Angela Hart

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ahart@kff.org
@ahartreports

Leader of California’s Muscular Obamacare Exchange to Step Down

KFF Health News Original

Peter Lee helped create Covered California, which has been lauded as a national example among the Affordable Care Act’s insurance marketplaces, and he fiercely opposed Republican efforts to repeal the federal health reform law.

Health Care Unions Defending Newsom From Recall Will Want Single-Payer Payback

KFF Health News Original

If Gov. Gavin Newsom survives Tuesday’s recall election, the health care unions that have campaigned on his behalf intend to pressure him to follow through on his promise to establish a government-run health system in California.

California Set to Spend Billions on Curing Homelessness and Caring for ‘Whole Body’ Politic

KFF Health News Original

California is embarking on a five-year experiment to infuse its health insurance program for low-income people with billions of dollars in nonmedical services spanning housing, food delivery and addiction care. Gov. Gavin Newsom said the goal is to improve care for the program’s sickest and costliest members and save money, but will it work?

Without Enough Boots on the Ground, California’s Vaccination Efforts Falter

KFF Health News Original

California’s vaccination rates have stagnated, particularly in Black and Latino inner-city neighborhoods and in rural towns. County health officials, who say trust is their most important commodity, need more money for one-on-one interactions with holdouts, but the state has instead largely funneled money to advertising firms and tech companies.

From Racial Justice to Dirty Air, California’s New AG Plots a Progressive Health Care Agenda

KFF Health News Original

In a candid interview, California’s newly appointed attorney general, Rob Bonta, reflects on his progressive roots and says he will pursue a health care agenda centered on the principle that quality medical care is a right, not a privilege.

Despite Pandemic, Newsom Declines to Boost Local Public Health Budgets — Again

KFF Health News Original

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has, for the third consecutive year, rejected new state funding for local public health departments. Frustrated legislative leaders and public health officials are trying to change his mind.

Salesforce, Google, Facebook. How Big Tech Undermines California’s Public Health System.

KFF Health News Original

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has outsourced his way through the covid-19 pandemic, tasking his private-sector allies in Silicon Valley and the health care industry with fundamental public health duties such as testing, tracing and vaccination. Among the losers: the state’s weakened public health system.

It’s Not Just QAnon. Democrats and Independents Also Want to Recall California’s Governor.

KFF Health News Original

Gov. Gavin Newsom is painting the effort to remove him from office as a partisan power grab. But among the tens of thousands of Californians who signed the recall petition are Democrats and independent voters frustrated by his pandemic policies, from school closures to vaccine distribution.

Blue Shield Spent Years Cultivating a Relationship with Newsom. It Got the State Vaccine Contract.

KFF Health News Original

Insurance giant Blue Shield of California has made millions in charitable and political donations to Gov. Gavin Newsom over nearly two decades, largely to his dearly held homeless initiatives. In turn, Newsom has rewarded the insurer with a $15 million no-bid contract to lead the state’s covid vaccination distribution.

New Single-Payer Bill Intensifies Newsom’s Political Peril

KFF Health News Original

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 Budget Reflects ‘Pandemic-Induced Reality,’ Governor Says

KFF Health News Original

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’s COVID Enforcement Strategy: Education Over Citations

KFF Health News Original

Gov. Gavin Newsom said in July that California would target businesses that flagrantly violate public health orders. But the state’s strategy of education over enforcement means that businesses that don’t comply face few — if any — consequences.

With Becerra as HHS Pick, California Plots More Progressive Health Care Agenda

KFF Health News Original

Gov. Gavin Newsom said he has already begun discussing California health care priorities with Xavier Becerra, tapped this week by President-elect Joe Biden to serve as his Health and Human Services secretary.