The Californian perspective of the Affordable Care Act

Though the Affordable Care Act (ACA) may be a federal healthcare system overhaul, each state is experiencing it in its own way, and though Californians have already started seeing some differences since the act went into effect in March 2010, there will be a great deal more by the time it has been fully implemented in January 2014. So far, Californian health care has seen a few important changes. These include: • Ensuring that no new health insurance policies can include lifetime caps on benefits, so that individuals who are…

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Doctors save $19 million in malpractice insurance due to insurance rate regulation

The California Department of Insurance has revealed that there has been a total savings of approximately $19 million on the medical malpractice insurance premiums of medical care providers such as doctors and dentists, as the result of the rate regulation authority approval in that state geared toward reducing unjustified premiums. Equally, though, Consumer Watchdog Campaign has pointed out that the same protection for patients is being opposed by a doctors’ group. The Consumer Watchdog Campaign has been questioning the undisclosed links to the insurance industry of the leaders of the…

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California brain injury case results in largest workers’ compensation settlement in state history

The largest known settlement in California workers’ compensation insurance has just been secured by attorney Christopher Asvar, totaling $8.9 million for his client who suffered a traumatic brain injury while in the workplace. According to well-known specialist in structured settlements, Steve Chapman, who was involved in the case, “This settlement is the highest anyone is aware of for a California workers’ compensation award”. Asvar is a specialist in the area of brain injury litigation, both civil and workplace, and was substituted into this case three years ago. The client in…

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California insurance commissioner issues report card for PPO

The California Department of Insurance has released the quality of care report card by insurance commissioner Dave Jones, called the “2012 Preferred Provider Organization (PPO)”. According to Jones, this report is a useful resource which provides consumers with a larger amount of practical data about the quality of the care they can expect to receive, so that they are better able to make decisions that will meet their healthcare requirements. He added that “I want to encourage all Californians to take a look at the findings of the PPO report…

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Commissioner Dave Jones reflects on achievements a year after taking office

California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones has been in office for a full year now and he has taken the occasion of this anniversary to reflect on the accomplishments he has been a part of from 2011. In a statement released by the state’s Department of Insurance, the Commissioner notes that his time in office has been filled with confrontation with the insurance industry. Indeed, many of the actions coming from the Commissioner have been met with opposition from insurers, especially the bid to give state regulators more authority over the…

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