SHOP is the Small Business Health Options Program operating under Covered California that will begin in 2015 for businesses with 50 or fewer employees. Small businesses will have the option to offer insurance plans through SHOP rather than through carriers not on the Covered California plan. According to Covered California Executive Director Peter Lee, this gives employers more flexibility in the types of plans and quality of coverage they are offering to employees. How will the SHOP work? Under SHOP, employers will be able to offer employees coverage from two pre-selected metal tiers similar to the individual tiered plan under Covered California. Unlike the individual

There has been quite a bit of debate on Prop 45. If you are unfamiliar with this ballot initiative, get the facts here. Essentially, Proposition 45 is a November 2014 ballot proposition that would give ONE politician control over healthcare costs. This means one politician would control the insurance rates and the quality of what they consider “acceptable” care. If approved, this could, and most likely will, result in increased costs of healthcare and a decrease in the quality care. Covered California and the purpose of the Affordable Care Act was to encourage affordable, quality care for all. That is why California has an insurance commission that

There has been a lot of debate over California Proposition 45, the Public Notice Required for Insurance Company Rates Initiative. Prop 45 would require certain regulations on health insurers similar to homeowners insurance and automobile insurance industries. Essentially, the initiative would give the elected Insurance Commissioner a pretty broad authority to either approve or disapprove anything affecting health insurance. This not only includes rates but also coverage for individuals or small group plans. If approved, Prop 45 would: Mandate that any changes regarding health insurance rates be approved by the California Insurance Commissioner prior to taking effect Require that the public be notified of any health insurance

October is when the open enrollment period kicks off. This is the time where people are eligible to either renew their current plans or enroll in other health care options. It’s also a time when new applicants are eligible to get coverage. This is an opportunity for participants in the Covered California exchange to modify their current health plan options or elect a different carrier. If you are unhappy with your plan, now is the time to think about what you want to change it to. What does this mean for Covered California? Navigators on the California exchange will be responsible for educating consumers about

Due to a high number of errors and inconsistencies in the Covered California application documents, agents and counselors are reaching out to about 98,000 families in order to verify their citizenship and enrollment documents. Families must submit documents showing proof that they are legally present in the United States as citizens or have eligible immigration status. Notices will be mailed or emailed and proper proof needs to be submitted by September 30, 2014 or else these families risk losing their health coverage. The goal of getting these documents is to provide a solution to the errors in applications and develop a smoother transition process for the next

California originally had a 60 day waiting period in order for employees to be eligible to receive health benefits. However, confusion spurred amongst employees because this was not in line with the 90 day waiting period established by the federal government under the Affordable Care Act. In order to better comply with the federal exchange, Governor Jerry Brown signed a piece of legislation stating that California will now move forward with a 90 day waiting period. What does this mean for employees? Employees in California will now have to wait a maximum of 90 days before receiving health benefits compared to the previous 60 day maximum waiting period