Latest California Healthline Stories
Health Summit To Address Access, Affordability
Gov. Schwarzenegger is expected to discuss children’s health care and a proposal to build as many as 500 school health clinics at the health summit. Contra Costa Times, Los Angeles Times.
Many Weight-Loss Surgeries Lead to Complications, Increased Costs, Study Finds
Many patients who have weight-loss surgeries within six months develop complications that lead to increased health care costs, a study finds. USA Today, New York Times.
Lower Payments Do Not Decrease Access, GAO Finds
About 7% of Medicare beneficiaries have experienced “a major access difficulty,” and “only a small fraction” of physicians have stopped accepting new Medicare patients as a result of lower Medicare reimbursement rates, according to a report. Reuters/Arizona Daily Star et al.
Policy Leads to Seizures of Drugs From Canada
A policy change has led to the confiscation of 37,154 prescription drug orders from Canada, and some critics believe the seizures are occurring to encourage enrollment in Medicare Part D. Wall Street Journal.
Two Large PBMs Agree to New Purchasing Model
Caremark Rx and Medco Health Solutions have agreed to participate in a new purchasing model under which they will disclose to clients the amount that they spend to purchase retail and mail-order prescriptions, as well as the amount of price rebates that they receive from pharmaceutical companies. Wall Street Journal.
E-mail on Workers’ Compensation Draws Criticism
The president of a workers’ compensation attorneys association denounced an e-mail to some physicians saying the doctors would not be supported unless they make contributions to a campaign against Gov. Schwarzenegger. Los Angeles Times.
Schwarzenegger Proposes Mandatory Prescription Drug Discounts
A proposal by the Schwarzenegger administration would require drug companies within five years to provide discounts of 40% to 60% to some residents or face possible exclusion from Medi-Cal. San Jose Mercury News et al.
IOM: Medication Errors Affect 1.5M U.S. Residents
Such errors lead to at least $3.5 billion annually in extra health care expenses at hospitals to treat the error-related injuries. Washington Post et al.