- Thousands receive quality care through exchange coverage since 2014.
- Report covers 111 acute care hospitals over an 18-month period.
- Available online, data released at UCSF with support from democratic leader Nancy Pelosi.
SAN FRANCISCO — Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi visited the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF), today to
highlight a new report showing that thousands of Californians who have obtained health insurance as a result of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act have received vital treatment — including brain surgeries, heart transplants, cancer treatment and trauma care — since January 2014, when the health exchange opened its doors.
“Today’s report is the latest evidence that the Affordable
Care Act is delivering on the promise of making health care a right for all,
not just a privilege for the few,” Pelosi said. “Covered California has been an
enormous success. Thanks to this historic law, nearly 1.3 million Californians
now have affordable coverage through the Covered California marketplace — and
this data today makes clear that Californians are using this coverage to access
vital, high-quality health care.”
The preliminary report
from Covered California, “Delivering on the Promise of Care: Early Indicators
That Covered California Enrollees Are Getting Needed Care,” includes detailed
data on the unique experiences of Covered California enrollees in 111 hospitals,
as well as a statewide compilation of the data for some critical services.
The 111 hospitals performed
nearly 40 percent of inpatient care in 2014 in California and represent a
portion of all hospitals serving Covered California enrollees (not all hospitals
reported data).
The report also
highlights other independent studies that have found that Covered California
enrollees are having easy access to care and are receiving needed primary care
and preventive services.
“People insured
through Covered California have used their coverage to get care for broken
bones, cancer treatment, elective surgeries and life-saving care at some of the
best hospitals in our state,” said Covered California Executive Director Peter
V. Lee. “It is this care, delivered at hospitals like UCSF Medical Center, that
demonstrates how our members are getting not only emergency care, but also the
critical follow-up and ongoing care they need and deserve.”
UCSF Chancellor Sam Hawgood, MBBS, said the medical center has
seen firsthand how access to insurance is translating into life-saving and
critical care.
“Covered California has been a model nationwide, thanks
to the leadership of Democratic Leader Nancy Pelosi and others who have worked
to make quality health care accessible for all,” Hawgood said. “At UCSF, we are
proud to be the largest provider of cancer care for these patients among the
medical centers surveyed and glad that UCSF is able to provide high-quality
care to patients who otherwise might not have been diagnosed or treated.”