Latest California Healthline Stories
Holiday Season Brings Presents, Colorful Lights And A Sharp Spike In Heart Attacks
Researchers have found that on Christmas Eve the risk of a heart attack is 37 percent higher than normal. Although they didn’t draw conclusions on why the increase occurs, experts say the stress of the holidays combined with excessive drinking and eating could be the likely culprit.
California Is Flush With Cash And Residents Want To Spend It On Universal Health Care
The state is expecting an “extraordinary” budget surplus of $14.8 billion for the 2019-20 fiscal year, to go with $14.5 billion it has already put in rainy-day reserves, the legislative analyst’s office said in November.
Justice Department To Take Up Suit That Alleges Sutter Health Bilked Medicare For Higher Payments
The lawsuit alleges that Sutter and Palo Alto Medical intentionally submitted inaccurate diagnosis codes that inflated so-called risk scores given to patients.
On Capitol Hill: Medicare For All; Lowering Health Care Costs; And Maternal Mortality Rates
Rep. Richard Neal (D-Mass.), the expected incoming House Ways and Means chairman, signaled his willingness to hold hearings on “Medicare for all,” a popular priority for many progressive lawmakers in the party. Elsewhere on Capitol Hill, health care costs are in the spotlight, as well as a bill aimed at reversing the country’s maternal mortality rates.
Millions Of Americans Are Eligible For Free Coverage Through Health Law Plans, Study Finds
Part of the reason so many people are eligible for plans under which they would pay $0 in premiums is because President Donald Trump eliminated key health law payments last year. This had the unintended effect of increasing financial assistance to many Americans. Meanwhile, although the enrollment numbers have been dragging this year, the federal health law site did experience a surge after former President Barack Obama encouraged people to sign up.
The study’s results are generally consistent with the finding that people who are more highly educated, and whose career paths involved more intellectual challenge, build a “cognitive reserve” that can delay the worst depredations of dementia.
Investigation Into Son’s Suicide, Reveals Flaws In California’s Mental Health Treatment Regulation
Rose and Allen Nelson were promised that the treatment facility where their son was getting mental health help would provide a top of the line team. After Brandon’s suicide, they’re trying to figure out what went wrong.
California Medical Association, which has 43,000 members, weighed in on the proposed policy from President Donald Trump that would penalize legal immigrants who are seeking green cards for receiving government aid such as Medicaid. “Discouraging participation in Medi-Cal (Medicaid) could result in coverage losses throughout California, decreased access to care, and worse health outcomes for entire families, including children, many of whom are U.S. citizens,” wrote Dr. David H. Aizuss, CMA president.
Investigators Uncover Trove Of Photos Of Unclothed Women In Former USC Gynecologist’s Storage Unit
The police have been investigating Dr. George Tyndall as part of what is believed to be the largest sex crimes investigation involving an individual in LAPD history. Hundreds of current and former USC students have made allegations against Tyndall’s behavior while performing medical examinations. In October, USC agreed to settle a federal class-action suit on behalf of Tyndall’s patients for $215 million.
Next year, lawmakers are expected to take on various pieces of legislation and an array of investigations on such issues as preventing veteran suicide, the quality of VA nursing homes and the implementation of the Choice program, a comprehensive measure concerning veterans health care passed this year.