Latest California Healthline Stories
Cancer Top Cause of Death in U.S. Residents Younger Than Age 85
Cancer has surpassed heart disease as the leading cause of death for U.S. residents younger than 85 years old, according to the American Cancer Society’s annual report released Wednesday, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Medicare To Expand Coverage of Implantable Cardioverter Defibrillators Based on Study Results
Medicare is “poised to expand” coverage of implantable cardioverter defibrillators, a move that could increase the number of eligible beneficiaries by one-third to about 500,000, federal officials said Wednesday, the New York Times reports.
Study Indicates Savings From Universal Health System; Legislation Could Be Reintroduced
Some lawmakers on Wednesday announced their support for legislation that would create a state-run health insurance system to cover all state residents, after a report released Wednesday stated that such a program could save the state $343 billion over the next 10 years, the Sacramento Bee reports.
HHS Redistributes Unused SCHIP Funds to 28 States
HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson on Wednesday announced that the department will redistribute to 28 states $643 million in unspent federal SCHIP funds allocated in 2002 to help some states prevent program budget shortfalls for 2005, CQ HealthBeat reports.
Study Finds Gaps in Mental Health Care for Children in Medi-Cal
A study in February’s Journal of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry indicates “serious gaps” in mental health services for children enrolled in Medi-Cal, the Sacramento Bee reports.
Injured Workers, Lawyers File Suit To Block State Workers’ Compensation Regulations
Injured workers on Wednesday filed a lawsuit against the Division of Workers’ Compensation that seeks an injunction to block the implementation of new state workers’ compensation regulations, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Women Who Have One Alcoholic Drink Daily Have Better Memories, Study Finds
Women who consume one alcoholic drink per day are 20% less likely to have cognitive impairment as they age, according to a study published Thursday in the New England Journal of Medicine, the San Jose Mercury News reports.
HHS Nominee Leavitt Says Federal Medicaid Funding Reductions Possible
Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Leavitt, who President Bush last month nominated as the new HHS secretary, on Wednesday at a confirmation hearing “steadfastly refused to rule out budget cuts for Medicaid” and said that he could not confirm whether the Bush administration planned to replace the current Medicaid structure with block grants to reduce costs, the Washington Post reports.
Los Angeles Hospital Suspends Some Cardiac Procedures
Kaiser Permanente Los Angeles Medical Center in Hollywood on Monday suspended some cardiac procedures after four patients who underwent such surgeries the week before developed the same type of bacteria infections, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Law Licensing Naturopathic Doctors Takes Effect in California
California on Jan. 14 became the 13th state to license naturopathic doctors, a move that will allow naturopaths to prescribe certain natural drugs, the Los Angeles Times reports.