California Weekly Roundup: The Limitations Of Copay Cards

U.S. nurses look to Canada; layoffs deferred at Alameda Health System; single-payer health care; Supreme Court rules on transgender care; CARE Court; human metapneumovirus; and more ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏  ͏ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­ ­  

Not a subscriber? Sign Up Wednesday, March 04, 2026 Visit KFF Health News for the latest California headlines California Weekly Roundup THIS WEEK'S FEATURE He Needs an Expensive Drug. A Copay Card  Helped — Until It Didn't. (ARIANA DREHSLER FOR KFF HEALTH NEWS) By Elisabeth Rosenthal   Over the course of 2025, Jayant Mishra of Mission Viejo, California, progressively developed scaly, itchy red patches on his skin. Then came the pain and swelling in the joints of his hands, making it difficult to do his work at a bank.   His primary care doctor referred him to a rheumatologist, who diagnosed psoriatic arthritis. She advised Mishra that while there's no cure, there were many new medicines that could keep the autoimmune disease in check, and she recommended one, Otezla.   At first, Mishra balked. He knew the medicines were expensive. He worried about side effects. He thought he could manage with over-the-counter drugs.   But by September he was in so much pain that he agreed to try a starter pack provided by Otezla's manufacturer, Amgen. It worked: The skin lesions disappeared, and the joint pain that kept him up at night dissipated. He was sold.   His rheumatologist got approval for the drug from his insurer, UnitedHealthcare, and signed him up for Amgen's copayment assistance program. Having enrolled other patients, she told Mishra the copay card, similar to a credit card, should last a year, he said, shielding him from the drug's high list price: around $5,000 for a 30-day supply, according to GoodRx.   He said the doctor explained that, in her patients' experience, insurers and their pharmacy benefit managers negotiated a deeply discounted price with Amgen — she estimated $1,400 to $2,200 a month. Patients paid a percentage of that amount, their "patient responsibility," using the copay card.   Mishra said he was approved for a copay card covering $9,450 a year. "I was happy when I got the message," he said.   He added that the doctor reassured him about the cost. "She said: 'You shouldn't have to pay anything out-of-pocket. Your copay card will cover this.'"   He started the medicine and, at first, paid nothing. Then the bill came.   Read the full story. More From KFF Health News 'You Aren't Trapped': Hundreds of US Nurses Choose Canada Over Trump's America (TAYLOR PRADINE) By Brett Kelman More than 1,000 American nurses have successfully applied for licensure in British Columbia since April, a massive increase over prior years. Ontario and Alberta have also seen more interest from Americans.   Read the full story. Follow us online for more KFF Health News coverage: Top Health Headlines From Around California Health Industry San Francisco Chronicle: County Pauses Major Layoffs At Cash-Strapped Alameda Health System Alameda Health System, the county's safety net health care system that runs Highland Hospital in Oakland, will defer major layoffs that were slated for March 9. (Ho, 3/3)   Santa Maria Times: Vitalant Offering $10,000 Drawing To Boost March Blood Donations  Nonprofit blood services provider Vitalant is urging residents to donate blood in March, and earn a chance to win $10,000 as part of a seasonal campaign to maintain local supplies. (3/2) Costs and Coverage CalMatters: California Democrats Revive Single-Payer Health Care Promise Gavin Newsom ran on single-payer health care and failed to achieve it, but the progressive goal remains a staple Democratic campaign promise. (Kuang, 3/4)   CalMatters: Californians Are Staying Insured -- But Settling For Health Coverage They May Not Use California's health insurance marketplace held steady despite lost federal subsidies. Enrollees are shifting to lower-quality bronze plans. (Ibarra, 2/28)   The San Diego Union-Tribune: An Obscure County Program Pays For A Few Dozen San Diegans' Health Care. Sales-Tax Hike Backers Have Bigger Ideas. At any given time, just two people are enrolled in County Medical Services. Unions and Democratic supervisors want to expand it. (Robinson, 3/1) Transgender Care San Francisco Chronicle: California Must Let Schools Forcibly Out Transgender Students, SCOTUS Rules California lawmakers in 2024 passed a measure that forbids schools from requiring educators to disclose to parents when a student identifies as transgender. (Egelko, 3/2)   CalMatters: 'Shocking': What Supreme Court Ruling On Transgender Policy Means For California Students Advocates for transgender youth vowed to keep fighting Wednesday after the U.S. Supreme Court blocked — at least temporarily — a California policy protecting the privacy of transgender students in K-12 schools. (Jones, 3/4) Mental Health and Harm Reduction San Francisco Chronicle: Newsom: S.F. Is Among The Worst Counties For Implementing CARE Court Gov. Gavin Newsom named San Francisco County's CARE Court program as one of the lowest-performing in California on Monday, as part of a new effort to bolster his signature mental health care program. (Bollag, 3/2)   San Francisco Examiner: Golden Gate Suicide Survivor Producing Doc About Safety Nets  More than two decades after he survived jumping off the Golden Gate Bridge, Kevin Hines is working on a new documentary project, a documentary called "Death Bridge." (Gurevich, 3/3)   The San Diego Union-Tribune: Who Blew The Whistle On An Overdose-Prevention Contractor? County Officials Give Conflicting Accounts.  