Latest California Healthline Stories
Internal NIH Review Finds Many Agency Scientists Involved in Undisclosed Consulting Arrangements
More than half of NIH scientists examined in an internal review violated the agency’s previous policies or recommendations on drug company consulting payments, according to excerpts from the ongoing review provided recently to Congress by NIH Director Elias Zerhouni, the Los Angeles Times reports.
HHS Web Site on Sexual Abstinence Includes Inaccurate Information, Review Finds
An HHS Web site designed to help parents discuss sexual abstinence with their teenage children contains inaccurate and misleading information about condoms, sexual orientation, dangers associated with oral sex and single-parent households and potentially could lead to riskier behavior among young people or alienation among families, according to medical experts who reviewed the material at the request of Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), the Washington Post reports.
Food Industry To Propose Voluntary Limits on Advertisements To Address Childhood Obesity Concerns
The Grocery Manufacturers Association on Friday plans to make proposals for new voluntary limits on food advertisements that target children because of “growing pressure” from lawmakers and child advocacy groups over the role of food companies in childhood obesity, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Physicians Account for 68 of 100 Highest-Paid Los Angeles County Employees
Sixty-eight of the 100 highest-paid employees of Los Angeles County are physicians, according to a list compiled by the county at the request of the Los Angeles Times.
State Supreme Court Rejects Second Lawsuit on Workers’ Compensation Rules
The California Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected without comment a lawsuit filed by VotersInjuredatWork.org that attempted to challenge new workers’ compensation rules, the Sacramento Bee reports.
Humana To Partner With Wal-Mart To Promote Medicare Prescription Drug Plans
Kentucky-based Humana on Wednesday announced plans to partner with Wal-Mart to promote Medicare prescription drug plans to beneficiaries, the Louisville Courier-Journal reports.
A newly appointed contractor to administer Sacramento’s Health Insurance Counseling and Advocacy Program has come under criticism from volunteers over decisions about how to structure the program most effectively, the Sacramento Bee reports.
White House To Ask for $300M More for Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Programs
Bush administration officials are expected to ask Congress on Wednesday for $300 million for Department of Veterans Affairs health care programs — in addition to the $975 million already requested — to cover the “larger than anticipated” budget deficit for fiscal year 2005, Sens. Kay Bailey Hutchison (R-Texas) and Larry Craig (R-Idaho) said Tuesday, CQ Today reports.
Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit Prompted Proposed UnitedHealth, PacifiCare Merger, Op-Ed States
UnitedHealth Group’s key motivation behind its proposed acquisition of PacifiCare Health Systems is the company’s “desire to build on PacifiCare’s leading position in the Medicare HMO business” before the Medicare Advantage program takes effect, Wall Street Journal columnist Holman Jenkins writes.
Catholic Healthcare West, CNA Agree to Contract
Catholic Healthcare West and the California Nurses Association on Tuesday agreed to a four-year contract under which the hospital group will adopt nurse-to-patient ratios of one nurse to every five patients for general medical units and provide a 26% increase in wages and benefits over the length of the contract, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.