With the release of the draft IRS forms for reporting advance premium tax credits and reconciliation with the household MAGI, health insurance agents might be called upon to know another part of the ACA, the dreaded tax forms. The variety of reporting statements individuals and families may receive from employers and the exchanges will require […]
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Searching for George Reppert’s grave site at Folsom Lake
From the shoreline of Granite Bay Beach Park at Folsom Lake you can probably see where Mr. Reppert was buried in 1849 in an unmarked grave far away from home and family. The death and burial of this gold rush miner comes to us from a fellow traveler and miner who wrote about his experiences in the […]
HSA double deductible health plans
A little known provision of health plans that also are designated as being a Health Savings Account (HSA) require a single member of a family to meet double the deductible amount of an individual before coinsurance is applied to health care services. Unlike traditional family plans where any one member of the household can transition […]
Will Supreme Court’s Hobby Lobby decision mean a return to female circumcision?
Did the Supreme Court’s Hobby Lobby decision render the Female Genital Mutilation Act of 1995 null and void? While the Supreme Court specifically mentioned that their decision only applied narrowly to contraception mandated by the ACA, the bulk of the opinion and reasoning centered on the fact that the Religious Freedom and Restoration Act of 1993 (RFRA) […]
Medi-Cal adult dental is back
As of May 1, 2014, limited dental services will be included for adults, 21 years and older, that are on Medi-Cal. Adult dental Medi-Cal services were removed during the California budget crisis in 2009. Some counties may require adults to enroll in a dental manage care plan while others will offer a Fee-For-Service program. The Denti-Cal adult services will be the same whether they are obtained through a plan or through a Denti-Cal participating dentist or clinic. The challenge for adults in rural counties will be finding a dentist that accepts Denti-Cal.
Acupuncture for all, my trip to the acupuncturist
All new ACA health plans include acupuncture as a covered health care service in California. So what is it like to receive acupuncture and can it potentially help relieve medical challenges that some of us face? I decided to try out this traditional Chinese medicine to see if it would alleviate the pain in my neck.
Blue Shield Gender Reassignment Surgery Criteria
Solid information is hard to come by when it relates to what health insurance plans will cover for gender reassignment surgery in California. In response to the Insurance Gender Non-Discrimination Act passed by California in 2013, some health plans have created detailed medical policies for transgender health benefits. For a variety of reasons the health insurance companies don’t make their policies readily available to the general public. I was able to locate two detailed outlines issued by Blue Shield of California relating to gender reassignment surgery.
Salyer – Swanson hydraulic mine suspension bridge and history
When I picked up the old photo in an Antique shop in Albany I was immediate struck by hpw the suspension bridge supporting a water pipe across a river could be the one across the American River to the Zantgraf mine built in 1899. But upon closer inspection, and studying a companion photo, this suspension bridge was at another site in California. My research indicates that the suspension bridge was built to deliver water to a 1930’s hydraulic mining operations on the east side of the South Fork of the Trinity river, just south of the confluence of the South Fork and main Trinity River in Salyer, CA.
Medicare sanctions CalOptima’s OneCare Special Needs Plan
Orange County Health Authority’s CalOptima OneCare Medicare Advantage plan was served a notice of immediate sanctions by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on January 24, 2014. The immediate sanctions mean that CalOptima can’t market or enroll new members into their OneCare Special Needs Plan until the sanctions are lifted. CMS cited “widespread and systemic failures impacting CalOptima’s enrollees’ ability to access health care services and prescription medications” as a summary for issuing immediate sanctions.
PPO, HMO, EPO, HSP Provider Networks, which is best?
Consumers looking to select a new affordable Care Act health plan will have to carefully consider the benefits and limitations of the different provider networks associated with each plan. In addition to the familiar PPO and HMO designs, many carriers have added the EPO. Which network is best for your family?