Latest California Healthline Stories
State Appeals Ruling on Disability Funding
In May, a federal judge issued an injunction to halt the state’s freeze on funding for programs for the developmentally disabled.
Yesterday, California attorneys were back in court, this time at the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals in Pasadena, to ask that the May decision be overturned.
Craig Cannizzo, who argued the case on behalf of individuals with developmental disabilities, said this case has far-reaching implications because the state did not get permission from CMS for the rate freeze.
Legislative Hearing Frames Looming Impact of Federal Cuts
Edwin Park was not exactly a ray of sunshine.
The policy expert from Washington, D.C., testified recently at an Assembly budget subcommittee hearing in Sacramento on the effects of impending federal budget cuts to California.
“The major Medicaid proposals [being considered] would substantially shift cost to the states,” Park said. “Some Medicare savings would also shift cost to the states. And states like California will have to compensate for these cuts.”
Health Reform, LGBT, Telehealth Bills Signed
More than two dozen bills directly related to health care were signed into law over the weekend by Gov. Jerry Brown (D).
Despite some initial opposition from the Health Benefit Exchange board, the governor signed AB 1296 by Susan Bonilla (D-Martinez), a measure that creates the Health Care Reform Eligibility, Enrollment and Retention Planning Act. It requires state Health and Human Services officials to set up standardized forms and procedures to apply for or renew eligibility and enrollment in state subsidy programs.
It’s part of the no-wrong-door approach to streamline enrollment in Medi-Cal, the Health Benefit Exchange and other state assistance programs.
Process Opens To Get Federal EHR Incentive Money
For Raul Ramirez, it has been a long time coming.
“This is a big day for providers, for the state. This is a big day for California,” Ramirez said.
Ramirez, chief of the Department of Health Care Services’ Office of Health Information Technology, was talking about this week’s initial processing of applications for up to $1.4 billion in federal funds for the state’s electronic health record incentive program.
Reimbursement for Emergency Transport Becomes Law
It’s been a busy week for Gov. Jerry Brown (D), and it will get busier. Brown has until midnight Sunday to approve or reject the stack of bills sent to him by the Legislature.
Since the end of last week, Brown has signed 104 bills into law and rejected 10. Among the approvals were a number of health-related measures:
Quality Ratings Offered in Medicare Enrollment Window
Open enrollment for Medicare starts at the end of next week. This week, the federal government launched its online service to help people make Medicare decisions. This year, ther service offers a little something extra, according to David Sayen, the regional administrator for CMS.
“This enrollment period is different,” Sayen said. “For the first time, we’re rewarding quality.”
Medicare Advantage plans now will be rated for quality of care. Part D prescription drug plans will continue to be rated for quality.
How Long Can We Avoid Long-Term Care?
At a conference in Sacramento last week, advocates kept calling it a crisis in care in California — and at the same time acknowledging that citizens’ and policymakers’ eyes seem to glaze over whenever the subject of long-term care comes up.
Given the huge swell of about-to-be-seniors who will need care in California, it’s certainly an important subject. One of the touchstones of the conference was that the long-term care world needs a new, less scary way of framing the issue — it needs to develop a new language.
Because it can be so difficult to engage Californians on the subject, the legislative infrastructure has not yet been fully set up. According to Diana Dooley, secretary of the Health and Human Services Agency, there is a lot of room right now for input on the subject.
UC-Davis Wins Emergency Services Lawsuit
The courts have sided with UC-Davis Medical Center, ruling this week that Sacramento County must pay for emergency services for indigent patients.
Superior Court Judge Lloyd Connelly said the county has a responsibility to pay for indigent care, whether the county contracts with a specific provider of those emergency services or not.
“The judge rejected every defense the county had to not pay us,” UC-Davis attorney David Levine said. “He conclusively confirmed that they owe us money, and they have to pay us.”
Budget Cuts Could Put Developmentally Disabled ‘in Danger’
Yesterday, The Arc of California filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court in Fresno, saying that state officials have violated federal law by shortchanging programs for people with developmental disabilities.
The Arc, a national advocacy organization that began in 1953 as NARC — the National Association for Retarded Children — changed its name to The Arc in 1992.
“We want to stop the state from violating federal law, with both their direct and indirect payments,” according to lead attorney Bill McLaughlin.
Legislative Hearing Looks at Rural Health
The list of rural health issues is a long one, according to Steve Barrow of the California State Rural Health Association. But it can be summed up by one statistic, he said.
“In the rural areas, we have 30% of the state’s Medi-Cal patients, and we have 10% of the state’s population,” Barrow said.
Barrow was one of the presenters at a recent bipartisan legislative hearing on rural health issues, presided over by Assembly members Alyson Huber (D-El Dorado Hills) and Linda Halderman (R-Fresno).