Latest California Healthline Stories
Senate Conservatives, Moderates Still Divided on Medicare, Medicaid Cuts in Reconciliation Package
The Los Angeles Times on Monday examined support and opposition among Senate Finance Committee members for committee Chair Chuck Grassley’s (R-Iowa) budget reconciliation package to cut $10 billion over five years from Medicaid and Medicare.
Chicago Tribune Examines Concerns Over Proposed Illinois All Kids Program
The Chicago Tribune on Sunday examined the concerns of some health care experts that Illinois Gov. Rod Blagojevich’s (D) proposed All Kids program, which would extend health insurance benefits to all uninsured children in the state, would not be financially sustainable over time.
Wall Street Journal Examines Expansion of VA Health Care System
The Wall Street Journal on Monday examined the Department of Veterans Affairs health care system — the Veterans Health Administration — a “huge experiment in government-run managed care” in which Republican lawmakers are “investing billions of dollars more every year.”
Some Groups Voice Concerns About Provisions of Parental Notification Measure
Some judges and doctors are voicing concerns about Proposition 73, a measure on the Nov. 8 special election that would amend the state constitution to require health care providers to inform a parent or guardian 48 hours before performing an abortion on an unmarried minor, the Sacramento Bee reports.
Wal-Mart To Offer Lower-Cost Insurance, HSAs to Workers
Wal-Mart is introducing a new employee health plan, called Value Plan, that will have lower premiums and health savings accounts, the New York Times reports.
Latino residents of the Palomar Pomerado Health Care District in north San Diego County are less likely to have health insurance than other residents, according to a study by Palomar Pomerado Health, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Hospitals, Cancer Researchers Debate Proposed Tobacco Tax, How To Use Revenue
Two separate proposals for an additional tax on cigarettes in California to fund health care programs have been filed with the state attorney general’s office for the November 2006 election, Capitol Weekly reports.
New York Times Examines Some Patients’ Difficulty Paying Medical Bills
The New York Times on Sunday examined the challenges many U.S. residents with health insurance face when paying for health care by profiling the family of a boy with an immune system disorder.
State Officials Consider Implications of Antipsychotics Study on Medi-Cal Spending
State health officials are examining a study on the efficacy of antipsychotic medications published last month in the New England Journal of Medicine and considering its implications for Medi-Cal drug spending, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
UNOS Considering Investigation of Hospital Transplant Program, Los Angeles Times Reports
St. Vincent Medical Center CEO Gus Valdespino at a confidential staff meeting said that the United Network for Organ Sharing identified lapses in oversight in St. Vincent Medical Center’s liver transplant program, according to anonymous sources who attended the Oct. 5 meeting, the Los Angeles Times reports.