209,000 jobs at stake in California

The threatened repeal of the Affordable Care Act could cost California as many as 209,000 jobs, researchers at UC Berkeley predict. The total cost to the state GDP of axing Obamacare -- a move backed by President-elect Donald Trump -- would be more than $20 billion, according to a report from the university's Center for Labor Research and Education. The damage won't stop there, researchers warn. State and local governments would ... (More)

Calif. big loser as Trump wins

California has a lot to lose if President-elect Donald Trump and the Republican-led Congress fulfill their campaign pledge to repeal Obamacare. The Golden State fully embraced the Affordable Care Act by expanding Medicaid coverage for the poor and creating its own health insurance exchange for about 1.4 million enrollees. Supporters held California up as proof the health law could work as intended. But now President Barack Obama's ... (More)

Enrollment privacy bill signed

California's Obamacare customers who don't complete their application forms won't be hearing from insurance agents in the future, as the governor signed a bill that bars sharing of their data with private companies. Sponsor state Sen. Joel Anderson's statement about the signing said: "Before this bill, Covered California shared consumers' personal information with private companies without permission due to a security loophole, ... (More)

Covered Cal rates up 13 percent

Covered California officials are scrambling to put a positive spin on rate hikes for 2017 that should average more than 13 percent. Executive Director Peter Lee talked up the "power of shopping," claiming, "Almost 80 percent of our consumers will either be able to pay less than they are paying now, or see their rates go up by no more than 5 percent, if they shop and buy the lowest-cost plan at their same benefit level." The ... (More)

Provider lists slammed in report

Provider directories for some health plans sold through Covered California and in the private market are so inaccurate that they create an "awful" situation for consumers trying to find doctors, according to the lead author of a new study published in the journal Health Affairs. In the study, "secret shoppers" posing as patients were able to schedule an appointment with a primary care physician less than 30 percent of the ... (More)