Latest California Healthline Stories
High Doses of Vitamin E Could Lead to Increased Risk for Death, Study Finds
Taking a dose of more than 400 international units of vitamin E per day can lead to an increased risk of death, according to a study presented on Wednesday at the American Heart Association’s annual conference and published online in the Annals of Internal Medicine, USA Today reports.
Prescription Drug ‘Follow-Ons’ Increase Competition, Reduce Prices, Tufts University Report Finds
Prescription drugs that are similar to medications currently on the market and treat the same conditions, or “follow-ons,” lead to increased competition, reduced prices and provide improved treatment options for physicians and patients, according to a Tufts University report released on Tuesday, the Boston Globe reports.
Applicants’ Attorneys File Lawsuit to Block Physician Network Rules in Workers’ Comp Overhaul Plan
The California Applicants’ Attorneys Association on Wednesday filed a lawsuit against the state in a Sacramento appellate court on behalf of “thousands of injured workers” who say new state workers’ compensation regulations, which allow employers to require injured workers to be treated by newly established medical provider networks, could force patients to change doctors in the middle of treatment, the Sacramento Bee reports.
Los Angeles County Might Open New Trauma Center
California Hospital officials on Wednesday announced an agreement with Los Angeles County officials to open a trauma center at the facility that could serve about two-thirds of the 1,800 trauma patients treated annually at Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center if King/Drew’s trauma unit is closed, the Los Angeles Times reports.
The health-related propositions on the Nov. 2 statewide ballot that were defeated failed “because they would have overburdened middle-income taxpayers,” business and health care leaders said Wednesday at a forum in Los Angeles, the Los Angeles Daily News reports.
Surveys Examine Consumer Opinions on Priority of Health Care Issues, HMO Cost-Control Practices
Four consecutive years of increased health care costs have prompted U.S. consumers to prioritize the issue as “one of the top items on the domestic agenda” and have “driven” them to accept more “managed care practices designed to hold down costs,” according to two studies released on Wednesday, the Hartford Courant reports.
Treatment of Both HDL, LDL Cholesterol Levels More Effective, Study Finds
Taking a combination of drugs designed to reduce so-called bad cholesterol and raise so-called good cholesterol is more effective at lowering the progression of heart disease than taking either medicine alone, according to the first study to test the dual approach, the AP/Lexington Herald-Leader reports.
Veterans Hospital To Send Second Closure Notice to Residents
About 20 residents of St. Thomas Anthony’s Hospital are expected to receive another notice to vacate next week because the facility, which operates under contract with the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, will be closing, the Contra Costa Times reports.
Senate Finance Committee Chair Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) on Wednesday called on Merck CEO Raymond Gilmartin and FDA acting Commissioner Lester Crawford to testify at a Nov. 18 congressional hearing on actions that the company and the agency took to inform the public about the cardiovascular risks associated with the COX-2 inhibitor Vioxx, Reuters/New York Times reports.
The San Francisco Health Commission on Tuesday approved a budget plan that will reduce funding for the San Francisco Department of Public Health by $15.5 million over the next 18 months, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.