Health Care Costs

Latest California Healthline Stories

Mass. Panic: Did State Wait Too Long To Try Cost Control?

Experts are cautiously optimistic that a new Massachusetts law will be a much-anticipated cure for the state’s rising health spending. But others say that the state’s new cost controls — which could be a model for the nation — aren’t the right prescription for reform.

Paramedics Could Lighten L.A. County’s EMS Load

Proponents of expanded roles for emergency medical personnel say a goldmine of untapped health care resources in Los Angeles County is ripe for mining. Changes brought on by health care reform could make the transition smoother.

Health Care Task Force Starts Up

This is not your usual task force, according to Diana Dooley, secretary of the state Health and Human Services department. This one, she said, is less interested in the ideal and more focused on producing real-world results. The idea is to figure out which programs across the state improve health care and keep costs down and then encourage and support them.

Dooley was in Los Angeles yesterday to co-chair the first meeting of the health care task force created last month by Gov. Jerry Brown (D). Dooley said the first gathering could not have gone much better.

“I thought it was energized, and energizing,” she said. “It went a long way toward really substantively addressing a meaningful plan, to see what it would look like for California to be healthier in 10 years than it is today. And how do we make some real changes to improve health, lower cost and reform the delivery system. I thought it was a great start.”

Four Myths About ObamaCare That Just Won’t Die

Has any piece of major legislation ever engendered as much misinformation? More than two years after the Affordable Care Act passed, both critics and supporters are still telling tall tales — and coming up with new ones, too.

State Loses Bid To Cut FQHC Rates, Restructure Pay System

Two budget subcommittees recently rejected an attempt by the state Department of Health Care Services to rework the way it pays federally qualified health centers and rural health clinics. The proposal included a funding cut of 10%, or about $100 million, to those centers.