L.A. Care CEO Joins L.A. County Medical Association’s Educational Campaign on Universal Coverage

John Baackes to Explain Why the Public Option Should Expand Nationwide

The Los Angeles County Medical Association (LACMA) has launched a campaign to inform present and future health professionals about the steps needed to achieve universal health coverage in California. The campaign involves a series of educational presentations on everything from single-payer options to freemarket solutions on universal coverage. Today, John Baackes, the CEO of L.A. Care Health Plan, the largest publicly operated plan in the country, is the featured presenter for The Role of a Public Option Health Plan to Achieve Universal Coverage. Baackes calls L.A. Care “the only functioning public option in the country.”

L.A. Care has been serving Medi-Cal beneficiaries since 1997. In 2014, L.A. Care decided to participate in Covered California, the state’s Affordable Care Act (ACA) exchange. This made L.A. Care the first and only public option in the marketplace. L.A. Care views participation in the state’s exchange as an extension of its original mission to provide access to quality care for L.A. County’s low-income and under-resourced communities, and to support the safety net. Participation in the exchange allows L.A. Care to continue to serve members when their financial status changes. Members are able to move from Medi-Cal to the state exchange and vice versa while keeping the same plan and doctor.

In his presentation, Baackes will give that history and explain that portability of coverage is just one benefit of a public option. Participation in the ACA by a public plan also provides the competition needed to keep rates affordable. Indeed, through the years, L.A. Care has seen the commercial plans respond to its lower rates by dropping their own rates. The competition has every plan sharpening their pencils. 

When considering expanding health coverage, Baackes believes lawmakers should look at L.A. Care as an example of a successful public option. He says the model could be expanded nationwide.

The public option virtual presentation is being held Monday, May 9, at 6:00 pm. You can register for the presentation here.

You can watch the presentation here.