Latest California Healthline Stories
HHS Awards First Contract Under Project BioShield to California Company To Produce Anthrax Vaccine
HHS on Thursday announced that it has awarded the first contract under Project Bioshield to California-based VaxGen, giving the company $877 million to manufacture 75 million doses of a newly developed anthrax vaccine, the Washington Post reports.
The Tulare County Children’s Health Initiative plans to use state grants and revenue from tobacco taxes to fund an outreach program to enroll the county’s 15,000 eligible uninsured children in state-funded health insurance programs, the Fresno Bee reports.
President Bush at a news conference on Thursday “vowed” to quickly act on an “ambitious agenda he set out during the campaign,” calling “for Congress to move speedily” on legislation that would limit noneconomic awards in medical malpractice lawsuits, the New York Times reports.
Opponents, Supporters of Measure To Fund Stem Cell Research Debate Effects of Approval
Supporters of Proposition 71, a bond initiative on the Nov. 2 statewide ballot that will fund stem cell research, praised the initiative’s approval, saying the measure will “create new collaborations to hasten treatments for Alzheimer’s, Parkinson’s and other diseases,” while opponents said “public accountability” is necessary to ensure proper use of the funds, the San Mateo County Times reports.
Health Officials, Lawmakers Anticipate Effect of Mental Health Services Initiative
Public health officials, legislators and mental health advocates are “gearing up to compete for the windfall” that Proposition 63 is expected to provide for mental health services, the San Mateo County Times reports.
The Department of Health Services on Thursday proposed emergency regulations that would ease the state’s new nurse-to-patient staffing ratio requirements in an effort to reduce “the heavy financial burden the rules have placed” on hospitals, the Los Angeles Times reports.
San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom (D) on Thursday proposed a cost-cutting plan that would eliminate or reduce “[d]ozens of city programs,” including health clinics and other services, in a “direct response to voters’ rejection” of two tax measures on the ballot — supported by Newsom — that would have raised funds to maintain the services, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Health Care Providers, Businesses To Coordinate Efforts on Health Care Reform
Following the repeal of a law (SB 2) on Tuesday that would have required some employers to provide health coverage, some health care providers and business leaders are “regrouping” to draft new health care reform proposals, the Santa Rosa Press Democrat reports.
FDA on Friday will announce plans to commission a “major evaluation” by the Institute of Medicine on agency procedures for the detection of and response to safety risks posed by prescription drugs, “mainly those that are already on the market,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
PacifiCare Health Systems Reports 31% Increase in Third-Quarter Earnings
California-based PacifiCare Health Systems reported third-quarter net income of $88.2 million, a 31% increase from $67.5 million in the same period last year, the Wall Street Journal reports.