Latest Morning Briefing Stories
After Promising Universal Health Care, Gov. Newsom Must Reconsider Immigrant Coverage
Gov. Gavin Newsom was elected to office in 2019 on a promise of universal health care. He dramatically expanded coverage, but after six years, the Democrat is forced to contemplate deep cuts — including to the nation’s largest health care expansion to immigrants living in the U.S. without legal permission.
A California Lawmaker Leans Into Her Medical Training in Fight for Health Safety Net
As California’s budget deadline looms, state Sen. Akilah Weber Pierson, a physician-turned-lawmaker, says state leaders may soon have to make some tough decisions on health care spending. With the state’s Medi-Cal program billions of dollars short, California’s health care safety net is at risk — even without federal cuts to Medicaid.
Seeking Spending Cuts, GOP Lawmakers Target a Tax Hospitals Love To Pay
Republicans, on the hunt for spending cuts, are eyeing a special kind of Medicaid tax that nearly every state uses to boost funding for hospitals, nursing homes, and other providers.
Covered California Pushes for Better Health Care as Federal Spending Cuts Loom
Monica Soni, Covered California’s chief medical officer, oversees an effort to hold health plans financially accountable for the quality of care they provide, including childhood vaccination rates, which have fallen in California and nationwide. She worries federal spending cuts could soon bring turbulence to the state’s Affordable Care Act marketplace.
California’s Primary Care Shortage Persists Despite Ambitious Moves To Close Gap
The state has in recent years embraced several initiatives recommended in an influential health care workforce report, including alternative payment arrangements for primary care doctors to earn more. Despite increasing residency programs, student debt forgiveness, and tuition-free medical school, California is unlikely to meet patient demand, observers say.
What ‘Fertilization President’ Trump Can Learn From State Efforts To Expand IVF Access
State-level efforts to regulate fertility coverage reveal the gauntlet of budgetary and political hurdles such initiatives face — obstacles that have led to millions of people being left out even when mandates become law.
Medi-Cal Under Threat: Who’s Covered and What Could Be Cut?
Federal law requires states to offer health insurance to many people with low incomes or disabilities. But some states, including California, are far more generous than what’s required. Budget pressures may force lawmakers to cut benefits that have led to a historic low in the uninsured rate.
California Halts Medical Parole, Sends Several Critically Ill Patients Back to Prison
California has unilaterally halted a court-ordered medical parole program. Instead, it’s sending its most incapacitated prisoners back to state lockups or releasing them early. The change is drawing protests from attorneys representing prisoners and the author of the medical parole law, who argue prisoners’ health may be compromised.
Fate of Black Maternal Health Programs Is Unclear Amid Federal Cuts
In California, Black women are at least three times as likely as white women to die from pregnancy-related causes. Santa Clara County initiatives aimed at reducing racial disparities work but depend on federal dollars — money that might not flow amid budget cuts and a push to end diversity, equity, and inclusion programs.
States Push Medicaid Work Rules, but Few Programs Help Enrollees Find Jobs
Republicans are pushing to implement requirements that Medicaid recipients work in order to obtain or retain coverage. Some states try to help enrollees find jobs. But states lack the data to show whether they’re effective.