Covered California might not wrap up negotiations with insurers and announce 2018 premiums for its 1.4 million customers until mid-August -- about a month later than usual. The move came as California's Obamacare exchange scrubbed its annual rate announcement in mid-July, the latest sign of how the ongoing political drama over the Affordable Care Act is roiling insurance markets nationwide. Similar scenarios are playing out ... (More)
State plans for loss of subsidies
June 19, 2017 Leave a Comment
Covered California's board fears health-care subsidies are headed for the federal government's chopping block -- and is taking action. The board confirmed June 15 that insurers must submit a pair of rate proposals for 2018 -- one with continued cost-sharing reductions and one without. Covered California will require participating plans to offer a "separately rated, non-mirrored" silver plan off exchange that is nearly identical to ... (More)
Blue Shield tops on Covered Cal
May 22, 2017 Leave a Comment
Blue Shield of California has the largest number of enrollees in the Covered California health insurance exchange, widening its lead over rivals Anthem Blue Cross and Kaiser Permanente, according to recently released data. The data, from Covered California, show that Blue Shield had 389,480 enrollees in the exchange as of December 2016, about 31 percent of the market. Anthem was next with 310,690 members, for a 25 percent share. ... (More)
Lee’s vow: ‘Continue to engage’
May 4, 2017 Leave a Comment
Covered California chief Peter Lee said his organization would "continue to engage" in the debate over health-care policy, reacting to the U.S. House's passage of the American Health Care Act. Lee said the vote could bring "monumental changes to the U.S. health care system and the lives of millions of Americans," but added that it was "the first step in a long and ongoing process." The House voted 217-213 in favor of the ... (More)
Covered Cal: Insurance chaos ahead
April 27, 2017 Leave a Comment
Californians' health insurance premiums could rise by almost 50 percent if the Trump administration succeeds in gutting the Affordable Care Act, the state's marketplace warns. As many as 340,000 Californians could lose health coverage under proposed changes to Obamacare, Covered California warned April 27. "This specter of uncertainty could lead to dramatically higher rates," said Peter Lee, chief of the state Obamacare ... (More)
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