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Happy Holidays from ITUP!

Dear loyal followers, ITUP’s blog will be on vacation from December 26-December 30. We’d like to wish you all a wonderful holiday season and we look forward to resuming in 2012! Our staff will still have access to e-mail, so please feel free to contact us if you have any… more

Federal Government Approves Path2Health

The federal government recently approved the CMSP Governing Board’s proposal for a Low-Income Health Program (LIHP), which will be known as Path2Health. LIHP is a coverage expansion program under the State’s §1115 Medicaid Waiver allowing counties to receive a federal match for care delivered to their low-income, uninsured population. Path2Health… more

Exchange Releases Draft IT RFP

California’s new eligibility and enrollment information technology (IT) system has been dubbed the “California Healthcare Eligibility, Enrollment, and Retention System” (CalHEERS). The IT system will serve as the Exchange’s infrastructure by storing eligibility information for the Exchange and other public programs and allowing people to receive real-time determinations. The project… more

California Could Determine Its Own Essential Health Benefits

On Friday, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) posted a bulletin regarding the Essential Health Benefits (EHBs). EHBs are the minimum set of services that all plans in the individual market must offer in 2014, according to ACA. The benefits must cover 10 categories and be similar to… more

ITUP to Merge with LA Health Action

We are excited to announce that as of January 1, 2012, ITUP will be merging with LA Health Action (LAHA). LAHA’s overarching goal is to improve the health of low-income Los Angeles County communities through policy advocacy and strategic alliances. While ITUP focuses on statewide policy, we are pleased to… more

2.5 Million Young Adults Gain Health Insurance

The National Center for Health Statistics found that due to the dependent coverage provision in the ACA, the number of young adults (ages 19-26) with health insurance increased from 64% to 73%, or an increase of 2.5 million. This figure is significantly greater than the one million estimated by the… more

Early Retiree Reinsurance Program Will End This Year

California began its Early Retiree Reinsurance Program (ERRP) on June 1, 2010. The program, which received $5B nationally as a part of ACA, offers financial assistance to employers offering coverage to younger retirees (ages 55-64). These younger retirees generally face premiums up to four times higher than young adults. When… more

The (Recommended) Future of the Healthy Families Program

Healthy Families Program Overview We’ve been speculating on the future of California’s Healthy Families Program (HFP) since ACA was passed in March of 2010. HFP provides coverage for children (0-18) whose families earn less than 250% of the Federal Poverty Level ($4,656/month for a family of 4) and are ineligible… more

California Receives Over $1.6M to Fund School-Based Health Centers

ACA’s Investment in School-Based Health Centers ACA allocated $200M in funding between 2010 and 2013 to improve delivery and support expansion of services at School-Based Health Centers (SBHCs). In 2011, $95M was awarded to 278 SBHCs that serve 790,000 patients. With the funding, these centers are expected to increase capacity… more

Details Behind PCIP’s Potential Enrollment Cap

A few weeks ago, we reported a potential cap on PCIP enrollment. We recently spoke with a representative from MRMIB and learned the details behind the enrollment cap scare. The Pre-Existing Condition Plan (PCIP)  is a high-risk pool for individuals who have been uninsured for 6 or more months and… more