In his annual State of the State message last week, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger chastised California’s  Congressional delegation for supporting the U.S. Senate and House versions of health care reform legislation. In his speech, Schwarzenegger said, “We are currently owed billions of dollars by the federal government for various programs. We need to work with the feds so that we can fix the flawed formula that demands that states spend money they do not have.

Now Congress is about to pile billions more onto California with the new health care bill.” Schwarzenegger and a number of other governors believe the additional costs levied on states from health reform will further damage their ability to get out from under massive budget deficits. In other developments, U.S. Senator Diane Feinstein sent a letter to Schwarzenegger and legislative leaders urging them to support the regulation of health care premiums in California. Over the past several years, legislation has been introduced that would have enacted a premium approval process in the state, but it has consistently been rejected by the legislature.

Related posts:

  1. Can Democrats push health care reform through the Senate Can Democrats push health care reform through the Senate now that their filibuster-proof majority of 60 to 40 is set to expire when the new Republican Senator from Massachusetts takes his seat? Or, will cooler heads prevail? Massachusetts voters provided extra drama this week when the election to fill the rest of Ted Kennedy's term resulted in an upset win for Republican Scott Brown....
  2. Health Reform legislation, Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act On November 19, 2009, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) released health reform legislation, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, that combines the bills reported out of the Finance and Health Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committees....
  3. Health Care Reform Needed – Update At this critical time in health care reform, the Senate has brought a single bill to the floor for debate and will be deciding what amendments to make in the weeks ahead....
  4. Medicare – Hearing this week to examine the activities of the Department of Managed Health Care and the Department of Insurance CALIFORNIA: The Accountability and Administrative Review Committee chaired by Assemblyman Hector De La Torre is holding a hearing this week to examine the activities of the Department of Managed Health Care and the Department of Insurance....
  5. The Human Services Committee is giving strong consideration to two measures that would go a long way toward lowering health care costs and improving health care quality. CONNECTICUT: The Human Services Committee is giving strong consideration to two measures that would go a long way toward lowering health care costs and improving health care quality....
  6. Medicare, Health Care Reform and You Last week, one of our frequent commenters, Thomas, suggested we post on the health care bill President Obama signed into law last month. Thomas says there's a lot of information in the news about the bill and he was hoping that we could just give the "facts" about the law....
  7. CMS Home, Medicare, Medicare Contracting Reform, Overview CMS' mission is to ensure health care security for beneficiaries. A major component in achieving this mission is the successful administration of Original Medicare, or Fee-for-Service (FFS) Medicare. Medicare Contracting Reform (or section 911 of the Medicare Prescription Drug, ...
  8. Legislature passed a bill requiring managed care organizations to remit direct payments to out-of-network providers Legislature passed a bill requiring managed care organizations to remit direct payments to out-of-network providers...
  9. Becoming an Involved Health Care Consumer Becoming an Involved Health Care Consumer...
  10. Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 2009 (H.R. 3961) Medicare Physician Payment Reform Act of 2009 (H.R. 3961)...
  11. Many seniors do not receive recommended preventive and primary care Under health insurance reform, a senior would not pay anything for a screening colonoscopy or other preventive services. Reform will eliminate any deductibles, copayments, or other cost-sharing for obtaining preventive services, making them affordable and accessible...
  12. Public, Private & Community-Based Health Care Options for Medicare Services Public, Private & Community-Based Health Care Options for Medicare Services...
  13. A Guide to Choosing Quality Health Care For reliable consumer health and human services information and resources, visit the healthfinder® gateway Web site, developed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, at http://www.healthfinder.gov....
  14. Inspector General to Investigate California and Hawaii Disability Determination Services Michael J. Astrue, Commissioner of Social Security, today asked the agency’s Inspector General to investigate allegations that the states of California and Hawaii have recently implemented practices that deny applicants the right to receive full consideration of their Social Security disability claims....
  15. General Features of the House Bill Affordable Health Care for America Act (H.R. 3962)...