As the criminal investigation broadens into how the Harm Reduction Coalition of San Diego handled millions of taxpayer dollars, county officials have given conflicting information about how the alleged fraud was discovered and who alerted prosecutors. (McDonald and Davis, 3/3) Public Health The Sacramento Bee: Lesser-Known Virus Rises In Northern California. What Is Human Metapneumovirus? A respiratory virus has been hammering Northern California cities. WastewaterSCAN data shows "high concentrations" of human metapneumovirus, or HMPV, in Sacramento and Davis, along with San Francisco, Marin, Vallejo, Napa, Novato and Santa Rosa. (Sweeney, 3/3)   CalMatters: California Measles Outbreaks Strain Public Health Agencies Investigating any communicable disease is time-intensive and expensive. The first three measles cases reported in L.A. County this year cost an estimated $231,000, according to a health department analysis. Why does it cost so much? Because a disease investigation often requires a legion of public health nurses, physicians, epidemiologists and laboratory scientists to follow-up with hundreds of contacts, Balter said. (Hwang, 3/2)   Los Angeles Times: Orange County Residents Fear Herbicides Are Poisoning Waterways  A group of residents is demanding answers from Orange County officials about herbicide spraying in waterways. (James, 3/1)   Santa Cruz Sentinel: UC Santa Cruz Study Finds Link Between Pregnancy And Reduced Breast Cancer Risk Early pregnancy, between the ages of 20 and 30, has been shown to reduce the risk of breast cancer later in life. The reason why has stumped scientists for years. Now, a research group from UC Santa Cruz has found evidence suggesting that early pregnancy can permanently change the way breast cells age, preventing the accumulation of a type of cells that may contribute to tumor growth. (Hemphill, 3/1) Housing Crisis KQED: It's Expensive To Build Housing. California Lawmakers Say Factory-Built Is The Future As the cost of living continues to pinch Californians, state lawmakers have a new focus: bringing down the cost of housing construction to get more homes built quickly. (Bandlamudi, 3/2)   inewsource: Encinitas Joins San Diego City, County In Closing Section 8 Waitlists Encinitas announced in February that it would stop taking people off of its 1,137-person waitlist for Section 8 vouchers. That means that for the foreseeable future, no new people in the city will receive rental assistance. It's the latest in what has been a domino of closing waitlists for housing vouchers across San Diego County. (Futterman, 3/2) Aging Imperial Valley Press: Imperial County Ranks Top In California For Alzheimer's Prevalence; Local Support Groups Expand Reach  In a startling revelation of the public health challenges facing the Imperial Valley, new data shows that Imperial County holds the highest prevalence rate of Alzheimer's disease in California. (Bojorquez, 2/28)   Voice of OC: Another Orange County City Dials Back Senior Transportation Orange County seniors face reduced access to low-cost rides as local officials cut senior transportation services amid surging demand. (Hicks, 3/2)   Voice of San Diego: Seniors Stay Longer At Homeless Shelters Than Others On average, seniors stay longer at homeless shelters than younger San Diegans. They have few housing options and work prospects. (Barba, 3/2) Other California News The San Diego Union-Tribune: Supervisors Move To Pursue Expansion Of Little-Used County Medical Program The County Medical Services program is 'not a badge of pride' in its current state, said Supervisor Monica Montgomery Steppe. (Robinson, 3/3)   Voice of OC: Garden Grove Moves To Ban Whippets Recreational nitrous oxide, known as "whippets" or "galaxy gas," can be inhaled to create a high and can lead to "neurological, hematologic [related to blood], and psychiatric complications, including nerve damage and psychosis" if abused, according to the Yale School of Medicine. (King, 3/2)   Imperial Valley Press: New Pilot Program Aims To Turn Disability Into Entrepreneurial Opportunity  The initiative is a first-of-its-kind pilot designed to help individuals with disabilities and their full-time caregivers transition from financial dependence to business ownership. (Bojorquez, 2/28) This Week's 'KFF Health News Minute' Some places are bringing back house calls to try to fight maternal and infant mortality, and almost all Americans benefit from health care subsidies in different forms. Listen to Sam Whitehead ▶️ KFF Health News is a national newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about health issues and is one of the core operating programs at KFF — the independent source for health policy research, polling, and journalism.   (c) 2026 KFF. All rights reserved.   KFF 185 Berry St., Suite 2000, San Francisco, CA, 94107, United States Opt out of all KFF emails | Manage subscriptions KFF, 185 Berry Street, Suite 2000, San Francisco, CA 94107, United States Unsubscribe Manage preferences