Latest California Healthline Stories
USA Today Looks at Veterans’ Efforts To Defeat Health Care Services Fee Increases
USA Today on Thursday examined how lawmakers who “initially embraced” a Bush administration proposal to increase the fees for health care services charged to veterans “considered less needy than others” later “backed down in the face of opposition from veterans’ groups.”
Proposition Numbers Assigned to Ballot Measures for November Special Election
The Office of the Secretary of State has assigned proposition numbers to eight ballot measures, three of which address health-related issues, for the Nov. 8 special election, the AP/San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Dual Eligibles Might Lose Coverage Under Medicare Prescription Drug Benefit, Study Finds
As a result of a provision in the 2003 Medicare law requiring states to contribute to the cost of the new prescription drug benefit, some states are planning to eliminate coverage for “tens of thousands” of people who are considered dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid, according to a study released Wednesday by Families USA, CQ HealthBeat reports.
San Mateo County Officials Consider Funding for Indigent Care, Nursing
A San Mateo County grand jury last week recommended that the county consider selling San Mateo Medical Center or converting to a managed care system, the Oakland Tribune reports.
Net Medical Malpractice Claims Paid Did Not Increase Between 2000 and 2004
Net medical malpractice claims paid by 15 large insurers nationwide did not increase between 2000 and 2004, but net premiums increased by 120% over the same period, according to a study scheduled for release on Thursday by the consumer advocacy group Center for Justice and Democracy, the New York Times reports.
USA Today Examines Steve Case’s Launch of Revolution Health
USA Today on Thursday examined Revolution Health Group, a private company led by former AOL Time Warner Chair Steve Case that seeks to promote consumer-driven health care.
New York Times Examines Refusal by Many Health Insurers To Cover New Medical Devices
The New York Times on Wednesday examined why some FDA-approved medical devices are not widely covered by health insurers.
Wall Street Journal Examines Federal Quality Improvement Organizations
The Wall Street Journal on Wednesday examined recent criticism of the federal health care quality-improvement program that seeks to educate health care providers on best practices in medicine.
Approval of Medi-Cal Waiver Necessary To Maintain Safety-Net Hospitals, Belshe Writes
The “financial viability of [the state’s] 146 safety-net hospitals will be jeopardized” if the Legislature by September does not approve a proposed agreement with the federal government to increase federal matching funds for Medi-Cal and enroll more Medi-Cal beneficiaries in managed care plans, Health and Human Services Agency Secretary Kim Belshe writes in a San Diego Union-Tribune opinion piece.
DMHC Fines Blue Cross of California $150,000 for Computer Billing Error
The Department of Managed Health Care on Tuesday announced a $150,000 fine against Blue Cross of California for overcharging nearly 45,000 individual policyholders a total of $12 million in early April, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.