Kevin Knauss: Health, History, Travel, Insurance
Posts related to doctors and networks in health insurance plan.
Both the health plans and the doctors practice subtle and overt forms of discrimination against people with Covered California health insurance. Some of the discrimination is legally built into the health plans. Other discrimination takes place in the form of denying health care services because the prospective patient has a Covered California health plan.
Blue Shield of California announced that they were adding University of California Medical Centers and Physician Groups as preferred providers for their individual and family, small group, and large employer health plan networks. Shortly after the initial announcement the UC hospitals and doctors were in-network; Blue Shield released another announcement to clarify that not all […]
With the announcement that Blue Shield of California may be dropping Sutter Health physicians and hospitals from their list of network providers in Northern California, Blue Shield members are wondering if their health plans are any good. For all the good of health care reform under the Affordable Care Act consumers are learning that doctors […]
January 30th: Blue Shield and Sutter sign 2015 contract update January 5th Blue Shield Sutter falling out below Blue Shield of California jolted their members with a New Year’s announcement that they were dropping Sutter Health hospitals and doctors from many of their plans for 2015. The reason given was that Blue Shield was not […]
While Covered California was preparing a large press announcement with the California Medical Association (CMA) about extolling the number of physicians that are participating in Covered California individual and family health plans, Health Net was releasing their list of providers in their new narrow network Exclusive Provider Organizations (EPO) and Health Service Plans (HSP). A search […]
There was tremendous confusion over which doctors were in-network for the new individual and family plans offered through Covered California in early 2014. While the major health insurance plans offering PPO and EPO plans maintained the provider networks were the same regardless of whether they were purchased on or off the exchange, doubts persisted fueled […]
The Anthem Blue Cross of California provider network just got larger as of July 1st when Blue Cross members can enroll in LiveHealth Online to consult with a doctor through the Internet using a regular computer, tablet or smart phone. The cost for the doctor visit or online consultation, in lieu of actually visiting a […]
California doctors, upon finding that the new Covered California health plans may not reimburse them enough to maintain their vaunted lifestyle, are kicking existing patients with the new health insurance out of their practices. These doctors are the epitome of the maxim “Putting profits before people.” Most of these greedy doctors haven’t exercised the common decency to notify their current patients before their appointments that unless they have the right color of health insurance, they won’t be served.
Covered California is finally scrapping their error filled doctor search feature on their ACA enrollment website. Initially conceived to help match families with health plans that supported their current physicians, it had problems from the start. Covered California announced in a press release they will be taking their provider directory offline until further notice.
Now that you, your children or your entire family are now enrolled in Medi-Cal, the next challenge is finding a doctor. Virtually all of the Medi-Cal plans will be HMOs (Health Maintenance Organizations) where you will have to select a primary care physician (PCP). Your PCP will be your initial contact point for referrals to other health care services he or she may not be able to perform in their office.
