In Brief: Covered California Signs Up 18,000 During Special Enrollment;

Covered California Signs Up 18,000 During Special Enrollment Period

A special enrollment period conducted by the Covered California health insurance exchange has signed up about 18,000 additional enrollees to date, officials said this week.

The enrollment period, which began on Feb. 23 and runs until the end of April, is extended to state residents who may have been unaware of a relatively steep tax penalty for not obtaining health insurance under the Affordable Care Act. The income-based penalty was $95 last year, but is at least $325 this year, and could easily run into the thousand of dollars.

“Healthcare and taxes now go hand in hand,” said Covered California Executive Director Peter Lee. “Our state partners and tax preparation professionals will play a vital leadership role in communicating with consumers about health care issues. It’s a role in keeping with their mission to provide excellent services to individual clients, employers, and local and state governments.”

State officials say as many as 600,000 Californians could wind up having to pay the tax penalty. Enrolling during the special period does not excuse any 2014 tax year liabilities.

UC Doctors Plan Strikes

Physicians employed by the student health centers at the University of California campuses plan to strike on April 9.

The work stoppage, authorized by the Union of American Physicians and Dentists, is scheduled at all 10 UC campuses. The work stoppages are expected to run through April 13.

The union is asking for better pay and benefits, and has claimed the UC system has rebuffed its demands.

The doctors previously had a one-day work stoppage in January, the first strike by physicians in the United States in more than a quarter of a century.

ER Visits On The Rise Statewide

Visits to California’s emergency rooms are on the rise for patients who have a complex medical problem as opposed to an injury.

According to the study, which focused on ER usage between 2005 and 2011, the actual ER visit rate dropped by 0.7%, but visits for non-injury diagnoses rose 13.4%.

“While many people think of the ER as simply a place to go when you have a car accident or some type of major trauma, it is increasingly the case that the emergency department is caring for complex medical patients,” said Renee Y. Hsia, M.D., professor of emergency medicine at UC San Francisco and they study’s lead author.  “At the same time, as our population ages, we are seeing a significant rise in older patients with falls or other trauma. The emergency department therefore plays a critical role in our health care system’s ability to care for the acutely injured as well as complex disease.”

The study was published in the most recent issue of the journal Health Affairs.