Ken Jacobs

Labor Standards for School Cafeteria Workers, Turnover and Public Program Utilization

I. INTRODU CTION .............................................................................. 447 II. B ACKGROUND ................................................................................ 448 III. WORKFORCE DEMOGRAPHICS ....................................................... 449 IV. SIMULATING SERVICE CONTRACT WAGE LEVELS........................ 451 V. SAVINGS FROM REDUCED TURNOVER............................................451 VI. SAVINGS FROM REDUCED PARTICIPATION IN PUBLIC SUPPORT PROGRAMS .................................... ...... 454 VII. OTHER SOURCES OF COST SAVINGS ................. ...... 457 VIII. SUMMARY ..................................... ..... 457

Large Repayments Of Premium Subsidies May Be Owed To The IRS If Family Income Changes Are Not Promptly Reported

Subsidies for health insurance premiums under the Affordable Care Act are refundable tax credits. They can be taken when taxes are filed or in advance, as reductions in monthly premiums that must be reconciled at tax filing. Recipients who take subsidies in advance will receive tax refunds if their subsidies were too small but will have to make repayments if their subsidies were too high. We analyzed predicted repayments and refunds for people receiving subsidies, using California as a case study. We found that many families could owe large repayments to the Internal Revenue Service at their next tax filing. If income changes were reported and credits adjusted in a timely manner throughout the tax year, the number of filers owing repayments would be reduced by 7-41 percent and the median size of repayments reduced by as much as 61 percent (depending on the level of changes reported and the method used to adjust the subsidy amounts). We recommend that the health insurance exchanges mandated by the Affordable Care Act educate consumers about how the subsidies work and the need to promptly report income changes. We also recommend that they provide tools and assistance to determine the amount of subsidies that enrollees should take in advance.

The California Health Policy Research Program — Supporting Policy Making through Evidence and Responsive Research

This article explores the creation, design, and execution of a university-based collaboration to provide responsive research and evidence to a group of diverse health care, labor, and consumer stakeholders through convening a funded series of deliberative meetings, research briefs, peer-reviewed journal articles, ad hoc data analyses, and policy analyses. Funded by the California Endowment, the California Health Policy Research Program was created by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley Center for Labor Research and Education, and the UCLA Center for Health Policy Research. The collaboration not only allowed new research and analyses to be used by stakeholders and policy makers in decision making but also allowed university researchers to receive input on the important health policy issues of the day. The guidance of stakeholders in the research and policy analysis process was vital in driving meaningful results during an important time in health policy making in California. The manuscript discusses lessons learned in building relationships with stakeholders; meeting research and analytic needs; engaging stakeholders and policy makers; building capacity for quick-turnaround data collection and analysis, dissemination and publication; and maintaining the collaboration.

Health care reform in the US: an analysis of implementation of the Affordable Care Act in California

Background The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA) was signed into law in 2010. In the past four years, federal and state governments have made changes to existing programs, created new ones, and attempted to foster innovation in the health care system. We provide an update on implementation of the ACA in California, specifically focused on the expansion of Medi-Cal for low-income populations and the creation of California’s marketplace to purchase insurance coverage.

The Promise of Affordable Care: Maintaining Coverage During Life Transitions

THE CALIFORNIA Journal of Politics & Policy Volume 3, Issue 4 The Promise of Affordable Care: Maintaining Coverage During Life Transitions Ann O’Leary Center for the Next Generation Elizabeth A. Capell, Ken Jacobs, Laurel Lucia University of California, Berkeley Abstract Americans’ health insurance coverage is not static; people cycle in and out of cov- erage and between sources of coverage during life transitions like losing a job, changing jobs, moving, or divorce. The Affordable Care Act creates an unprece- dented opportunity to address the gaps in health coverage caused by life transitions. Achieving the promise of the Affordable Care Act will require attention in federal regulations and actions by the new health insurance exchanges to ensure seamless coverage for those who rely on private insurance, including job-based coverage. This paper analyzes the population experiencing life transitions that lead to a loss of health coverage and makes several policy recommendations to ensure that all Americans can maintain health coverage under the ACA—even during compli- cated life transitions. Keywords: Affordable Care Act, health policy, Medicare, Medicaid, health insur- ance Copyright