Latest California Healthline Stories
Medical Tourism Industry Remains Small, Study Finds
Medical tourism is much smaller than commonly assumed, with just 60,000 to 85,000 patients traveling abroad for inpatient hospital care each year, according to a new study by consulting firm McKinsey. However, the consulting firm noted that there is potential for huge growth in the industry. Wall Street Journal.
House Panel Mulls Medicare Competitive Bidding Plan
CMS officials say Medicare could save $1 billion a year by asking durable medical equipment companies to bid on Medicare contracts. A pilot program launched in 2003 and is slated to expand to Los Angeles and other major metropolitan areas this year. Lawmakers worry that the program is not working as it was intended. Wall Street Journal.
New Patient Dumping Cases Investigated in Los Angeles
On Monday, representatives for Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo said that they are investigating an Orange County hospital in a “very serious case” of alleged homeless patient dumping last week. The city attorney’s office would not release the hospital’s name, but a source at the shelter involved said College Hospital in Costa Mesa dropped off the schizophrenic, bipolar man. Los Angeles Daily Journal.
Santa Clara County Aims To Expedite Cardiac Care
Last month, Santa Clara County supervisors approved a new comprehensive cardiac care system designed to eliminate barriers to rapid treatment of patients suffering from the most serious of heart attacks, known as STEMI. However, small hospitals might not seek certification in the program due to staffing and resource costs related to meeting its requirements. Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal.
Rising Medical Costs Taking Bigger Toll on Insured
Doctors say more people with health insurance are delaying medical treatment because of copayments that have grown over recent years. A recent survey from Deloitte found that only 7% of people say they are financially prepared for future health care needs. New York Times.
Major Hospital Construction Under Way in Sacramento Area
UC-Davis Health System, Sutter Health, Catholic Healthcare West and Kaiser Permanente are undergoing construction projects that will add more than 800 new hospital beds and are slated to cost about $2.6 billion, raising questions from some in the health care industry about whether these investments will pay off for hospitals. Sacramento Bee.
California Health Care Personnel News Update for April 2008
The California Dental Association and California Diabetes Program named new head officers. Kaiser Permanente, Catholic Healthcare West and Adventist Health also announced leadership changes. Adventist Health announced a new board member.
More Americans Seeking Medical Care Overseas
One estimate places the number of U.S. residents who went abroad for health care at 150,000 in 2006, and companies are forming to help people identify options for treatment overseas. San Francisco Chronicle.
San Francisco Universal Health Care Access Program Up and Running
About a quarter of San Francisco’s uninsured workers have enrolled in Healthy San Francisco, a city program that aims to ensure that residents have access to health care services. A city law is pushing businesses to share the cost of workers’ health benefits. Wall Street Journal.
Health Care Reform News Around the Nation for the Week of May 5
The Michigan House approved legislation aimed at making individual health insurance coverage more affordable, while the Missouri Senate OK’d a measure for a program to cover about 200,000 low-and moderate-income state residents.