Latest California Healthline Stories
Federal Officials Take Non-Stance on Rate Regulation
This year, few bills have stirred as much vitriolic rhetoric as the proposed health insurance rate regulation law, AB 52 by Assembly members Mike Feuer (D-Los Angeles) and Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael).
Now the statewide spat threatens to draw in federal officials, and they’re having none of it.
It all revolves around a recent report from HHS, which concluded that California’s current health insurance rate review is “effective.”
Caveats, Proposed Amendments Clear Way for Rate Regulation Bill
The bill to regulate health insurers’ rate hikes cleared a key hurdle yesterday, as the Senate Committee on Health voted 5-3, with one abstention, to approve AB 52 by Assembly member Mike Feuer (D-Los Angeles).
Passage came with many caveats and even more proposed amendments. Sen. Ed Hernandez (D-West Covina), the committee chair and the swing vote on the bill, suggested a raft of changes to the bill before it could garner his support.
“Primarily it’s important to depoliticize the decision process [around rate assessments],” Hernandez said. “It’s also very important to insert additional transparency in the process.”
Experts: Merging Regulators a Good Idea, but When?
Although no legislation or formal proposal is in play, California stakeholders are debating the merits and likelihood of consolidating health insurance regulation under one bureaucratic roof. Health care reform may offer an opportunity to merge the departments of Insurance and Managed Health Care.
Opponents Square Off on Rate Regulation
In the shadow of the elephant that is budget passage, the Senate held a hearing yesterday on legislation that also holds a lot of political weight — health care rate regulation.
“Of all the bills this year, and we’ve been involved in a lot of them, this one is the most important to us,” Gary Passmore of the California Congress of Seniors said at the hearing. “This one really matters.”
AB 52 by Assembly member Mike Feuer (D-Los Angeles) would take a step beyond the health insurance rate review that the state currently conducts. It would allow the state’s Department of Insurance and Department of Managed Health Care to alter or reject health insurers’ rate increases.
Trying to Quiet Rate Regulation Debate
The loud collision expected at today’s Senate hearing — between health insurers and those who want to regulate them — was expected to generate some serious verbal wreckage, and more than its share of media rubbernecking at the impact crater.
But committee chair Sen. Ed Hernandez (D-West Covina) put the brakes on the rhetoric a bit, by making it a testimony-only hearing.
It’s an unusual move, hearing testimony one week and expecting to put the vote over to the next week. “It’s a little unusual to do that in advance,” Patrick Johnston of the California Association of Health Plans said. “Bills do get put over, of course, but doing it as a planned two-stage process is different.”
Basic Health Plan’s Future Unclear in California
Although approved by the state Senate, a plan for the state government to offer low-cost health insurance faces several hurdles on its way to becoming law. The basic health plan could offer coverage with premiums as low as $30 a month to low-income Californians.
Senate Vote Could Be Swayed by AMA Stance
On Monday, the American Medical Association came out against use of bisphenol-A (BPA) in consumer products, citing the chemical’s effect as an endocrine disruptor. That specifically includes endorsement of a ban on use of BPA in baby bottles and baby “sippy” cups, and that ban is at issue in today’s Senate Committee on Health.
AB 1319 (Betsy Butler, D-Marina del Rey) would limit BPA use in baby bottles and cups, infant formula and baby food sold in California. It passed the Assembly at the end of May, and now is up for a vote in today’s Senate health committee hearing.
“The AMA has found that BPA is an endocrine disruptor and it would like to ban products that contain it,” Butler said. “It’s all about the science. There are many medical and health organizations promoting this idea [of banning BPA in baby products]. The opposition to BPA has grown stronger and stronger from the health community.”
Insurers, Physicians at Odds Over Paper Trail
For Juan Thomas of the California Medical Association, it’s a no-brainer.
“Right now, the way preauthorization forms are, there are so many types of preauthorization forms, with different ones from different health plans and health insurers. They all want different types of information,” Thomas said. “And if the physician doesn’t have the correct form for the correct insurer, they have to hunt it down. Physicians spend a lot of time on this issue, and that’s time away from patients.”
Senate member Ed Hernandez (D-Los Angeles) addressed the issue in SB 866, which successfully made its way through the Senate and is up for a vote before the Assembly Committee on Health today. It would require insurers to adopt a standard form, and it would give them a deadline of two business days to respond to medication authorization requests.
Grant Moved Up To Get IT Dollars
Kim Belshé’s committee-of-one turned out to be extremely efficient.
It is a daunting task, applying for a federal establishment grant for the California Health Benefit Exchange — it lays out the direction and scope of the entire exchange, so the board’s plan was to complete it in September. That was complicated slightly by the fact that Belshé was the only board member on the committee supervising the grant application.
It became clear, however, that some of the work needed to get started — particularly the health information technology work — which means it needs federal cash sooner rather than later. So the exchange board announced at last week’s meeting that it is applying for the grant now, with final approval of that grant being sought at next month’s board meeting.
Should State Regulate Health Insurance Premiums?
What will it mean for Californians if the Legislature passes and the governor signs a bill giving state government the authority to reject health insurance premium increases it deems unjustified?