Latest California Healthline Stories
Workers Fired Following Investigation of Nevada Mental Health Facility
Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval says that an unspecified number of workers at Rawson-Neal Psychiatric Hospital in Las Vegas have been fired following an investigation of the hospital’s practice of busing patients with mental illnesses to California and other states. Sacramento Bee.
Editorial Lauds Nevada’s New Patient Discharge Policy
A Sacramento Bee editorial states that although Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval “still has plenty of explaining to do about his state’s cavalier policy of busing mentally ill patients” to California and other states, his administration “deserves credit” for now requiring such patients to have an escort. It concludes that all states “must understand that they have a fundamental obligation to care for people who through no fault of their own cannot care for themselves.” Sacramento Bee.
Experts Predict Increase in Mental Health Needs for Homeless Elderly
Mental health experts say that California soon could experience an increase in behavioral health care needs for elderly homeless individuals. They say that health providers could staff specialized workers around the clock to guide such individuals through treatment. Sacramento Bee.
Bayer To Offer $1.1B To Buy California-Based Conceptus
German drugmaker Bayer has announced plans to acquire California-based Conceptus — which manufactures Essure, a permanent birth control method — for about $1.1 billion, or $31 per share. Finalization of the deal is subject to U.S. antitrust approval and expected by mid-2013. AP/Fresno Bee.
Lawmakers Send Health Plan Protection Bills to Gov. Brown
The Assembly and Senate have passed two bills that would prevent health insurers from discriminating against individuals with pre-existing conditions. The two measures now go to Gov. Brown for consideration. AP/San Francisco Chronicle et al.
Scope-of-Practice Bills Pass First Hurdle in Legislature
On Monday, the state Senate Business, Professions and Economic Development Committee approved a set of bills that would expand the scope of practice for nurse practitioners, optometrists and pharmacists to address a physician shortage. The bills, by Sen. Ed Hernandez, now proceed to the Senate Appropriations Committee. Riverside Press-Enterprise.
Report: U.S. Could Save $1T via Integrated Care, Ending Fee-for-Service
A new report from the Brookings Institution states that the federal government could save $300 billion over 10 years and as much as $1 trillion over 20 years by using integrated care models and shifting away from fee-for-service payment systems. The Hill‘s “Healthwatch” et al.
Columnist Urges Overhaul of Medical Board of California
Los Angeles Times columnist Michael Hiltzik writes that the Medical Board of California has “sat inertly by while its disciplinary program against incompetent and dangerous doctors falls to pieces” and that the board’s regulation of physician-owned outpatient surgical centers “is almost nonexistent.” According to Hiltzik, lawmakers are “talking about rubbing out the current membership and their executive director” as part of a legislative re-authorization process that “plainly is needed.” Los Angeles Times.
State Told To Move Inmates at Risk of Valley Fever
Federal receiver J. Clark Kelso, charged with monitoring the state’s prison health care system, has ordered the relocation of about 3,280 inmates from the Avenal and Pleasant Valley state prisons because they are more susceptible to the deadly fungal infection known as valley fever. The order affects certain racial minorities and those who have serious chronic medical conditions. Los Angeles Times, AP/Washington Post.
S.F. Center Joins CDC Pilot for Developmentally Disabled
The Arc San Francisco was selected as one of five of The Arc’s 700 sites nationwide to participate in a three-year, $1 million CDC-funded pilot study, called Health-Meet, that aims to help ensure that adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities receive routine health screenings and assistance with health care navigation. Researchers also will collect data to help address health system gaps. San Francisco Chronicle.