Latest California Healthline Stories
Coverage Denied: Medicaid Patients Suffer As Layers Of Private Companies Profit
Managed-care plans, which reap billions in taxpayer dollars to coordinate care for low-income Americans on Medicaid, outsource crucial treatment decisions to subcontractors that aren’t directly accountable to the government. In California, health officials say one firm improperly withheld or delayed care for hundreds of people.
Taking Surprise Medical Bills To Court
Some legal experts say contract law could provide consumers another avenue to challenge unexpected hospital bills.
After Her Skiing Accident, An Uphill Battle Over Snowballing Bills
She took a bad fall on the slopes and her surgeon used a metal plate to put the splintered bones of her leg back together. When that device failed less than four months later, she and her insurer had to pay full price for the replacement plate.
A federal district judge in Texas ruled Friday that Congress’ 2017 elimination of the tax penalty for failing to have insurance rendered the entire Affordable Care Act unconstitutional. What happens now? KHN’s Julie Rovner, along with panelists Joanne Kenen of Politico, Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal and Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post, discuss the bombshell decision and its potential fallout.
Judge Strikes Down ACA Putting Law In Legal Peril — Again
The case is not expected to have an immediate effect on coverage for people who buy plans on the federal health law marketplaces because the case is likely to go to the Supreme Court — the third time that the justices will decide the fate of the landmark health law.
Health Care Industry ‘Pays Tribute’ To California’s Influential Lawmakers
The leaders of California’s legislative health committees who wield power over state health policy have been showered with money from the health care sector, with drug companies, health plans, hospitals and doctors providing nearly 40 percent of their 2017-18 campaign funds.
Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes
Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health articles from the week so you don’t have to.
Sign-ups for insurance under the Affordable Care Act are still well behind last year’s mark with just a week until the end of open enrollment in most states. The Supreme Court declines a case that could have allowed states to defund Planned Parenthood. And the Trump administration gets hundreds of thousands of comments about its proposed changes to immigration rules that could penalize people who use government-funded health care and other social service programs. Alice Ollstein of Politico, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News and Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and, for “extra credit,” provide their favorite health policy stories of the week.
Blue Shield’s Trims To Out-Of-State Coverage Give Some Californians The Blues
To keep costs down, Blue Shield of California next year will scale back on a program allowing members to receive a wide range of care beyond the state’s borders. Customers with individual plans mostly won’t be able to get coverage out of state except for emergencies or other exceptional circumstances.
Need Health Insurance? The Deadline Is Dec. 15
Enrollment is lagging compared with last year’s pace. But experts say sign-ups tend to accelerate as the deadline nears, and many people will be automatically re-enrolled, so the final numbers could approach last year’s totals.