Latest California Healthline Stories
A Tale of Two Campaigns: Repeal vs. Reinforce
Republican efforts to do away with health reform have coalesced around a strategy to defund the law. Meanwhile, Democrats will mount a spirited defense of the overhaul timed to its six-month anniversary and the rollout of new provisions.
Parts of Health Care Reform Begin in California This Week
The national health care reform law was signed by President Obama six months ago, and a few provisions of that law go into effect in California and the rest of the nation this week, beginning Sept. 23.
In California, many of the laws recently passed in the Legislature are similar or even identical to federal reform — maternity care mandates, coverage for dependents till age 26, coverage of pre-existing conditions, for instance — so a question arises:
Why do we even need all of those matching state laws?
Deep in the Pile of Health Bills To Be Signed
So quick, tell me what the Maddy Fund is, and why it needs a new law to fix it. Or what’s the big problem with the peer review system in California?
These questions and more will be answered this month by Governor Schwarzenegger, who has until Sept. 30 to sign or veto hundreds of bills passed by the Legislature, dozens of them health care-related.
The Maddy Fund is an emergency medical services fund set up by counties to reimburse physicians, hospitals, poison control centers and other emergency expenses.
Fat Californians Putting Strain on Health Economy
More California adults are obese or overweight than those who aren’t and almost 40% of children in public schools in California are overweight or obese, according to recent research. We asked stakeholders how policymakers and insurers should combat obesity in California.
It May Be Arcane, But It’s Also Vital
Almost everyone in the health care world knows how important the Medicaid waiver is to California — and really, to the nation.
As the first state to implement national health reform ideals on such a large scale, what happens in California by Oct. 31 with the $10 billion waiver is something that will affect how health care reform is put in place in many other states.
But not everyone in the health care world understands all of the complex give-and-take involved in so many rule changes and manipulations of the health care market.
Hope, Fear in State’s Community Clinics
There are some in the health care world who contend clinics caring for Medi-Cal patients and the uninsured are doomed to failure. Not so, according to a study released yesterday by the California HealthCare Foundation, which publishes California Healthline.
The report, Financial Health of Community Clinics, found that financially stronger clinics serve a high number of low-income patients and manage to have high reimbursement levels compared to financially weaker clinics.
Carmela Castellano-Garcia can explain that one. She’s president and CEO of the California Primary Care Association which represents more than 800 clinics and health centers in the state.
Medicaid Waiver Big, Innovative and Worth $10 Billion
California officials hope a new agreement being negotiated now with CMS will result in about $2 billion a year in federal money for Medi-Cal over the next five years — roughly doubling the current federal contribution. They’re redesigning Medi-Cal with the aim of establishing an innovative, state-of-the-art managed health care system.
Little Concern About Waiver Timing
When the state Assembly and Senate gather to vote on a budget for California — whenever that may be — members will also vote on the $10 billion Medicaid waiver.
The Medicaid waiver is the plan California has laid out in months of negotiations with CMS to implement the revised Medi-Cal program in California, and to prepare the state for health care reform.
Since California is ahead of the national curve on getting set for the health care reform law, many other states are watching what happens here — which puts additional pressure on federal approval of this large and innovative waiver plan.
Exchanging Challenges in Health Plan Marketplace
While California is poised to emerge as a health reform leader with a new health insurance exchange, the state — like many — still faces numerous challenges over the exchange’s operation.
The best thing that happened to health insurance rate regulation was the last thing its proponents wanted to see.
When Anthem Blue Cross announced it planned to raise individual rates by as much as 39% back in February, it was the type of steep rate hike regulation proponents had been warning against for many months.
The public scorn and outrage prompted by that rate hike proposal was insurance regulation’s best friend — but, it turned out, was not enough to propel legislation.