Latest California Healthline Stories
How The Farm Bill Could Erode Part Of The ACA
A provision of this massive legislation would provide funding to help agricultural groups set up association health plans — a longtime GOP-favored mechanism to reduce health insurance costs for small groups.
‘Pharma Bro’ Shkreli Is In Prison, But Daraprim’s Price Is Still High
The saga of Martin Shkreli and Turing Pharmaceuticals focused a lot of attention on prescription drug prices, but no reversal of the exponential price increases for the lifesaving drug Daraprim resulted. The story offers an object lesson into the interworkings of the pharmaceutical market.
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ Medicaid, Privacy And Tom Price’s Return
Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Joanne Kenen of Politico, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times and Alice Ollstein of Talking Points Memo discuss the latest on states’ efforts to reshape their Medicaid programs, the kerfuffle over President Donald Trump’s medical records and comments by former Health and Human Services Secretary Tom Price about Congress’ repeal of the Affordable Care Act’s “individual mandate” penalty. Rovner also interviews Harvard professor Robert Blendon about the complex politics of health in the coming midterm elections.
Sprained Your Ankle? The Cost Of A Brace Could Sprain Your Wallet.
Your health insurance might not cover items such as wheelchairs, walkers, crutches and braces, or you may have to deal with a supplier that has a contract with your insurer.
Kicking Around The ACA? For Tom Price, That’s So 2017.
The former secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services says the law eliminating penalties for most people who don’t have insurance coverage will hurt the insurance marketplaces.
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ What’s Next For The VA?
In this episode of KHN’s “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Sarah Kliff of Vox.com, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News and Alice Ollstein of Talking Points Memo discuss the collapse of the nomination of White House physician Ronny Jackson to head the Department of Veterans Affairs. They also discuss new bipartisan congressional efforts to address the opioid epidemic. Plus, for extra credit, the panelists offer their favorite health policy stories of the week.
Charlottesville’s High Health Plan Premiums Give Rise To Activism — And Unconventional Solutions
For people who buy their health coverage rather than get it from the government or through work, this Virginia city has claimed the title of having the country’s highest health insurance costs, and its residents are fighting back.
4 New Ways You Can Avoid Fines For Not Having Health Insurance
Among changes by the Trump administration, new rules protect consumers living in areas with only one marketplace plan as well as those who oppose abortion and can’t find a plan that doesn’t cover the procedure. These rules will resonate in California, where most health plans are required to cover abortion and six counties have only one insurer selling through the ACA exchange.
Calif. Leads Nation In Pushing Back Against Trump Administration Health Policies
In the face of federal efforts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, policymakers in the largest state are proposing laws and other changes to counter them. Beyond that, they’re aggressively pushing measures to expand health coverage beyond what the ACA envisioned.
California Insurer Faces Whistleblower Complaint Over Health Law Taxes
The filing against Blue Shield of California focuses on the taxation of certain health plans that are funded by both an employer and insurer. The case could attract more government scrutiny into whether all health insurers are paying their fair share of premium taxes.
