Latest California Healthline Stories
Washington Post Examines FDA Analysis on Potential Link Between Antidepressants, Suicide in Children
The Washington Post on Tuesday reviewed an unpublished FDA analysis of an FDA medical reviewer’s finding that has “renewed the complaints of critics that [FDA] is moving too slowly” to address concerns that antidepressants are associated with an increased risk of suicide in children.
Los Angeles County Budget Cuts for Mental Health Department Will Transfer Patients, Restrict Care
Thousands of Los Angeles County patients with mental illnesses who receive government-funded treatment will be moved from residential treatment facilities to “less-restrictive” treatment centers or receive restricted treatment as the county begins to eliminate some services after the county Board of Supervisors in June approved a budget that eliminated $28.6 million for the Department of Mental Health, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Las Vegas Sun Examines Lawsuits Filed Against For-Profit Hospitals Over Billing Practices
The Las Vegas Sun on Monday looked at a recent series of lawsuits filed against for-profit hospital systems HCA, Universal Health Services and Health Management Associates over their billing practices for uninsured patients.
Hospital Emergency Departments Treat Increased Number of Uninusred Patients, Report Finds
Uninsured patients are “flooding” U.S. hospital emergency departments and in many cases seek routine care that they “should get elsewhere,” according to a report released on Monday by the National Association of Community Health Centers, Reuters/Yahoo! News reports.
Many Seniors Prescribed Medications Considered Unsafe for Older Patients, Study Finds
Many older patients are being prescribed medications that are considered unsafe for patients ages 65 and older, according to a study released on Monday by researchers at the Duke Clinical Research Institute, the New York Times reports.
Recommendation To Consolidate Medi-Cal Application Process Raises Questions
The Oakland Tribune on Monday examined a recommendation by the California Performance Review that calls for allowing the state rather than counties to determine Medi-Cal beneficiaries’ eligibility and manage the application process.
Hospital officials and advocates for immigrants have raised concerns about new HHS guidelines developed in the past few weeks that will require hospitals to ask patients about their immigration status to obtain funds offered by the federal government to provide emergency care for uninsured patients, the New York Times reports.
Marshall Hospital Begins Plan To Bill Patients in Advance of Treatment
Marshall Hospital in Placerville on July 1 implemented a policy that encourages patients to pay “at least some of their hospital bill[s]” prior to receiving services, the Sacramento Business Journal reports.
Alameda County Superior Court Judge Ronald Sabraw on Friday denied a request for a preliminary injunction seeking special accommodations for a medical school admission exam for two potential applicants with learning disabilities, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Political Action Committee To Spend $75,000 on Campaign Supporting Proposition 72
Election Watchdog, the political action committee of advocacy group Consumer Watchdog, plans to spend $75,000 on a campaign to support passage of Proposition 72, a November ballot referendum on whether to retain a law (SB 2) that will require some employers in the state to provide health insurance to their employees or pay into a state fund to provide such coverage, The Recorder reports.