Latest California Healthline Stories
Cal INDEX Names More of C-Suite Team, Looks To Launch by End of 2014
The California Integrated Data Exchange — a statewide health information exchange created by Blue Shield of California and Anthem Blue Cross — has hired John Lee, former MedeAnalytics chief technology officer, as its CTO, Greg LeClaire — former chief financial officer of Aetna subsidiaries Medicity, HDMS and Population Health IT — as CFO and Andrea Leeb, a registered nurse and attorney, as chief privacy officer. Cal INDEX, which named former Oracle vice president of health care strategy David Watson as CEO in September, is expected to launch by the end of the year. Government Health IT.
Judge Denies Restraining Order Against Medi-Cal Cancellations
Thousands of California Medicaid beneficiaries will receive notices next week that their coverage is being terminated after a judge denied a request for a temporary restraining order against the state Department of Health Care Services to prevent the cancellations. Los Angeles Times‘ “L.A. Now.”
Arizona residents earlier this month approved a referendum that permits patients with terminal illnesses to access experimental treatments and devices, making the state the fifth in the country to adopt a “right-to-try” law in 2014. Colorado, Louisiana, Michigan and Missouri also passed right-to-try laws in 2014. Kaiser Health News‘ “Insuring Your Health.”
Obama Asks Congress To Approve $6.2B To Fight Ebola
President Obama on Tuesday asked Congress to approve his request for $6.2 billion to fight Ebola before lawmakers go on recess in mid-December. At a meeting with the White House’s Ebola response team, Obama said that while there had been some progress made, “[w]e are nowhere near out of the woods yet” in terms of containing the virus in West Africa. Reuters.
VA Mails Second Round of Choice Cards To Help Reduce Wait Times
The Department of Veterans Affairs is mailing a second round of Veterans Choice Cards to veterans who have been waiting more than 30 days for an appointment at a VA health care facility. The choice cards were implemented under a reform bill that gives those veterans access to federally subsidized care at non-VA facilities. Washington Post‘s “Federal Eye,” CQ Roll Call.
GOP Sens. Press HHS To Scrutinize Spending on Failed Exchanges
In a letter to HHS Secretary Sylvia Mathews Burwell, three Republican senators ask whether HHS will seek to recover federal funding from states that built their own insurance exchanges and experienced significant technological issues. The senators say that there have been “hundreds of millions of dollars in government waste” on failed exchanges. Modern Healthcare et al.
Report: Elective Procedure Rates Vary by Location Across California
A report by the California HealthCare Foundation finds that the rates of elective procedures for several common health conditions vary depending on where residents live within California. For example, Avalon had a cervical decompression surgery rate 486% higher than the state average. KQED’s “State of Health” et al.
Covered California Enrollment Up Despite Call Center, Website Issues
A Covered California official says “many more” residents enrolled in health coverage during the first day of the exchange’s second open enrollment period, compared with last year. However, the exchange also has received reports of problems with its website and call center for small businesses and insurance agents. Sacramento Business Journal.
ACA Premium Increases In Line With Rate Increases for Work-Based Coverage, Analyses Find
Analyses show that premium increases for plans sold through the Affordable Care Act’s insurance exchanges in 2015 are in line with past years’ average rate hikes in the employer-based insurance market. For example, the Kaiser Family Foundation estimated that premiums for employer-sponsored coverage have increased by about 4% annually since 2007, while average premiums will increase by 2% for mid-range “silver” plans and increase by 4% for “bronze” plans. Washington Post‘s “Monkey Cage.”
In a filing Monday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court, San Bernardino agreed to make full payments to CalPERS, keep their retirement plans intact and repay overdue payments. The decision to continue payments comes in spite of a court ruling last month allowing Stockton to reduce payments for future workers’ retirements. Stockton also decided to continue making full payments. Sacramento Bee.