Latest California Healthline Stories
State Senate Candidates Debate Referendum on Employer-Sponsored Health Coverage Law
Senate candidates Peg Pinard (D), a San Luis Obispo County Supervisor, and Assembly member Abel Maldonado (R-San Luis Obispo) on Monday debated Proposition 72 — a referendum on the Nov. 2 statewide ballot that asks residents to vote “yes” to uphold or “no” to repeal a law (SB 2) on mandatory employer health coverage — among other issues, the San Luis Obispo Tribune reports.
Downey Regional Medical Center Ends Medi-Cal Contract
Officials for Downey Regional Medical Center on Friday announced that they have canceled their contract with Medi-Cal and will no longer offer nonemergency or outpatient services to beneficiaries, the Long Beach Press-Telegram reports.
Presidential Candidates Criticize Each Other on Issue of U.S. Flu Vaccine Shortage
Democratic presidential nominee Sen. John Kerry (Mass.) on Monday “accused President Bush of a dangerous indifference to the country’s health care concerns,” saying that the flu vaccine shortage is a “symbol of the broader problems of uninsured families and high-priced prescription drugs,” the New York Times reports.
Four Los Angeles County Hospitals Receive Surprise JCAHO Inspections
Reviewers from the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations on Monday began unannounced inspections at four Los Angeles County hospitals, signaling that the agency, which has threatened to rescind its accreditation for Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center because of repeated patient care violations, “wants to assess the quality of care at other public hospitals overseen by the county Board of Supervisors,” the Los Angeles Times reports.
U.S. Selective Service Updates Contingency Plan for Draft of Health Care Workers
The Selective Service, the federal agency that plans for and carries out the U.S. draft, this summer issued a confidential report updating its contingency plans for drafting doctors, nurses and other health care workers in case of a national emergency that “overwhelmed the military’s medical corps,” the New York Times reports.
San Francisco Hotel Workers End Strike; Employers Maintain Lockout
Workers at four “prominent” hotels in San Francisco on Wednesday ended their two-week strike over contract issues such as health care, but the hotels said they would maintain an employee lockout until they reached a contract settlement, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Republican Assembly Candidate Blakeslee Receives Donations From Medical Industry
Republican Sam Blakeslee, who is running for the 33rd District Assembly seat, has received about $28,000 from health care industry groups, including health insurance and pharmaceutical companies, the San Luis Obispo Tribune reports.
FDA Orders Black Box Warning on Antidepressants Over Children’s Suicide Risks
FDA officials Friday ordered pharmaceutical companies that manufacture antidepressants to add black box warnings to drug packaging advising consumers that the drugs could cause suicidal thoughts and actions in people younger than 18 years old, the New York Times reports.
Nursing Home Operators, Advocates Disagree Over Effects of Medi-Cal Reimbursement Law
Nursing home operators say a bill (AB 1629) recently signed into law by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) that addresses Medi-Cal reimbursement rates for nursing homes will help improve patient care, but critics say it does not include adequate provisions to guarantee that increased reimbursements will lead to improved care, the Sacramento Bee reports.
Success of Proposition 72 Could Determine Other States’ Actions
Proposition 72 — a referendum on the Nov. 2 statewide ballot that asks state residents to vote “yes” to uphold or “no” to repeal a law (SB 2) on mandatory employer health coverage — could have “national reverberations,” the Los Angeles Times reports.