California has enrolled nearly three times as many consumers as expected in Medi-Cal under the Affordable Care Act’s expansion of the program, placing financial strain on the state as the federal government begins reducing matching funds, the AP/Salinas Californian reports (Lin, AP/Salinas Californian, 7/19). Medi-Cal is California’s Medicaid program. More than a dozen other states… Continue reading Medi-Cal Enrollment Growth Could Strain California’s Budget

In a scathing audit, state tax officials slammed nonprofit health insurer Blue Shield of California for stockpiling “extraordinarily high surpluses” — more than $4 billion — and for failing to offer more affordable coverage or other public benefits. The California Franchise Tax Board cited those reasons, among others, for revoking Blue Shield’s state tax exemption… Continue reading California Tax Officials Blast Blue Shield In Audit

The seeming reluctance by state officials to closely monitor Medi-Cal managed care plans is troubling, said Gerald Kominski, director of the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research. Reacting to a June report from the California State Auditor’s office that criticized the Department of Health Care Services for lax oversight of Medi-Cal managed care plans, Kominski said the… Continue reading Auditor’s Report Shows ‘Symbiotic Relationship’ In Medi-Cal Managed Care

By Chad Terhune for the Los Angeles Times California’s health insurance exchange wants to know why you got sick this summer. With 1.4 million people enrolled, the state-run marketplace is embarking on an ambitious effort to collect insurance company data on prescriptions, doctor visits and hospital stays for every Obamacare patient. Covered California says this massive… Continue reading California’s Obamacare Exchange to Collect Insurance Data on Patients

Original article authored by Harris Meyer of ModernHealthcare.com on June 14, 2015 California is the latest state to address the increasingly common problem of patients getting large surprise medical bills from out-of-network physicians after receiving care at a hospital that’s in their health plan’s provider network. The issue has political legs with both Republicans and… Continue reading New AMA Leader Rejects Growing Movement to Regulate Out-of-Network Doc Bills

Hospital list prices varied sharply within individual markets, with the highest-priced hospitals routinely charging more than five times the rates of the lowest-priced facilities in the same area, new CMS data show. Those high retail prices have become a growing concern as more patients face unexpected out-of-network bills. The CMS released fiscal 2013 data last… Continue reading Out-of-network Charges Under Fire

A small segment of Medi-Cal beneficiaries run up huge health care bills (Medi-Cal 'Super-Utilizers') - but they're not necessarily the people you'd expect.

California’s ObamaCare exchange is announcing a cap on patients’ costs for high-priced specialty drugs, the first state in the country to do so. The announcement, which comes after a unanimous vote by the exchange’s board Thursday, would cap the cost for most enrollees on the insurance exchange at $250 per prescription per month. Under the… Continue reading California ObamaCare Exchange Caps Patient Drug Costs

State health officials this week said they would extend the timeline for transition into managed care plans for thousands of frail California seniors in the Multipurpose Senior Services Program. At an Assembly Budget Subcommittee on Health and Human Services hearing this week, the revised timeline was released by Mari Cantwell, chief deputy director at the… Continue reading State Responds To Concerns – Resets Timeline For Senior Program Transition

San Bernardino’s bankruptcy plan would pay almost all money owed to CalPERS, but only a fraction to other cred San Bernardino’s plan to exit bankruptcy has at least one winner, plenty of losers and could have repercussions for other California cities. The city will pay every penny of the almost $50 million it owes to… Continue reading San Bernardino’s Bankruptcy Plan Favors CalPERS