About Sammy Chang, Health Policy Researcher
Samuel “Sammy” Chang is a Health Policy Researcher for The Source on Healthcare Price and Competition. He currently writes the monthly California Legislative Beat on the Source Blog. Prior to joining The Source, he served as the Student Caucus Chair for the Executive Oversight Board for the University of California, Student Health Insurance Plan and worked as a legal intern for the California Department of Managed Health Care’s Office of Legal Services. At UC Hastings, he received a CALI Award for Academic Excellence for his work on the Public Policy and Law Workgroup. He additionally contributed to the California Senate Committee on Business, Professions, and Economic Development background paper on pharmacy benefit managers. Sammy has been recognized by the American Bar Association and the UC Hastings Board of Directors for his vision and dedicated leadership and has testified in front of the California Assembly Judiciary Committee and the ABA Commission on the Future of Legal Education. Sammy is a recent graduate of UC Hastings College of the Law with a concentration in law and health sciences and holds a B.S. degree in Biochemistry/Cell Biology from UC San Diego.AB 2036 Seeks to Rectify a Loophole in California AG Merger Oversight But Can Go Further
Sammy Chang, Health Policy Researcher May 13, 2020
As California continues to shelter in place and limit the spread of COVID-19, the California Legislature is forced to cut the number of bills it can consider this session. However, as hospitals struggle financially and possibly seek mergers to survive, merger oversight over nonprofit hospitals is more critical than ever to maintain health access. Under California law, the state Attorney General (“AG”) can impose conditional approval for mergers or acquisitions involving non-profit health facilities. Two recent bankruptcy court cases have threatened the viability of these conditional approvals by limiting the …
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[Presentation] AcademyHealth 2020 National Health Policy Conference
Sammy Chang, Health Policy Researcher February 11, 2020
AcademyHealth 2020 National Health Policy Conference Presentation: “Limiting Empire-Building: Why States Should Control Hospital Consolidation via Legislation and Litigation”
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Gov. Newsom’s Veto of AB 1014 Prevents Greater Regulation over Emergency Department Closures Amidst Loss of Health Access
Sammy Chang, Health Policy Researcher February 1, 2020
In California and elsewhere, the closure of emergency departments (“ED”) reduces access and negatively affects patient health, particularly to the primary users of EDs, who are often low-income and most affected by the closure. In 2014, the American College of Emergency Physicians (ACEP) observed that California had the lowest number of EDs per capita[1] and gave California an “F”, ranking the state 42nd in the country in terms of access to emergency care.[2] However, California’s latest attempt to strengthen state oversight over ED closures faltered when Governor Newsom vetoed AB …
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[In the Press] Interview Quoted in California Healthline Article “Loopholes Limit New California Law To Guard Against Lofty Air Ambulance Bills”
Sammy Chang, Health Policy Researcher January 13, 2020
Health Policy Researcher Sammy Chang was quoted in the 1/13/2020 California Healthline article “Loopholes Limit New California Law To Guard Against Lofty Air Ambulance Bills”: “It’s a very big step in balance billing, but it’s not a definitive one,” said Samuel Chang, a health policy researcher at the Source on Healthcare Price and Competition, a project of the University of California-Hastings.
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California’s 2020-2021 Budget Proposal Aims at Consolidation and Drug Pricing
Sammy Chang, Health Policy Researcher January 13, 2020
On January 10, California Governor Gavin Newsom released his 2020-2021 State Budget proposal. While the state budget process will not begin in earnest until after the Governor’s May Revise, the state budget provides a glimpse of likely California health care reforms. The Governor’s January Budget Proposal proposes the following: Proposal Goals Office of Health Care Affordability Increase price and quality transparency Develop cost targets for health care industry Address hospital cost trends by region, with focus on cost increases driven by delivery system consolidation Establish standards for advance evidence-based and …
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[Sutter Case Watch] BREAKING: Settlement Terms Released for Landmark Antitrust Case against Sutter Health
Sammy Chang, Health Policy Researcher December 20, 2019
See UFCW & Employers Benefit Trust v. Sutter Health case page. Today, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced the settlement terms for the landmark antitrust case, UFCW & Employers Benefit Trust v. Sutter Health. Sutter Health was alleged to engage in anticompetitive behavior by requiring “all or nothing” contracts, preventing insurance companies from providing tiered health plans, setting extremely high out-of-network rates, and restricting price transparency of provider cost information and rates. As Source Executive Editor Jaime King explains in a Tradeoffs episode, The Train Has Left the Station, …
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SB 343: The Importance of Aligning Kaiser’s Disclosure Requirements with Other Insurers and Hospitals
Sammy Chang, Health Policy Researcher November 1, 2019
To lower health care costs, transparency is critical. The recently approved SB 343 is California’s next step toward greater price transparency. This bill would require Kaiser Permanente to report the same amount and type of information as any other hospital and health plan would. This change underscores a new reality: while Kaiser may be structurally different from its competitors, its premiums are similarly priced. Because Kaiser covers nearly two thirds of the large group market enrollees (i.e. employers with more than fifty employees), SB 343 fills an important data gap …
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Can AB 651 Survive Possible Legal Difficulties as California Strives to Protect Both Air Ambulances and Patients?
Sammy Chang, Health Policy Researcher September 30, 2019
Updated 10/14/2019: Governor Newsom has signed AB 651, which will take effect January 1, 2020. There are few bills in the 2019 California Legislative cycle more supported by the Legislature than AB 651, which would reauthorize the Emergency Medical Air Transportation Act (“Act”) and prohibit balance billing by air ambulances. To fully understand the impact and significance of AB 651, we will first examine the history and evolution of the Emergency Medical Air Transportation Act, starting in 2010, to better appreciate the original intent of the Act. Second, we …
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California Budget Watch (Part 4 of 4): The Legislature Implements Major Healthcare Reforms in Trailer Bills SB 78 and SB 104
Sammy Chang, Health Policy Researcher August 30, 2019
Last month, we recapped the appropriations allocated to healthcare reform in the 2019 California Budget. These budget allocations, however, do not provide much guidance on how the money should be spent. Trailer bills provide the statutory language to implement the budget. With the enacted 2019 budget, the Governor signed two healthcare trailer bills passed by the Legislature, SB 78 and SB 104. In this post, we dissect these trailers bills which create and implement various programs impacting healthcare access and costs. What are Trailer Bills? SB 78 and SB …
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[Case Watch] UCFW & Employers Benefit Trust v. Sutter Health: Court Sets Antitrust Standards, Readying the Stage for Trial
Sammy Chang, Health Policy Researcher August 15, 2019
See UFCW & Employers Benefit Trust v. Sutter Health case page. Editor’s Note: As the historic antitrust lawsuit against healthcare giant Sutter Health heads to trial, The Source will feature a series of legal analyses, including revisiting the complaints and summary judgment order, to bring readers up to speed in this one of a kind case. The trial is set for September and expected to last around 12 weeks. Continue to follow The Source Blog as we bring the latest first-hand coverage and analysis in this case. On August 6, …
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