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	<title>CHA Blog</title>
	<link>http://blog.cahealthadvocates.org</link>
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		<title>Medicare Terminates Contract with Fox Insurance Company’s Part D Drug Plans</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The Centers for Medicare &#38; Medicaid Services (CMS) terminated its contract with Fox Insurance Company on Tuesday March 9. After an onsite review of the plan and its services, CMS determined that the plan lacked even the basic standards of care. Fox&#8217;s violations, including improperly denying its enrollees coverage of critical HIV, cancer and seizure medications, [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.cahealthadvocates.org/2010/03/medicare-ends-fox-contract/</link>
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		<title>Retail Price for Some Drugs Is Cheaper Than Part D Plans</title>
		<description><![CDATA[Some California beneficiaries have found lower prices for their prescription drugs in the open market than those negotiated by their Part D plan. Two such cases have recently been brought to our attention.
One example is with a drug, Finasteride. A beneficiary found that it cost her 2.5 times more to get it in her Part [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.cahealthadvocates.org/2010/03/retail-drugs-cheaper-than-part-d/</link>
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		<title>California Insurance Agents Notified on Upcoming Medigap Changes</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The California Department of Insurance (CDI) just mailed a notice on the upcoming Medigap changes to the thousands of licensed insurance agents throughout the state. Produced with CHA&#8217;s input, this notice provides a helpful Q&#38;A about the changes occurring as of June 1, 2010.
The federal Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008 required states [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.cahealthadvocates.org/2010/03/upcoming-medigap-changes/</link>
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		<title>Many Beneficiaries in Pain Due to California&#8217;s Dental Coverage Cuts</title>
		<description><![CDATA[For 7 months, over 3 million Californians, many of which are also Medicare beneficiaries, have had no dental coverage. California&#8217;s state Medicaid program, Medi-Cal used to cover basicadult dental benefits such as annual exams, cleanings, and if necessary, root canals before the drastic budget cuts that went into effect July 1, 2009. Now, with no [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.cahealthadvocates.org/2010/02/dental-coverage-cuts/</link>
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		<title>Use Caution If Selling Your Life Insurance Policy to Pay for Long-Term Care</title>
		<description><![CDATA[A growing number of older Americans are selling their life insurance policies to help pay for retirement expenses and/or long-term care (LTC). These transactions are also known as &#8220;life settlements,&#8221; &#8220;senior settlements,&#8221; or &#8220;viatical settlements&#8221; if a person is terminally ill. While this may be an appealing option for some, people should use caution.
In a [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.cahealthadvocates.org/2010/02/caution-if-selling-life-insurance/</link>
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		<title>Who&#8217;s Who in Medicare: Facts and Figures on CA&#8217;s Beneficiaries</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The California HealthCare Foundation recently published its 2010 overview report on the demographics, health status, insurance coverage, quality of care, utilization, and spending of Medicare in California. Consumer advocates, health care providers, and policymakers can use its factual framework to better understand California&#8217;s Medicare population and inform their efforts in designing effective programs and policies [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.cahealthadvocates.org/2010/02/2010-ca-medicare-facts/</link>
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		<title>GAO Report Examines Effect of Inappropriate Marketing by MA Plans on Beneficiaries</title>
		<description><![CDATA[A newly released report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) examines: 1) some of the effects that inappropriate marketing of MA plans have had on beneficiaries; 2) ways the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) is assisting these affected beneficiaries; and 3) some of the limitations of this help due to insufficient data [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.cahealthadvocates.org/2010/01/gao-report-examines-inappropriate-marketing/</link>
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		<title>Learn about the CLASS Act &#8211; An Important Piece of Long-Term Care Legislation in Health Care Reform</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The CLASS Act is part of the legislative legacy of Senator Ted Kennedy, is an important legislative piece for planning for the long-term care needs of our country and is included in both the Senate and the House versions of health care reform.
Bonnie Burns posted this summary of the CLASS Act &#8212; it gives a [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.cahealthadvocates.org/2010/01/class-act/</link>
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		<title>2009 Profile of Older Americans Published</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The Administration on Aging (AoA) recently published a report giving a detailed profile of older Americans in 2009. The data is compiled from the U.S. Bureau of the Census, the National Center on Health Statistics, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Below are some highlights.

The older population (65+) numbered 38.9 million in 2008, an increase [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.cahealthadvocates.org/2010/01/2009-older-americans-profile/</link>
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		<title>Hospital Errors Rise in California &#8211; Medicare Refuses to Pay for Avoidable Mistakes</title>
		<description><![CDATA[The number of reported hospital errors increased across California during the last year, according to data from the state Department of Public Health.
While a 2006 state law requires officials to publicly report hospital errors, California&#8217;s DPH has not yet reported the information to the state Legislature.
California hospitals reported 1,538 serious and preventable events for fiscal [...]]]></description>
		<link>http://blog.cahealthadvocates.org/2010/01/hospital-errors-rise-in-ca/</link>
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