In New York, quiet Medicaid spending talks proceed while a Michigan insurer adds a range of new insurance products

The Wall Street Journal: Cuomo In Talks With Health-Care Union
Gov.-elect Andrew Cuomo and the state's health-care union are in quiet talks over Medicaid spending in an effort to avoid a bitter showdown next year over the state budget (Gershman, 12/3).

Los Angeles Times: Californians' Costs For Employer-Based Health Insurance Soar
Working Californians have seen the cost of their employer-based health insurance shoot up about 40% over the last six years, but they may be surprised to find that workers in many other states fared even worse (Helfand, 12/3).

The New York Times: Arizona Cuts Financing For Transplant Patients
Even physicians with decades of experience telling patients that their lives are nearing an end are having difficulty discussing a potentially fatal condition that has arisen in Arizona: Death by budget cut (Lacey, 12/2).

Health News Florida: Health Law Fight Starts Over
New Senate President Mike Haridopolos isn't wasting any time in his attack on the federal health-care overhaul. Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, has scheduled a committee vote Wednesday on a proposed constitutional amendment aimed at allowing Floridians to opt out of a future requirement that they buy health insurance (Saunders, 12/2).

The Detroit Free Press: Lost Workplace Coverage? Insurer Adds Options
HealthPlus of Michigan is expanding statewide several new health insurance products for young adults, early retirees and families looking for coverage for children under the age of 18, the Flint-based insurer announced today. … The coverage is designed for the growing individual insurance market for people who lost or don't have workplace coverage (Anstett, 12/3).