TAKE ACTION! Comment by September 3 to make the most of Washington’s ACA consumer protections law!  This week, the Office of the Insurance Commissioner published new draft rules implementing SHB 1870. Public comments are due September 3. The 2019 legislation adopts in state law several key consumer protections in the federal Affordable Care Act (ACA),...

Activity threatening federal health care access laws that we profiled last month has not slowed down during this summer’s dog days. We begin with the one that you can TAKE ACTION on, but only until August 13. Comment deadline approaches on anti-discrimination regulations rollback The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has proposed changes...

TAKE ACTION!  Please thank Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson for defending the ACA and access to family planning! Submit a comment here. — After focusing during winter and spring on an unusually noteworthy Washington State legislative session, we’re looking more closely beyond the Evergreen State and taking stock of federal government activity that seriously threatens...

NoHLA is fortunate to host summer interns every year, and this year we have two bright students who have just completed their first year of law school. We’re thrilled to have them join us! Each interviewed the other in order to introduce their colleague to you. Meet Chris! Chris Hightower comes to NoHLA from the...

This year’s Washington Legislature enacted many bills that are intended to improve access to health care – perhaps an unprecedented number – and much other health legislation. We saw progress in improving access to care, including added coverage for immigrants, an effort to address insurance affordability, and bills to advance health equity. Some session highlights,...

Very shortly after my maternal “near miss” in 2016, the Washington State Legislature funded a Maternal Mortality Review Panel to take a closer look at maternal deaths in our state. The work was only funded through June of 2020. This year, SB 5425 proposes to make the Maternal Mortality Review Panel permanent and make some...

We were shocked to see that the Senate and House are both proposing a huge budget cut for Medicaid by assuming over $350 million in savings for “program integrity.” The Health Care Authority says these extraordinary savings assumptions are unrealistic. Even worse, the Senate includes significant additional Medicaid cuts (see our budget update for details)....

Required vaccinations are a hot topic in the legislature this session. Long-standing scientific consensus summarized by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and the Washington State Department of Health underlines the safety, effectiveness, and importance of these vaccinations. A recent measles outbreak centered in Southwest Washington, almost entirely among unvaccinated children, reminded us...

In this last year of the decade that began with Congress passing the Affordable Care Act (ACA), our state is poised to take its biggest step yet towards preserving important health care rights for Washingtonians, come what may in D.C. or federal courts. The Washington State Legislature has passed a bill (SHB 1870) to make...

Is it time to broaden health coverage for all, or should we cut the health care budget? The differences between progressive Democrats’ vision of Medicare for All and President Trump’s proposal to make draconian health care cuts couldn’t be starker. Progressive Democrats have put forward new proposals to achieve health care for all. In February,...