Latest California Healthline Stories
New To Medicare? Drop Covered California Fast
It’s open-enrollment season again, and I’m not just talking about Covered California. Among those making important health care decisions right now are more than 50 million Americans – including more than 5 million Californians – who have Medicare. That’s the federal health insurance program for people 65 and older and those with kidney failure and certain […]
Open Enrollment II: Tips For Obamacare’s Second Year
I’m a notorious penny-pincher, though I much prefer the term “thrifty.” So I have some counterintuitive advice when it comes to picking a Covered California plan: Cheaper isn’t always better. I’ll explain why below and provide other advice for this year’s Covered California (and private market) open-enrollment season, which starts Nov. 15 and ends Feb. […]
Key Efforts To Reform Health Reform
It has been quite a year. More than 3 million of you signed up for new health coverage in California. But many of you couldn’t find doctors who accepted your plans. Some of you were charged hundreds or thousands of dollars for desperately needed prescription medications. And let’s not forget Medi-Cal, where legions waited for […]
Translations Key To Keeping Coverage
Covered California, the state’s health insurance exchange, has taken a lot of heat for its communication – or lack thereof – to consumers who don’t speak English well. To its credit, the agency has improved in the past year, especially in its Spanish-language offerings and enrollment-related materials. Unfortunately the news isn’t so great when it […]
Look Ma, No Option! My Teeth Are Covered.
Like many things in Obamacare, dental insurance is more complicated than it should be. In today’s column, I’ll try to bring some clarity to the issue and preview coming changes that may affect how often you see a dentist – and at what cost. There’s some good news amid the complexity, especially for kids. Q: […]
Does Covered California Really Have You Covered?
A worrisome trend is emerging among some Californians who thought they were safe and secure under Covered California: Their plans are being canceled without consent and sometimes without notice. Take Ricki Manahan, who lives in Truckee, a mountain town north of Lake Tahoe. Manahan and her husband signed up for an Anthem plan from Covered […]
Change And No Change At The Exchange
I’m sure you’ve heard that premiums for plans sold through our health insurance exchange, Covered California, will go up an average of 4.2 percent next year. Just remember, “average” means just that. Your premium increase (or decrease in some cases) will depend on a variety of factors, including where you live and what plan you […]
Big Bills Lurk In Specialty Drug Category
It used to be that your health plan’s annual out-of-pocket maximum was more like the safety net under a high wire: You sure were glad it was there, but you didn’t actually plan to use it. These days, it could take one measly trip to the pharmacy for you to lose your balance and fall […]
Medi-Cal Renewals: Another Backlog On Horizon?
Let’s start with some good news (because everything is relative): The backlog of Medi-Cal applications that I called “monumental” last month is now merely “massive.” About 600,000 people – some of whom applied last year – are still waiting for their Medi-Cal applications to be processed, down from 900,000 previously, state officials report. The bad news […]
Help! Help! Out-Of-Network Emergency Woes
Last year, I developed an antibiotic-resistant infection on my arm when I was traveling on the East Coast. With each day, it grew scarier and more painful, and it was spreading. Like a good girl, I called my health insurance company here in California and they pointed me to specific urgent care clinics, assuring me […]