Latest California Healthline Stories
Leaders Cite Health Care as Priority as Legislative Session Begins
California lawmakers on Monday began the new legislative session, with Democratic leaders promoting bipartisanship while members introduced “a bevy of progressive bills sure to cause political divisiveness,” including several health care measures, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Hospital Association Advertisement on Delay of Nurse Staffing Rule Criticized by Nurses
A 30-second television advertisement sponsored by the California Healthcare Association that “commends” Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) for delaying the implementation of revised nurse-to-patient staffing ratios began airing this week in Los Angeles, San Diego, Sacramento and the Bay Area, the Los Angeles Times reports.
AMA Delegates Vote To Endorse Purchase of Lower-Cost Prescription Drugs From Other Nations
The American Medical Association on Monday voted to endorse the purchase of lower-cost prescription drugs from Canada and other nations, provided that U.S. regulators can ensure the medications are safe, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
Prescription Drug Prices Increase About 0.5% in Third Quarter, AARP Study Finds
Manufacturer list prices for brand name prescription drugs increased 0.5%, on average, in the third quarter, compared with 1.8% a year earlier and 3.5% in the first quarter, according to an AARP study scheduled for release on Monday, the Wall Street Journal reports.
Ortiz To Pursue Some Changes To Measure To Fund Stem Cell Research
Sen. Deborah Ortiz (D-San Francisco), who campaigned in favor of Proposition 71, said she will urge the Legislature, which convenes Monday, to correct elements in the initiative that “ought not to have been there,” the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist (R-Tenn.) on Sunday said that the government should review federally funded abstinence-only sex education programs in response to a report released on Wednesday by Rep. Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), the AP/CNN.com reports.
Health Care Experts Raise Concerns About Problems for Nursing Home Residents Under New Medicare Law
Pharmacists, health experts and federal and state health officials are expressing “serious concern” about how nursing home residents will receive prescription drugs under the new Medicare law, the New York Times reports.
Los Angeles Times Examines King/Drew Medical Center
The Los Angeles Times on Sunday began a five-part series about Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center, looking at the hospital’s recurring medical lapses, managerial shortcomings and the local political conditions that have stalled effective reform.
Union Officials Announce Lawsuit Alleging Sutter Health, Staffing Agency Violated State Labor Code
Officials from the Service Employees International Union Local 250 said they filed a lawsuit Friday in San Francisco Superior Court alleging that Sutter Health and its temporary staffing agency violated state labor laws by not disclosing to replacement personnel that they would be hired to work during an ongoing labor disagreement, the Sacramento Bee reports.
Bakersfield Californian Examines Expenditures for Kern County First 5 Program
Since 1999, First 5 Kern has spent about $4.8 million on consultants, public relations and studies rather than health care and other benefits for low-income children, the Bakersfield Californian reports.