Ana B. Ibarra
Reporter | CalMatters-
Rates in the state’s health insurance marketplace will increase an average of 6% next year. The agency also warned premiums may double for some enrollees if Congress does not renew federal aid.
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For years, consumer advocates and some legislators have been battling to rein in escalating health care costs. Now the state has created a new agency to limit future growth in health care costs — and it will have the power to enforce that mandate.
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Gaps in COVID vaccination rates among the state’s Medi-Cal population persist. Five Medi-Cal plans still have vaccination rates under 50%.
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Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration is pushing a first-in-the-nation plan for California to partner with a drugmaker to produce cheaper insulin. It’s one of many proposed state and federal remedies to soaring insulin costs.
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Expiration of two COVID-19 emergency programs means Californians could lose their Medi-Cal insurance or find Covered California unaffordable.
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Many working undocumented immigrants won’t qualify for state health insurance even if they don’t earn a living wage. That leaves them with few viable options for coverage.
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Millions of Californians at high risk from conditions like heart disease, autoimmune disorders and diabetes feel unprotected and forgotten as the state rolls back its COVID orders.
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With 7 million Californians infected, how risky is it to work? When is it safe for omicron-infected workers to return?
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Although state and federal rules require COVID tests to be free or covered by health insurance, people often have to pay hundreds of dollars upfront.
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In 19 California counties, less than a third of vaccinated residents are boosted. In some counties, it’s less than 25%. One health official blames “pandemic fatigue.”
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The Valencia lab, a public-private venture between the state and PerkinElmer, processed only 1 to 8% of all Californians’ COVID tests in the first 10 months of the contract. And the lab was riddled with dozens of problems, according to an inspection report.
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The answer is no in many parts of California. Eighteen counties, mostly rural ones, have more hospitalized COVID-19 patients today than a year ago.