Latest California Healthline Stories
Assembly Passes Bill To Require Health Insurers To Provide Hearing Aid Coverage for Children
The Assembly on Wednesday voted 43-20 to approve a bill (SB 1158) that would require health insurers in the state to cover some of the cost of hearing aids for children younger than age 18, the Los Angeles Daily News reports.
Some Hospitals Plan To Decline New Federal Funds for Emergency Care Because of Immigration Concerns
Some California hospitals have said they are “not likely to seek” new federal funds to cover the cost of providing emergency care to uninsured patients that would be available only under the condition that hospitals ask patients about their immigration status, the Santa Rosa Press Democrat reports.
Voters Rank Health Care as Less Important Issue Than They Did in 2000
Voters ranked health care as the fourth most important issue, behind the economy, terrorism and the war in Iraq, according to a new Washington Post/ABC News poll, Long Island Newsday reports.
Health Insurance Costs Stifling Job Growth, New York Times Reports
The New York Times on Thursday examined the link between escalating health insurance premiums — “one of the fastest-growing costs for companies” — and the economy.
McDonald’s and its franchisees together are the second-largest contributors to a campaign against Proposition 72, a referendum on the Nov. 2 statewide ballot that would preserve a state law (SB 2) requiring some employers to provide health insurance for employees, the Chicago Tribune reports.
Community Memorial Hospital, Medical Staff Settle Lawsuit Over Staff Rights
Community Memorial Hospital in Ventura and its medical staff have reached a settlement in a lawsuit brought by doctors against the hospital for “allegedly undercutting their rights as a self-governing branch of the medical center,” the Los Angeles Times reports.
President Bush Says Safety Concerns About Reimportation of Prescription Drugs Remain
President Bush on Wednesday at a campaign event in Wisconsin said that although Congress faces “a lot of pressure” to pass legislation to legalize prescription drug reimportation, the safety of the practice remains unclear, the AP/Las Vegas Sun reports.
Fresno-Area Hospitals Work To Improve Communication About Charity Care Policies
In response to a series of national lawsuits targeting hospitals’ charity care policies, several providers in the Fresno area are making an effort to better publicize financial aid programs for uninsured and underinsured patients, the Fresno Bee reports.
Senate Approves Measure Allowing Oral Surgeons To Perform Some Elective Cosmetic Surgery Procedures
The Senate on Tuesday unanimously voted to approve a bill that would allow dentists trained in surgery to perform elective facial cosmetic surgery, the Los Angeles Times reports.
U.S. Lawmakers Should Focus on Prescription Drug Price Controls, Not Reimportation, Op-Ed States
Bipartisan support from Congress and some state government officials to legalize the purchase of lower-cost prescription drugs from Canada is “charming,” but “these worthies are fighting the wrong fight and ducking the real one,” columnist Robert Kuttner, co-editor of the American Prospect, writes in a Boston Globe opinion piece.