California sets rules for seeing doctors faster

The San Francisco Chronicle reports that California's patients covered by managed-care will see a reduced wait time when they visit a medical professional.

The state Department of Managed Health Care, which regulates California's health maintenance organization plans, released long-awaited rules Tuesday spelling out how quickly patients must be seen. As part of the rules, people covered by HMOs should get a primary-care appointment within 10 business days and an appointment with a specialist within 15 days.

California is the first state in the United States to implement these regulations.

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