ITUP Blog
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ITUP Blog: 2024 Legislative Round Up
October 4, 2024
This year, Governor Newsom signed 84 percent of the bills that crossed his desk by the September 30, 2024, deadline. Here is a round-up of some significant health and health-related bills signed into law and some vetoed (shown in italics).
Read MoreCalifornia Assembly Speaker Creates New Select Committee to focus on Health Care Reform
September 7, 2017
On August 25, 2017, Speaker of the California Assembly, Anthony Rendon (D-Lakewood), announced the formation of the new Select Committee on Health Care Delivery Systems and Universal Coverage. The committee, co-chaired by assembly members, Joaquin Arambula, MD (D-Fresno) and Jim Wood, DDS (D-Healdsburg) will hold investigative hearings during the legislative interim this fall. The Speaker’s […]
Read MoreCovered California 2018 Rates Complicated By Federal Uncertainty and Rural Challenges
August 24, 2017
This week, Covered California, California’s Affordable Care Act (ACA) exchange, announced preliminary 2018 premium rates for exchange health plan offerings. Health plan proposed rates are still subject to regulatory review by the state Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) and the California Department of Insurance (CDI). Covered California announced an average rate increase of 12.5 […]
Read MoreACA Stands (for Now): Takeaways from the Repeal and Replace Roller Coaster
July 28, 2017
For now, the ACA remains. Credit goes to all the community voices, advocates, and experts who kept the pressure on elected officials and continued to call out the very real threats the proposals represented. Here for consideration are some takeaways from the admittedly chaotic “repeal and replace” process.
Read MoreThe Common Theme of Pending Senate Health Reform Bills? Dramatic Increases in the Number of Uninsured
July 23, 2017
As of this writing, multiple discussion drafts of potential legislation to repeal or rollback the federal Affordable Care Act (ACA) are pending in the U.S. Senate. All the bills result in dramatic increases in the number of uninsured over the next ten years.
Read MoreRevised Senate Health Reform Continues to Threaten Coverage for Millions
July 14, 2017
On July 13, 2017 Senate Republican leaders released a revised discussion draft of the Better Care Reconciliation Act (BCRA). The Congressional Budget Office (CBO) concluded the original BCRA ultimately strips coverage from more than 22 million Americans.
Read MoreState Medicaid Agency Finds Staggering Losses for California Under U.S. Senate Bill
June 29, 2017
The magnitude of the state funding gap created by the BCRA threatens every part of the Medi-Cal program – provider payments, eligibility and benefits. The bill threatens California’s progress in reducing the uninsured and improving the health of Californians.
Read MoreU.S. Senate Discussion Draft Continues Path to Increasing the Uninsured
June 23, 2017
On June 22, 2017, Senate Republicans released a discussion draft of legislation that would undo key provisions of the ACA. The BCRA would slow the timeline for some changes to ACA, but includes deeper cuts to Medicaid.
Read MoreCalifornia Budget Conference Committee Considers Coverage Expansion for Young Adults
June 5, 2017
While federal policymakers consider legislation that would eliminate coverage for 23 million Americans, California considers expanding Medi-Cal to all low-income California residents up to age 26 Late last week, the two-house budget conference committee of the California Legislature began deliberations on the 2017-2018 state budget. The conference committee will take up multiple budget items […]
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