Health Care

Assembly speaker shelves single-payer health bill

SACRAMENTO – Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, D-Paramount, an avowed supporter of single-payer health care, nevertheless announced last week that he was pulling the plug on a Senate-passed measure that would create such a system in California. Rendon, who is holding

California’s universal health care proposal includes covering undocumented immigrants

Drew Gregory Lynch March 6, 2017

State Sen. Ricardo Lara, D-Bell Gardens, has introduced a bill to overhaul California’s health care system to create a single-payer model, the latest example of the Golden State bucking the Trump agenda and taking a “go it alone” approach.

Sacramento Democrats propose single-payer health care in California

James Poulos March 2, 2017

Sacramento Democrats have centered attention around a shot at universal health care for all Golden State residents. “In a surprise move made in response to President Donald Trump’s push to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, two California lawmakers

State finds savings in minimum wage increase, but counties get the bill

Matt Fleming January 12, 2017

The good news: Last year’s deal to increase the minimum wage won’t cost the state nearly as much as was projected. The bad news: Providing certain health care services just became way more expensive for the counties. The Brown administration is ending

Study: ACA repeal would have big economic consequences without adequate replacement

Matt Fleming December 28, 2016

California would suffer major economic consequences if Congress repeals the Affordable Care Act without an adequate replacement, according to a new study by the UC Berkeley Labor Center. Republicans in Washington appear poised to repeal the ACA, better known as Obamacare,

Gov. Brown mulls bills overseeing psychotropic drugs for foster kids

Steven Greenhut September 20, 2016

SACRAMENTO – California’s foster-care system has long been plagued with unaddressed problems, but a recent exposé about the system’s alleged over-prescription of psychotropic drugs has propelled the Legislature into action. Gov. Jerry Brown currently has on his desk three bills that

CA Democrats target health care costs, seek Obamacare coverage for undocumented immigrants

James Poulos September 17, 2016

On several fronts, California Democrats have used the tail end of this political season to push for advances on their health care agenda — with mixed results. In Sacramento, they succeeded in passing legislation targeting health care cost sticker-shock

L.A. County may assign syringe cleanup costs to Big Pharma

Chris Reed April 27, 2016

Next month, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors appears poised to require pharmaceutical companies to oversee and pay for the collection and disposal of syringes (known as “sharps”) and unused prescription drugs. The measure is unusual in that it assigns

CA health tax plan keeps Medi-Cal part of national budget

James Poulos March 2, 2016

Surmounting a challenge that has festered since summer of last year, Sacramento legislators pulled together behind a tax plan that will keep Medi-Cal part of the national budget. “California lawmakers approved a health plan tax package Monday designed to continue pulling

Over-the-counter birth control soon available in CA

James Poulos February 22, 2016

Californians interested in obtaining the pill won’t have to wait much longer to do it with ease. “Under a law expected to go into effect by April, women in California will be able to stop by their neighborhood pharmacy and