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Medi-Cal applicants who have been waiting for more than 45 days can receive temporary health benefits while officials determine eligibility for the public insurance program, a state Superior Court judge ruled this week. The decision came in a lawsuit filed in September alleging that a large backlog of applications to California’s Medicaid program left hundreds of thousands of people unable to access health care. (Gorman, 1/23)

The state of California is preparing to grant temporary health coverage to Medicaid applicants who did not get coverage decisions within a required 45-day period. Alameda County Superior Court Evelio Grillo ruled against the state Tuesday in a case brought by advocates who want to reduce the number of Medicaid applicants who are waiting, sometimes for months beyond the federal deadline, for decisions about whether they qualify for benefits. (Adams, 1/22)