State lawmakers aim to expand Medicaid enrollment by dedicating billions of dollars in coming years to simplifying paperwork, extending pregnancy coverage and opening the program to thousands of new enrollees, including older unauthorized immigrants and people who need nursing home care.
The state will be the first to offer comprehensive counseling services to parents during pediatric visits as part of Medicaid.
In a sharp shift from Trump-era policies, President Joe Biden looks at expanding Medicaid eligibility to new mothers, inmates and undocumented immigrants and adding services such as food and housing.
California lawmakers are debating a bill that would eliminate out-of-pocket costs that often prevent people from obtaining abortions, proponents say.
Democratic legislators back measures that would end the “pink tax” on diapers and menstrual products, provide mental health support, and pilot a guaranteed-income program.
With the introduction of a single-payer bill Friday, a group of California Democratic lawmakers set the terms of the health care debate in the Capitol this year. The move puts Gov. Gavin Newsom in a delicate political position, threatening to alienate voters as he faces a likely recall election.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s 2021-22 budget blueprint would direct billions in state covid assistance to schools, businesses and the state’s vaccination effort. But he didn’t propose more funding for the state’s 61 local health agencies, which have taken on increased responsibility for testing, contact tracing and enforcement of health orders.
California has more at stake than any other state should the U.S. Supreme Court strike down the Affordable Care Act. Millions of people could lose their health coverage and the state could lose billions in federal money each year.
Will Lightbourne, the new director of the California Department of Health Care Services, says government must address the racial disparities laid bare by COVID-19 and improve care for the state’s most vulnerable residents.
State officials had projected that 2 million Californians would join Medi-Cal, the state’s health insurance program for low-income people, by July because of the economic devastation wrought by COVID-19. Yet enrollment has barely budged, and why is unclear.