The MACRA rules released last November for Year 2 (2018) of the Quality Payment Program (QPP) include increased flexibility for small and independent practice clinicians participating in the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS).

The legislation creating the Affordable Care Act (ACA) was crafted to address multiple aspects of healthcare access and delivery. On the issue of access to care, a concern over the shortage of physicians, especially here in California, has been part of the conversation for some time.

A rarely mentioned entity that was created by language in the Affordable Care Act is the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation, housed within the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.

The cost of prescription drugs continues to be a topic generating action in the California Legislature as some policymakers consider drug costs a material component of high healthcare costs.

Every year, the California Legislature is required to pass the state’s budget by the constitutional deadline of June 15.