Health
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- Written by: California Attorney General's Office
The filing moves to block the Trump Administration’s new final rules that would deny millions of women and their families access to cost-free birth control by allowing employers to interfere with their healthcare decisions.
The final rules, which are set to go into effect on January 14, 2019, would jeopardize the Affordable Care Act’s requirement that employers provide coverage of all 18 FDA-approved birth control methods and counseling for employees and their covered dependents with no out-of-pocket costs.
To date, 62 million women across the country have benefited from these reproductive health services, including over seven million in California.
“We successfully fought the Trump Administration’s interim final rules because employers have no business interfering in women’s healthcare decisions. But the Trump Administration is continuing to trample on women’s rights and access to care with this illegal final rule,” said Attorney General Becerra. “Women across the country have benefitted from the ACA’s cost-free birth control. California will continue the fight against any actions that attempt to restrict women’s access to affordable, quality healthcare.”
Attorney General Becerra filed the amended complaint and motion for preliminary injunction in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.
This action builds on Attorney General Becerra’s successful opposition to the Trump Administration’s interim final rules.
On Dec. 21, 2017, California secured a nationwide preliminary injunction halting the implementation of the interim final rules.
On Dec. 13, 2018, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit upheld the lower court’s ruling.
In filing the amended complaint and motion for preliminary injunction, Attorney General Becerra is joined by the Attorneys General of Connecticut, Delaware, Hawai’i, Illinois, Maryland, Minnesota, New York, North Carolina, Rhode Island, Vermont, Virginia, Washington and the District of Columbia.
A copy of the filing can be found here.
- Details
- Written by: California Attorney General's Office
Monday’s motion seeks clarification on the impact of Friday’s decision and requests that the judge prevent any confusion about the opinion.
The motion requests the court to make clear that the ACA is still the law of the land and will continue to be enforced and implemented by states, the federal government, and entities across the country until an order by the court expressly states otherwise.
While the California-led multistate coalition maintains the position that the ACA is the law of the land, Friday’s opinion has caused uncertainty in the nation’s health care system that could harm people across the country.
“The District Court’s ruling poses a dangerous threat to the healthcare of millions of Americans. We’re asking the court to make clear that the ACA is still the law and ensure that all Americans can continue to access affordable healthcare under it,” said Attorney General Becerra. “Today’s filing makes clear that California and its partner states will do everything possible to challenge this reckless ruling that threatens the healthcare of Americans from California to Maine, risking the health of seniors, children, workers and young adults in every state in the nation. Our coalition will continue to fight to preserve access to healthcare, which is critical to the strength of our nation.”
Monday’s filing is a critical step in challenging Friday’s opinion. It requests that the Court provide clarity on its opinion and confirm that it does not change the status quo.
Finally, Attorney General Becerra has asked the court to grant an immediate stay that requires the federal government, states and all entities to continue enforcing and implementing the ACA or, alternately, to certify the opinion, so that it may be appealed to the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals immediately.
A copy of Monday’s filing can be found here.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
The announcement came on Friday, the final day of the federal open enrollment period, and hours after a Texas United States Court District Court Judge declared the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional.
“Open enrollment is full-steam ahead and continues in California and other states for several more weeks,” said Covered California Executive Director Peter V. Lee. “No one in California should let this ruling discourage them from enrolling in health coverage or be worried about using the health plan they have.”
Federal officials have indicated that the law will remain in place pending appeal.
“This case will wind its way through the courts and I’m confident the Supreme Court will once again do the right thing and uphold the Affordable Care Act,” Lee added.
While the open-enrollment period for health insurance ends for most of the country on Saturday, Covered California reminds consumers that they will be able to sign up all the way through Jan. 15, 2019.
“For most of the nation, the open-enrollment period ends tonight, but that’s not the case in California,” Lee said. “Covered California will be open for another month. We put consumers first, making sure they have time to find the plan that best fits their needs.”
In addition to reminding consumers about Covered California’s longer open-enrollment period, Californians will also have more time to sign up for coverage that starts on New Year’s Day.
While Saturday marked the original deadline, consumers will now have through Friday, Dec. 21, to select a plan that will start on Jan. 1.
Consumer interest has surged in the past week, with approximately 58,000 people signing up for coverage since Monday, including 12,000 on Thursday and 17,000 on Friday.
The increased pace brings the number of new enrollees to select a plan during the current open enrollment period to 179,000. An additional 1.2 million Covered California consumers have renewed their existing coverage for 2019.
“We have seen tens of thousands of people flood into Covered California over the past week, and we want to make sure that everyone can start the new year off right by being covered,” Lee said. “While we have been considering a deadline extension for some time, the potential confusion surrounding this ruling means giving our consumers five more days to enroll is the right thing to do.”
Consumers can easily find out if they are eligible for financial help and see which plans are available in their area by entering their ZIP code, household income and the ages of those who need coverage into Covered California’s Shop and Compare Tool.
