SF Gate: Correction: Health Overhaul-Language Barrier story
Updated 12:22 pm, Wednesday, March 6, 2013 OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — In a story March 4 about the challenges of explaining health care reform to non-English speakers, The Associated Press relied on incorrect information from the California Primary Care Association in reporting that organizations have to provide written notices in languages spoken by 10 percent or more of their service population. … Read more
California Healthline: Geographic Regions Set at Six, But Only for Now
by David Gorn Floor votes in the Assembly and Senate yesterday approved the first bills of the special session on health care. The bills would eliminate pre-existing conditions as a means for denying health insurance coverage. They also would establish new geographic rating regions to help determine variable rates by area in California, one provision … Read more
The Washington Post: Health law’s rules help hospitals cut patient readmission rate
By N.C. Aizenman, Published: February 27 Over the past several months, America’s hospitals have achieved a feat that long seemed beyond reach: substantially reducing the share of patients who must return for treatment almost as soon as they are discharged. According to statistics compiled by the Obama administration, the nationwide rate of hospital readmissions of Medicare patients within … Read more
NPQ: Sequestration Threatens Access at Community Health Centers
WRITTEN BY RUTH MCCAMBRIDGE CREATED ON WEDNESDAY, 27 FEBRUARY 2013 14:42 February 22, 2013; Source: San Antonio Business Journal According to the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC), budget cuts triggered by sequestration pose the risk of a potential loss of $120 million to the nation’s health centers. That could result in 900,000 patients without access to regular … Read more
The Hill: Poll finds 15-point drop in Dem support for health law
By Elise Viebeck – 02/27/13 12:01 AM ET Democratic support for President Obama’s healthcare law has dropped 15 points since November, contributing to a rise in negative attitudes toward the reform, according to a new poll. Opponents of the Affordable Care Act currently outnumber supporters (42 percent to 36), according to the Kaiser Family Foundation’s latest … Read more
The Hill: GAO: Health law will increase deficit if cost-cutting steps stop
By Elise Viebeck - 02/26/13 03:12 PM ET The Affordable Care Act’s long-term deficit impact depends on the law’s cost-cutting measures and whether they survive over the next several decades, government auditors said Tuesday. In a new report, the nonpartisan Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that President Obama’s signature law could increase or decrease the deficit over … Read more
California Healthline: 5.3M Californians Drew Government Assistance in 2011, Report Finds
About 5.3 million California residents in 2011 received income-based government assistance — including health insurance benefits through Medi-Cal — according to a Census Bureau report, the Sacramento Bee‘s “Capitol Alert” reports (Walters, “Capitol Alert,” Sacramento Bee, 2/26). Medi-Cal is California’s Medicaid program. National Findings The report found that about 46 million U.S. residents received income-based government assistance in … Read more
California Healthline: Lawmakers Might Have Time To Avert Medicare Payment Cuts
Health care providers are hoping that a one-month delay in reductions to Medicare reimbursement rates under sequestration will give lawmakers enough time to develop and pass legislation to avert cuts under the sequester, Modern Healthcare reports (Daly, Modern Healthcare, 2/26). The mandated cuts involve nearly $1 trillion in across-the-board reductions, including a 2% reduction to Medicare reimbursement rates. … Read more
LA Times: Healthcare overhaul may threaten California’s safety net
If public hospitals and clinics lose too much funding, county health leaders say, who will treat the uninsured? About 10% of Californians could still lack coverage after the law takes full effect. By Anna Gorman, Los Angeles TimesFebruary 25, 2013, 10:45 p.m. Millions of uninsured Californians will gain medical coverage under the national healthcare overhaul … Read more
SacBee: California coalition’s report calls for overhaul to rein in health care costs
By Cynthia H. Craft ccraft@sacbee.com Published: Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2013 – 12:00 am | Page 1A Last Modified: Tuesday, Feb. 26, 2013 – 8:16 pm California’s health industry heavyweights, warning that insurance premiums will soon consume a third of people’s incomes, today threw their weight behind a plan to revamp thehealth care delivery system. A dozen CEOs from health … Read more
