Morning Breakouts

Latest California Healthline Stories

Lawsuit Against USC Gynecologist Expands As More Women Come Forward

“I am ashamed, disappointed and furious that I am not alone,” former patient Anika Narayan said. Narayanan is one of 24 women now being represented by attorney Gloria Allred as part of an amended lawsuit filed Tuesday.

Under Health Law, Hospitals’ Charity Care Has Dropped Significantly

Because more people have coverage under the Affordable Care Act, hospitals are no longer having to provide charity care for a significant part of the population they once helped. Industry leaders say the numbers reflect California’s success in implementing the health law and utilizing all the tools it provided. Meanwhile, a different report shows that emergency room visits have risen under the legislation.

CMS Encouraging States To Utilize Medicaid To Help Fight Opioid Epidemic

The agency released guidelines on Monday specifically geared toward helping states use Medicaid to help infants born addicted to opioids. Meanwhile, lawmakers worry that the FDA is not doing enough to stop the flow of illegal drugs into the country.

Pilot Program Allows Homeless Vets To Park On VA Medical Center Campus Overnight

Participants say the safe parking program makes a big difference because it relieves some of the stress of a night in the car. “You don’t have that anxiety of someone’s going to knock on the window and say you’ve got to leave, or you’re in trouble or anything. They’ve given us a bathroom, which is so awesome.”

Huge Tobacco Ban Victory In San Francisco Sparks Action Elsewhere

Communities across California are taking up the issue, saying there’s little federal action to fall back on. “You know, I probably would have voted for it too,” said Brian Richardson a resident of Los Angeles who owns a Bay Area vaping store. “As much as I like to sell vape liquids at my store in San Francisco, I agree some type of regulation is necessary.”

AMA Opts To Continue Reviewing Its Opposition To Physician-Assisted Dying

The nation’s leading doctors group on Monday voted 56-44 percent to keep studying its current guidance, which states that medically-assisted deaths are “fundamentally incompatible with the physician’s role as healer.”