“We know that four out of five uninsured Californians who are eligible for financial help either do not know or mistakenly think they do not qualify,” Lee said. “If you have checked before, take the time to check again, and don’t leave money on the table when you can get the peace of mind and protection that comes with health care coverage.”
Nearly nine out of 10 Covered California consumers receive financial help. The average Covered California enrollee pays about $5 per day for coverage, but many pay far less. One out of every three Covered California consumers who receive financial help can purchase a Silver plan – which provides the best overall value – for $50 or less per month. Nearly three out of five of these consumers can get a Silver plan for $100 or less per month.
Those interested in learning more about their coverage options should go to www.CoveredCA.com, where they can get help to enroll.
They can explore their options and find out if they qualify for financial help by using the Shop and Compare Tool.
They can also get free and confidential enrollment assistance by visiting www.coveredca.com/find-help/ and searching among 700 storefronts statewide or 16,000 certified enrollers who can assist consumers in understanding their choices and enrolling, including individuals who can assist in other languages.
In addition, consumers can reach the Covered California service center by calling 800-300-1506.
- Details
- Written by: Kara Manke
The results, which were published Dec. 4 in the journal Human Reproduction, came from data collected as part of the Center for the Health Assessment of Mothers and Children of Salinas (CHAMACOS) study, which followed 338 children from before birth to adolescence to document how early environmental exposures affect childhood development.
Over the past 20 years, studies have shown that girls and possibly boys have been experiencing puberty at progressively younger ages. This is troubling news, as earlier age at puberty has been linked with increased risk of mental illness, breast and ovarian cancer in girls and testicular cancer in boys.
Researchers in the School of Public Health found that daughters of mothers who had higher levels of diethyl phthalate and triclosan in their bodies during pregnancy experienced puberty at younger ages. The same trend was not observed in boys.
Diethyl phthalate is often used as a stabilizer in fragrances and cosmetics. The antimicrobial agent triclosan – which the FDA banned from use in hand soap in 2017 because it was shown to be ineffective – is still used in some toothpastes.
“We know that some of the things we put on our bodies are getting into our bodies, either because they pass through the skin or we breathe them in or we inadvertently ingest them,” said Kim Harley, an associate adjunct professor in the School of Public Health. “We need to know how these chemicals are affecting our health.”
Researchers suspect that many chemicals in personal care products can interfere with natural hormones in our bodies, and studies have shown that exposure to these chemicals can alter reproductive development in rats. Chemicals that have been implicated include phthalates, which are often found in scented products like perfumes, soaps and shampoos; parabens, which are used as preservatives in cosmetics; and phenols, which include triclosan.
However, few studies have looked at how these chemicals might affect the growth of human children. “We wanted to know what effect exposure to these chemicals has during certain critical windows of development, which include before birth and during puberty,” Harley said.
The CHAMACOS study recruited pregnant women living in the farm-working, primarily Latino communities of Central California’s Salinas Valley between 1999 and 2000. While the primary aim of the study was to examine the impact of pesticide exposure on childhood development, the researchers used the opportunity to examine the effects of other chemicals as well.
The team measured concentrations of phthalates, parabens and phenols in urine samples taken from mothers twice during pregnancy, and from children at the age of 9. They then followed the growth of the children – 159 boys and 179 girls – between the ages of 9 and 13 to track the timing of developmental milestones marking different stages of puberty.
The vast majority – more than 90 percent – of urine samples of both mothers and children showed detectable concentrations of all three classes of chemicals, with the exception of triclosan which was present in approximately 70 percent of samples.
The researchers found that every time the concentrations of diethyl phthalate and triclosan in the mother’s urine doubled, the timing of developmental milestones in girls shifted approximately one month earlier. Girls who had higher concentrations of parabens in their urine at age 9 also experienced puberty at younger ages.
However, it is unclear if the chemicals were causing the shift, or if girls who reached puberty earlier were more likely to start using personal care products at younger ages, Harley said.
“While more research is needed, people should be aware that there are chemicals in personal care products that may be disrupting the hormones in our bodies,” Harley said.
Consumers who are concerned about chemicals in personal care products can take practical steps to limit their exposure, Harley said.
“There has been increasing awareness of chemicals in personal care products and consumer demand for products with lower levels of chemicals,” Harley said. “Resources like the Environmental Working Group’s Skin Deep database or the Think Dirty App can help savvy consumers reduce their exposure.”
Co-authors include Kimberly P. Berger, Katherine Kogut, Kimberly Parra and Brenda Eskenazi of UC Berkeley’s School of Public Health; Robert H. Lustig of the Department of Pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco; Louise C. Greenspan of the Department of Pediatrics at Kaiser Permanente; and Antonia M. Calafat and Xiaoyun Ye of the National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
This research was supported by the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) grants R21 ES024909, P01 ES009605, R01 ES017054, RC2 ES018792, R01 ES021369, and R24 ES028529 and the the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) grants R82670901, RD83171001, and RD83451301.
Kara Manke writes for the UC Berkeley News Center.
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