Cutting Costs of Health Care for the Poor in California

Iglehart's report focuses on the potential consequences to's health care delivery system of 1982 cost control legislation both the state and private insurers to negotiate prepaid contracts with hospitals and physicians. The flat, all-inclusive per diem paid to hospitals that contract with Medi-Cal (California Medicaid) has created problems for teaching hospitals, which treat more illnesses. Some Californians also fear that further efforts to reduce, such as the planned capitation of the Medi-Cal system, could result in-class care for the poor, strain the resources of the public hospitals treat them, and influence all health care delivery. (KIE abstract)