Latest California Healthline Stories
State Officials Applaud Rulings, Add: ‘We Need To Be Ready’
California officials who said they’d push forward with health care reform no matter what the Supreme Court ruled are pushing today with much less resistance after the Affordable Care Act rulings announced yesterday.
Sen. Ed Hernandez (D-West Covina), who chairs the Senate Health Committee, said he was “surprisingly excited. We can take a deep breath now that we don’t have to worry about Californians having access to health care.” He admits, however, there is much more that California needs to do before 2014.
“The ruling establishes a legal foundation for our vision,” said Hernandez’s counterpart in the Assembly, Bill Monning (D-Carmel), who chairs the Assembly Committee on Health and is a strong advocate of preventive care.
ACA Upheld: Why Were So Many Predictions So Wrong?
We mocked their guarantees, but the scholars who were sure that the Supreme Court would affirm the Affordable Care Act’s constitutionality were proved right in the end. Here are five reasons why more prominent pundits led us astray.
After the ObamaCare Verdict: Who Gets the Blame?
It may not be fair to focus on winners and losers, to prioritize assigning blame rather than assigning patients to ACOs. But for the foreseeable future — and for decades to come — this week’s events will be interpreted through a simple lens: who underprepared and who overreached in the battle over the Affordable Care Act.
CO-OP Program Moves Forward in Senate
California took a small step toward instituting a new type of health insurance plan in the state — a not-for-profit, member-governed plan dubbed the Consumer Operated and Oriented Plan, or CO-OP.
The new bill was introduced to the Senate in last week’s Senate Committee on Health hearing. AB 1846 by Assembly member Rich Gordon (D-Menlo Park) would pave the way for California to apply for some of the $3.8 billion the federal government is planning to loan to states to start CO-OPs. So far, 12 states have started the process.
“It’s a new type of health insurance, intended to offer affordable, consumer- friendly coverage … in the individual and small group market,” Gordon said. “This bill streamlines the licensure process, and allows California to take part in this program, and tap federal dollars.”
California Physician Groups Vow To Continue Reforming, Regardless
At a meeting with national representatives last week in Washington, D.C., California physician groups said they plan to continue working to improve care coordination for patients no matter what the Supreme Court says in the much-anticipated Affordable Care Act ruling.
Senate Rejects ACA/Exchange Bill
If the Supreme Court overturns part or all of the Affordable Care Act in a ruling expected within the next 10 days, California should be ready, according to Senator Tom Harman (R-Huntington Beach).
Harman yesterday introduced SB 1321, which would require the California Health Benefit Exchange to submit a report to the Legislature within 90 days, if the Supreme Court reverses any part of the ACA.
The Senate Committee on Health rejected the measure.
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.
Details of Exchange Begin to Emerge
California Health Benefit Exchange Board members yesterday heard presentations on a number of topics including stakeholder opinions on qualified health plans, potential exchange users’ opinions on what they need from the exchange and possibilities for creating call centers. All of those discussions seemed to lead to the same two things: cost and service.
“If we drop the ball on service, we will drop the ball on everything,” said Peter Lee, executive director of the exchange board. “Service matters.”
Lee was discussing the results of a discussion group of possible users of the exchange, who articulated what they would want in an exchange. He was also referring to a report submitted yesterday on defining the parameters for qualified health plans that will participate in the exchange.
The Simple Reason — Maybe? — Why Health Costs Have Slowed Down
Health costs are growing at their slowest level in 50 years. Some say it’s because of new cost-control efforts; others chalk it up to implementation of the Affordable Care Act. But there’s probably an easier explanation: the recession.
Exchange Looks at Outreach, Focus Groups, By-Laws
The Supreme Court decision on the fate of the national health care reform law, expected this week or next, could have a significant impact on the work and purpose of the California Health Benefit Exchange.
But that isn’t slowing the project one bit.
Today, the exchange board meets to discuss some big agenda items: outreach, marketing, insurance coverage assisters and agents, the second phase of its establishment grant and yet another look at its bylaws.