Latest California Healthline Stories
Legal Expert Says State May Be Out of Compliance on Autism Therapy Benefit
It’s been almost a month since federal officials released guidance about including coverage of autism therapy as a Medicaid benefit. Not acting on that guidance might expose the state to legal risk, one expert says.
Judge Allows State Conservator To Take Over Public Health Plan’s Finances
The struggle over the financial workings of a public health plan in Alameda County ended last week when a Superior Court judge ruled the state may appoint the conservator of its choice to temporarily run Alameda Alliance for Health.
Tribal Health Leaders Ask for Consistency, Assistance From Covered California
California tribal leaders and Covered California officials met to work on unique health coverage problems faced by American Indians ranging from inconsistent interpretations of eligibility to outreach among rural areas without Internet.
Older LGBT Patients Have Unique Set of Medicare, Medi-Cal Benefit Issues
The federal approach to benefits for same-sex couples can be confusing, in part because of conflicting recognition and regulation between states — and that can have an effect on California policy.
Medicaid Waiver Renewal Process Starts
California health officials hope to include new shared-savings ideas in the next version of the state’s Medicaid reform waiver. The current version, known as the “Bridge to Reform,” expires next year.
Brown Signs Exchange Board Diversity Bill
Covered California now can recruit board members based on computer or marketing expertise, rather than just health care policy knowledge, according to a bill signed into law by the governor.
Many Steps To Go Before Authorizing Autism Therapy as Benefit, State Says
State officials said they were waiting for federal guidance before approving autism therapy as a covered Medi-Cal benefit. Now that CMS has issued that guidance, the state says it still needs more time to decide whether that’s possible.
Reaching Remaining Uninsured Will Be Difficult and Expensive, Experts Predict
A significant drop in the number of Californians without health insurance shows the success of Covered California and Medi-Cal expansion, but reaching the remaining uninsured will take careful analysis, enhanced outreach and funding, according to state health officials.
Judge Delays Alameda County Ruling
A Superior Court judge in Alameda County has put off making a decision about who should be running the finances following a state takeover of an East Bay local-initiative health plan.
State Hopes To Cut Medi-Cal Enrollment Backlog Nearly in Half by August
California health officials, responding to a request from federal officials, explained their plans to deal with a massive Medi-Cal application backlog. A letter to CMS included a rough timeline to fix the problem.