Latest California Healthline Stories
British American Tobacco Fined $250,000 for Violation of Court Order
U.S. District Court Judge Gladys Kessler on Monday fined British American Tobacco $250,000 for an “egregious lack of candor” related to the violation of an earlier court order in the Department of Justice lawsuit against the tobacco industry, the AP/New York Times reports.
Some California Hospitals Seek Additional Nurses To Help Comply With Staffing Law
California hospitals are “scrambling” to comply with a new nurse-staffing regulation requiring that one nurse care for no more than five patients throughout the day, and some hospital officials say most facilities are unable to meet the standard, the AP/Santa Rosa Press Democrat reports.
San Francisco Budget Could Cut Public Health Services by $25 Million
San Francisco Department of Public Health officials on Friday proposed two tiers of funding cuts that could total as much as $25 million and affect services for people with substance abuse problems, people with mental illnesses, people with HIV/AIDS and shut-ins in an effort to help close a projected budget deficit of $102 million for fiscal year 2005-2006, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
A lawsuit filed in Superior Court in San Diego alleges that three cereal companies engaged in deceptive marketing practices that suggested low-sugar cereals were healthier than regular-sugar varieties, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Together Rx Access Prescription Drug Discount Card Program To Launch Advertising Campaign
Pharmaceutical companies involved with Together Rx Access, a prescription drug discount card program established earlier this year, next month will begin an advertising campaign to promote the program on 12 cable networks, radio stations in 34 markets and newspapers in several cities, the AP/Richmond Times-Dispatch reports.
Los Angeles County Failing To Make Several Promised Reforms to Health Care System, Reports Say
The Department of Health Services on Thursday released two reports on the findings of an independent audit that examined progress Los Angeles County has made on reforms promised in 2000 to the public health care system, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Kaweah Delta Gauges Support for Inpatient Mental Health Wing for Adolescents
Kaweah Delta Health Care District could convert a wing of its adult mental hospital to provide inpatient care for adolescents if health officials from six counties in the San Joaquin Valley support the proposal, the Fresno Bee reports.
More U.S. Adults Recall Risk Information in Prescription Drug Advertisements, Survey Finds
About 79% of U.S. adults recall risk information included in prescription drug advertisements, up from 76% last year, according to the eighth annual Rodale survey on direct-to-consumer advertising released Thursday, the New York Times reports.
FDA on Thursday issued new guidelines detailing “when and how drug makers should go beyond label warnings and incorporate other restrictions on the use of a drug,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Department of Defense To Extend Health Insurance for Some National Guard, Reserve Members
The Department of Defense will allow National Guard and Reserve members mobilized since the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks to retain health insurance for as many as eight years after active duty, department officials said on Thursday, the AP/San Francisco Chronicle reports.