Latest California Healthline Stories
California Hospital News Roundup for the Week of April 10, 2009
The Encinitas Planning Commission unanimously approved construction to expand of Scripps Memorial Hospital Encinitas. Meanwhile, CMS announced that UC-Irvine Medical Center passed a recent inspection and no longer is at risk of losing eligibility to participate in Medicare and Medicaid.
Demand for No-Cost Health Care Clinics Increasing
No-cost health care clinics are being strained as demand for health care services increases and their budgets decrease. More U.S. residents who have lost their jobs and health insurance are turning to these volunteer-run, no-cost and government-funded community health centers. USA Today.
President Signs Order Creating White House Office of Health Reform
Nancy-Ann DeParle, a veteran of the Clinton Administration, will head the office, which is charged with working with executive branch agencies, state and local officials, and Congress to enact health reform legislation. President Obama’s order also calls for HHS to create a similar office. Washington Post‘s “44” et al.
L.A. City Attorney Reaches Settlement in ‘Patient Dumping’ Case
College Hospital will make $1.2 million in donations and pay $400,000 in civil penalties to resolve allegations that two of its facilities improperly discharged patients. The hospital admitted no wrongdoing in the settlement and maintains that its actions did not constitute ‘patient dumping.’ AP/Kansas City Star et al.
Economic Decline Eases Hospital Nursing Shortages
Some area hospitals are having an easier time filling nursing positions because of the economic recession. Deirdre Hegarty, vice president and chief nursing executive at Mercy Medical Center Merced, said the economic decline has led to more nurses putting off retirement. Merced Sun-Star.
Public Health Data Show Big Drop in Tobacco Use in State
According to data the state Department of Public Health released, smoking rates among California adults have declined 41% since voters approved the California Tobacco Control Program 20 years ago. The program instituted a 25-cent-per-pack tax on cigarettes that directed five cents per pack sold to tobacco control efforts. California Health and Human Services Agency Secretary Kim Belshé said officials estimate the program has saved one million lives and $86 billion in health care costs. Los Angeles Times.
Campaigns Opposing Health Care-Related Measures Join Forces
Campaigns against propositions in California’s special election that would let the state tap into special accounts for mental health and early childhood health care and education services have merged. Gov. Schwarzenegger is leading the campaign for the measures. Sacramento Bee’s “CapitolAlert,” San Francisco Chronicle.
California Sees Widespread Cases of Influenza
This week, California health experts said they are seeing widespread cases of the flu. Influenza typically peaks in January and February, but is not unusual to see it in April and May, according to state health officials. Los Angeles Daily News.
Interest Groups Line Up To Battle Over Public Plan in Reform Efforts
Interest groups on both sides of the ideological divide are launching campaigns aimed at defining public impressions of a proposal to include a public health plan in health care reform legislation. Advocates worry that the fight could derail the push to overhaul health care this year. Christian Science Monitor, The Hill.
Federal Appeals Court Freezes Medi-Cal Pay Cut for Hospitals
A three-judge panel of the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in San Francisco derailed California’s latest effort to reduce Medi-Cal reimbursement rates, concluding that the state had not considered how the cuts would affect beneficiaries’ access to care. Medi-Cal rate cuts to other health care providers already had been frozen. San Francisco Chronicle.