Calif. bill would strip secrecy from health agency

Two lawmakers are seeking to strip broad secrecy provisions from the California agency overseeing implementation of President Barack Obama’s health care reforms.

Monday’s announcement comes less than two weeks after The Associated Press reported that the degree of privacy granted the state’s health benefits exchange could shield the public from seeing how hundreds of millions of dollars are spent.

A bill introduced by Republican Sen. Bill Emmerson and Democratic Sen. Mark DeSaulnier would strip authority that allows the agency to keep all contracts private for a year and the amounts paid secret indefinitely. Emmerson tells the AP, “It should all be transparent.”

It’s not clear how many contracts the agency has executed, for how much or with whom. Only narrow, temporary exemptions would be allowed, consistent with long-standing state law.