California Governor Jerry Brown yesterday signed four patient protection bills that will address unfair out-of-pocket costs, including out-of-network bills due to inaccurate provider directories, huge cost-sharing for specialty drugs, double deductibles in family plans, as well as extend protections against “junk insurance” to benefits offered by large employers. These Health Access-sponsored bills address some of the […]
Key Patient Protections Pass Legislature, Now On Governor’s Desk
With the California Legislature adjourning after midnight last Saturday, most of the action on priority bills for health consumers moves to the Governor’s desk. Most of the Heath Access-sponsored bills protecting consumers from unfair out-of-pocket costs are now one Governor’s signature away from enactment. There were disappointments in the final days of this year’s legislative […]
Final Week of Legislative Session: Where We Stand on Key Bills Protecting Consumers
Key patient protection bills hang in the balance this week, as Friday is the deadline for bills to pass from final floor votes in the California legislature to the Governor’s desk. In this last week of California’s legislative session, amendments have been taken on the key bills impacting health care consumers, but the substance of Health […]
Covered California Board Meeting: Highlights from August 20, 2015
This Covered California board meeting featured a discussion of a vision benefit proposal and agents’ payments and responsibilities, both for action next month; the release of rates for 2016, an update on the redesigned navigator program; and a hearty welcome to new Board member and former Senator and Democratic Party Chair Art Torres (see his […]
Special Session on Healthcare – Informational Hearings
This week, the Legislature held two informational hearings as part of the 2015-16 Second Extraordinary Session on healthcare. These hearings were convened to help lawmakers, and the public, understand approaches to structuring a Managed Care Organization (MCO) tax and the state of Medi-Cal funding more broadly. The current MCO tax only applies to health plans […]
Close Up on A Key Consumer Protection Bill: AB 339 Prescription Drug Cost Sharing
Today many more Californians have access to health care coverage under the Affordable Care Act, however many premium-paying patients who are covered still struggle with out-of-pocket costs. Some practices by providers and health insurers unfairly burden patients with unmanageable cost-sharing, interfering with access to care people need. AB339 (Gordon), a Health Access sponsored bill moving […]
Assembly Health Committee Gives Green Light to Key Consumer Health Bills
Earlier today the Assembly Health Committee voted on several priority bills impacting health care consumers and the remaining uninsured, including SB 4 (Lara) For those who keep score, here’s how key consumer protection bills came out in today’s vote: SB 4 (Lara) Health Care Coverage, Immigration Status: 10-6 SB 137 (Hernandez) Accurate Provider Directories 16-2 […]
To Celebrate the SCOTUS Decision: LGBT Health Roundtable with HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell
In tribute to today’s Supreme Court ruling in favor of full marriage equality for LGBT Americans, Health Access presents this report from Kate Burch, Network Director for the California LGBT HHS Network. Health Access joins with many others in celebrating today’s historic ruling, even as we are mindful of the work still needed to ensure better and […]
Closing a Loophole on Subminimum Coverage
California Healthline this week is hosting a discussion on our bill, SB248 (Hernandez) to prohibit subminimum coverage. We sponsored this bill to close a loophole in the ACA that allows such coverage–prohibited in the individual and small group markets–to be offered by large employers, and if taken up could prohibit workers from getting subsidies for […]
DMHC Hearing on Blue Shield Acquisition of Care1st Gets at Larger Questions on Nonprofit Obligations
Yesterday’s hearing (covered today in the LA Times) on nonprofit Blue Shield of California and its bid to acquire for-profit Medicaid managed care plan Care1st provided better clarity on the issues at stake in the $1.25 billion transaction, and little reason to doubt whether the assets Blue Shield proposes to use should be subject to charitable trust obligations. The comment period […]