Skip to content
CapRadio

CapRadio

listen live donate
listen live donate
listen live
donate
  • News
    • News

    • State Government
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • Race and Equity
    • Business
    • Arts and Lifestyle
    • Food and Sustainability
    • PolitiFact California
    News
    • News

    • State Government
    • Environment
    • Health Care
    • Race and Equity
    • Business
    • Arts and Lifestyle
    • Food and Sustainability
    • PolitiFact California
  • Music
    • Music

    • Classical
    • Jazz
    • Eclectic

    • Daily Playlist
    Music
    • Music

    • Classical
    • Jazz
    • Eclectic

    • Daily Playlist
  • Podcasts & Shows
  • Schedules
  • Events
  • Support
    • Support
    • Ways to support
    • Evergreen Donation
    • One-Time Donation
    • Corporate Sponsorship
    • Vehicle Donation
    • Stock Giving
    • Legacy Giving
    • Endowment Support
    • Members
    • Member Benefits
    • Member FAQ
    • Member Newsletter

    • Fund drives
    • Drawing Winners
    • Thank You Gifts
    Support
    • Support
    • Ways to support
    • Evergreen Donation
    • One-Time Donation
    • Corporate Sponsorship
    • Vehicle Donation
    • Stock Giving
    • Legacy Giving
    • Endowment Support
    • Members
    • Member Benefits
    • Member FAQ
    • Member Newsletter

    • Fund drives
    • Drawing Winners
    • Thank You Gifts
  • About
  • Close Menu
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 
 We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter 
  • Health Care
  • State Government
  •  

Health Care Package Gets Gov. Brown’s Signature, ‘Public Option’ Still In The Cards

  •  Sammy Caiola 
Monday, September 24, 2018 | Sacramento, CA
Listen
/
Update RequiredTo play audio, update browser or Flash plugin.
Rich Pedroncelli / AP Photo

Members of the California Nurses Association and supporters rally on the second floor rotunda at the Capitol calling for a single-payer health plan, Wednesday, June 28, 2017, in Sacramento.

Rich Pedroncelli / AP Photo

Gov. Jerry Brown signed five bills this weekend that seek to make health care more accessible to low and middle income Californians.

The package came from lawmakers and advocates who want to see all Californians insured. Their single-payer efforts were shelved last year, and the governor recently turned down their budget proposal to expand Medi-Cal to undocumented adults and further subsidize Covered California.

Advocates such as Anthony Wright with consumer group Health Access said these laws mark a milestone in the push to insure all Californians. He said the movement must continue even as President Donald Trump creates barriers to care, such as a recently proposed Department of Homeland Security rule penalizing immigrant families who benefit from Medicaid and Medicare.

"Governor Brown was right to sign these bills to shield consumers from the impacts of the federal government's administrative attacks on our health system,” Wright said in a statement.

But there has been opposition to the concept of insuring all Californians, also known as universal health care, and concerns about whether the state can sustain the cost. About 7.2 percent of Californians are uninsured, compared to 17 percent in 2013.

Here's a closer look at the five health care bills Gov. Brown signed this weekend.

  • In an attempt to block what’s often referred to as ‘junk insurance’, Democratic Senator Ed Hernandez authored SB 910 and SB 1375. The laws ban short-term insurance and put limits on association health plans respectively. These are two types of coverage that are exempt from Affordable Care Act rules, such as accepting patients with pre-existing conditions and covering ‘essential health benefits’ including mental health and maternity care.
  • Democratic Assemblymember Jim Wood’s AB 2472 creates a new council to conduct a feasibility study of a “public option” for health care. Supporters define a public option as  a publicly insured plan that directly competes with private plans in the California market to drive down premiums.
  • The Trump Administration recently invited states to apply for Medicaid waivers that would allow them to add a work requirement to the program. Hernandez’s SB 1108 prohibits California from seeking such a change.
  • AB 2499 from Democratic Assemblymember Joaquin Arambula requires health plans spend at least 80 percent of premium dollars on health care, rather than on marketing, administrative overhead and other costs.
Correction: A previous version of this story mischaracterized the purpose of SB 1375. It puts limits on association health plans.

Follow us for more stories like this

CapRadio provides a trusted source of news because of you.  As a nonprofit organization, donations from people like you sustain the journalism that allows us to discover stories that are important to our audience. If you believe in what we do and support our mission, please donate today.

Donate Today  

    Related Stories

  • Rich Pedroncelli / AP Photo

    Trump's Push For More Basic Insurance Plans Could Equal Big Changes For California Health Care

    Friday, July 13, 2018
    Some advocates say introducing 'junk insurance' policies could drive people from the individual marketplace and raise premiums across the board. Others say it's a needed affordable option.

Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

Sammy Caiola

Former Healthcare Reporter

Sammy Caiola has been covering medical breakthroughs, fitness fads and health policy in California since 2014. Before joining CapRadio, Sammy was a health reporter at The Sacramento Bee.  Read Full Bio 

 @sammycaiola Email Sammy Caiola

More Health Care Stories

Christoph Soeder/Picture Alliance via Getty Images

FDA advisers endorse new RSV antibody drug for babies

June 10, 2023

Jeff Chiu / AP Photo

California confronts the threat of ‘tranq’ as overdose crisis rages

June 10, 2023

Andrew Nixon / CapRadio

Health care coalition jockeys over Medi-Cal spending, eyes ballot initiative

June 4, 2023

We Get Support From:
Become a Supporter

Back to Top

  • CapRadio

    7055 Folsom Boulevard
    Sacramento, CA 95826-2625

    •  
      (916) 278-8900
    •  
      (877) 480-5900
    •  Contact / Feedback
    •  Submit a Tip / Story Idea
  • About

    • Mission / Vision / Core Values
    • Stations & Coverage Map
    • Careers & Internships
    • Staff Directory
    • Board of Directors
    • Press
  • Listening Options

    • Mobile Apps
    • Smart Speakers
    • Podcasts & Shows
    • On-Air Schedules
    • Daily Playlist
    • Signal Status
  • Connect

    •  Facebook
    •  Twitter
    •  Instagram
    •  YouTube
  • Donate

  • Listen Live

  • Newsletters

CapRadio stations are licensed to California State University, Sacramento. © 2023, Capital Public Radio. All Rights Reserved. Privacy Policy | Website Feedback FCC Public Files: KXJZ KKTO KUOP KQNC KXPR KXSR KXJS. For assistance accessing our public files, please call 916-278-8900 or email us.