Latest California Healthline Stories
S.D. Medical Pot Measure Fails To Qualify for Nov. Ballot
Proponents of a proposed San Diego ballot measure to regulate medical marijuana dispensaries and impose a tax on storefront operators were unable to collect the signatures necessary to qualify the measure for the November ballot. Supporters of the measure collected fewer than 20,000 of the required 62,057 signatures by Monday’s deadline. U-T San Diego.
State Supreme Court Refuses To Bar Nurses From Giving Anesthetics
The state Supreme Court has refused to block nurses from administering anesthetics without physician supervision. The ruling will have a significant effect in rural areas where nurses commonly administer the medication unsupervised. San Francisco Chronicle.
Group Launches Campaign To Defeat Tax Hike Measure
A new coalition, called “Californians for Reforms and
Jobs, not Taxes,” has launched a campaign to defeat a compromise tax hike
plan developed by Gov. Brown and supporters of the “Millionaires
Tax.” Brown has warned that if the November ballot measure fails, billions
of dollars in additional cuts to health and human services, education and other
programs will be necessary. Sacramento Bee.
Legislators Approve Main Budget Measure, Withhold Some Bills
Last week, California Democrats passed seven budget bills in time to meet the June 15 constitutional deadline. However, lawmakers withheld votes on several trailer bills that require additional negotiations with Gov. Brown. Sacramento Bee et al.
Columnist: Budget ‘Hardly’ Honest, Gimmick-Free
Columnist Dan Walters argues that Democrats’ new state
budget plan is not balanced and honest and does not include an adequate reserve
as they claim. He writes, “It’s ‘balanced’ only with some very shaky
income and outgo assumptions; it’s ‘honest’ only if one ignores dozens of
bookkeeping tricks, fund shifts and other gimmicks; and its reserve is half of
what Gov. Jerry Brown wants and a fraction of what it should be.” Orange
County Register.
Study: $102M Medicaid Audit Program Recovers Only $19M
The National Medicaid Audit Program has cost U.S. taxpayers about $102 million since 2008, but it has recovered only $19.9 million in overpayments, according to a report released Thursday by the Government Accountability Office. Carolyn Yocom, health care director at GAO, said the program’s performance is the result of a lack of transparency on spending, program improvements and audit outcomes. Los Angeles Times.
Calif. Physicians’ EHR Systems Fall Short of Meaningful Use Criteria
A report from UC-San Francisco finds that 71% of surveyed California physicians say they use an electronic health record system at their main practice location, but only 30% have an EHR system that can meet meaningful use requirements. Modern Physician et al.
Kaiser Permanente Gives $1M Grant for Physician Diversity
Kaiser Permanente has awarded a $1 million grant to the National Medical Fellowships organization in an attempt to increase diversity among physicians. In a statement, Kaiser said efforts to increase the number of black and Latino physicians in the U.S. “will have a positive impact on health outcomes” because many patients select their physicians based on their own ethnic background. Payers & Providers.
Policy Experts Differ on Whether Health Care Spending Will Grow
Some health policy experts believe that cost-saving efforts have led to a sustainable slowdown in health care spending. However, other experts say that health spending slowed because of the recession and will increase when the economy recovers. AP/Sacramento Bee.
State Officials Might Reassess Reform After Federal Overhaul Ruling
California laws based on the federal health overhaul might have to be reconsidered if the U.S. Supreme Court rules against the federal law, according to state lawmakers. Some lawmakers are considering an alternate individual mandate for California. San Bernardino County Sun.