Dive Brief:

• Legislation passed last week by the California Legislature would require insurers to produce annual reports for the California Department of Managed Health Care regarding their provider networks. The move is meant to ensure that insurers are offering networks that provide sufficient coverage to beneficiaries.
• The bill is in response to lawsuits filed against two insurers that account for 60% of people signing up for Covered California plans. According to the suits, Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield of California misguided consumers regarding the size of their provider networks. The organizations are under investigation because of consumer complaints.
• The governor has not yet signed the bill, which would allow the Department of Managed Health Care to post an assessment of the information provided by insurers online. The legislation is opposed by the California Association of Health Plans and the California Department of Finance. Both groups feel safeguards are already in place to prevent overly-narrow networks.

Dive Insight

Experts have suggested that one way insurers will cut costs as health reform progresses is by cutting back on the number of providers in their plans. But it is clear that consumers aren't willing to abide narrow networks—and agencies are targeting them to protect consumers. In July, the National Committee for Quality Assurance released a Health Plan Accreditation 2015. The HPA will require insurers to release information about plans in the state exchanges, including the providers in the networks. 

Want to read more? You may enjoy this story about how the ultra-narrow New Hampshire network impacted excluded hospitals.