.”
Six Calif. Judges Sue CalPERS Over Pension Contributions
Six California Superior Court judges have filed a lawsuit against CalPERS and the state of California, arguing that their pension contributions have been unlawfully increased and should be decreased by about $13,000 annually. The six judges were elected in 2012 and are each paid more than $181,000 annually. Reuters.
Covered California Prepares for Changes to Board of Directors
With three open seats on Covered California’s five-member board of directors, the state’s health insurance exchange is preparing for the first major changes since it was created four years ago. Gov. Brown is responsible for appointing two members, while incoming Senate President Pro Tempore Kevin de León will fill the third open slot. AP/San Francisco Chronicle.
California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones said the state’s health insurance exchange is violating the law by canceling private coverage for up to 95,000 residents because they might qualify for Medi-Cal. Jones said, “The law is very clear. They can’t cancel people.” He added that health plans only can cancel coverage for certain reasons, such as failure to pay premiums, fraud or relocation to a new area. Los Angeles Times.
California Insurers No Longer Allowed To Impose Waiting Period on Most Small Business Employees
Beginning Jan. 1, 2015, state law will bar health insurers in California from imposing a waiting period for coverage for small business employees. Federal law allows insurers to issue a waiting period of up to 90 days for such workers. Insurers in the state still can impose waiting periods for small business employees who are in a probationary period of work. Capital Public Radio’s “KXJZ News.”