Latest California Healthline Stories
HHS Awards Contracts to Four Companies To Develop Electronic Health Records Systems
HHS on Thursday awarded four contracts valued at a combined $18.6 million for the development of electronic health records systems in 12 U.S. regions that will serve as models for the nation, the New York Times reports.
34% of Health Care Spending Used for Administrative Costs, Study Finds
About 34% of private health care spending in California goes toward administrative costs, according to a study published Thursday in the journal Health Affairs, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Undocumented Immigrants Account for One-Third of Rise in the Uninsured
Undocumented immigrants accounted for about one-third of the 8.7 million increase in the number of uninsured U.S. adults between 1980 and 2000, according to a study published this week in the November/December issue of Health Affairs, the AP/Long Island Newsday reports.
Medicare Saved $9.5B in Fiscal Year 2005 Through Reduction in Administrative Errors, CMS Says
Medicare saved about $9.5 billion in fiscal year 2005 by reducing errors by half, CMS officials announced Thursday, the AP/Wall Street Journal reports.
California Healthline Highlights Recent Hospital News
California Pacific Medical Center, SEIU United Healthcare Workers-West announce tentative agreement to end two-month strike; Kaiser Permanente officials confirm two more patient deaths related to staff errors
Seniors Remain Uncertain About New Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit, Survey Finds
With less than one week before enrollment in the new Medicare drug benefit is scheduled to begin, many seniors remain uncertain about the new coverage and undecided about whether they will enroll, according to a survey released Thursday by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Harvard School of Public Health, the Akron Beacon Journal reports.
California’s growing population of indigenous Oaxacan immigrants, who prefer traditional healers and herbal remedies to Western medicine, pose new challenges to California’s health care system, KQED’s “The California Report” reports.
Conservatives, Moderates Fight Over Budget Reconciliation Bill
House Republican leaders on Thursday cancelled a vote on their budget reconciliation bill — now projected to cut about $51 billion over five years, some of which will come from Medicaid — after a concession to moderates to abandon oil drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge failed to win enough votes for the bill’s approval, the AP/Richmond Times-Dispatch reports.
UCIMC Liver Transplant Program Loses Federal Funding, Closes
The University of California-Irvine Medical Center on Thursday closed its liver transplant program after losing federal certification, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Garamendi Calls for Larger Cuts to Workers’ Compensation Insurance Rates
Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi on Thursday criticized workers’ compensation insurers for not passing savings on to employers and called for another 15.3% reduction in insurance rates for policies sold or renewed beginning Jan. 1, the Sacramento Bee reports.