Latest California Healthline Stories
Deadline Set to End Federal High-Risk Pool
Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board officials yesterday outlined plans to deal with the federal announcement that the Pre-existing Condition Insurance Plan will not accept new applicants after March 2.
The federal PCIP program will continue to provide coverage for enrollees through the end of the year. The program will no longer be needed in 2014 when the Affordable Care Act provision that insurers may not deny coverage because of pre-existing conditions takes effect.
Janette Casillas, executive director of MRMIB, which runs the federally funded plan, said some prospective enrollees could apply for a similar, state-funded program called the Major Risk Medical Insurance Program.
UC System May End Health Care Caps, Making New Bill Moot
A bill introduced last week, AB 314 by Assembly member Richard Pan (D-Sacramento), would eliminate fiscal caps on medical care for University of California students.
UC officials said they’re considering their own internal proposal to erase the caps, which would make the proposed legislation moot, but bill author Pan said he plans to go ahead with the legislation to ensure the rule is changed.
“It’s only fair that [UC students] should have the same protections as the rest of California,” Pan said, referring to provisions in the Affordable Care Act that prohibit lifetime caps on care. Even people in high-risk insurance pools had lifetime caps lifted last year.
What Will Happen With Millions of ‘Residually Uninsured’ Californians?
Covered California, the state’s new health insurance marketplace, will add millions to the state’s insured population, while a Medi-Cal expansion will add millions more. But for all the newly insured, there still will be three to four million Californians — known as the “residually uninsured” — who remain without coverage.
Path to Partnership: More States Opt for HHS’ Hybrid Exchanges
“Road to Reform” examines why HHS created the partnership insurance exchange model — and which states are eyeing the hybrid model ahead of this Friday’s deadline for participation.
Insuring a Better Future for the State?
State officials and health care experts yesterday said the governor’s decision to sign on to optional expansion of Medi-Cal could be a huge step forward for California’s health system — and a huge challenge, as well, they said.
More than 700 stakeholders gathered in downtown Sacramento for the annual conference of the Insure the Uninsured Project heard dozens of experts evaluate how far California has come in implementing health care reform, and how far it still has to go.
Adding roughly 1.4 million Californians to Medi-Cal eligibility in the optional expansion (adding adults up to 138% of federal poverty level) may be fully funded by the federal government for the first three years, but it also brings a boatload of work to the state. It’s worth the extra effort for the sake of beneficiaries and for the savings the state stands to make in reduced hospital and emergency department costs, said Diana Dooley, state Secretary of Health and Human Services.
How Might Immigration Reform Influence Health Care Reform?
We asked policymakers, immigration experts and consumer advocates how immigration reform might influence health care reform in California.
Exchange Readies Its New Website
Covered California, the new brand name for the state’s health benefit exchange, will unveil its new website next week, according to Oscar Hidalgo, director of communication and public affairs at the exchange.
Hidalgo spoke at last week’s exchange board meeting, presenting one of the first building blocks of the marketing structure, an informational website.
“We are just about to launch a consumer-friendly website at the end of the month,” Hidalgo said. He said the unveiling is expected to be Wednesday or Thursday next week.
Assembly Hearing Addresses Issues of Risk
It was not your usual subject for an Assembly hearing in the Capitol Building.
Yesterday’s hearing convened by the Assembly Committee on Health took on the arcane and important subject of adverse selection and risk pools. The nerdy-tech tone of the hearing was not lost on its participants.
“I have to applaud the committee — for taking on such a dry topic,” said David Panush, director of government relations for Covered California, the state’s health exchange. “But it is so important. I’m really glad to see it.”
Anthem, Jones Spar Over Premium Rate Hikes, Reinsurance Fee
California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones yesterday said a recent rate submission by Anthem Blue Cross was “unreasonable” and took particular issue with Anthem’s plans to charge a reinsurance fee which Jones said forces small businesses to pay for a 2014 fee a year early, in 2013.
Anthem Blue Cross officials said Jones’ numbers are off and that the reinsurance fee is a benign and standard business practice which has been used for many years without complaints from government or advocates.
“I’ve concluded that the rate increase imposed by Anthem Blue Cross on its small employers customers is unreasonable,” Jones said. He said the average rate increase of 10.6% is not justified given the data submitted to the Department of Insurance by Anthem.
New Year’s Resolutions: Tasks for California’s Exchange in 2013
California health insurance exchange officials have several significant tasks to accomplish in 2013, including implementing a marketing and outreach program and negotiating with insurers. Will the state be ready to launch the marketplace in 2014?