Latest California Healthline Stories
Wal-Mart’s wage and benefits structure causes its workers to seek $86 million annually in state assistance, including $32 million in health-related expenses, according to a report released Monday, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Fewer Workers Receive Employer Benefits, Study Finds
Between 2001 and 2003, nearly nine million U.S. residents younger than age 65 lost employer-sponsored health insurance, largely because of the economic downturn and the increasing cost of providing such coverage, according to a Center for Studying Health System Change report released Tuesday, Scripps Howard/Detroit News reports.
Newsom Discusses Employer-Sponsored, Universal Health Coverage in Interview
San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom (D) in an interview with the San Francisco Chronicle published Sunday said that he supports a law (SB 2) that will require some employers in the state to provide health insurance to their employees and their dependents.
Hospital Districts, Health Care Facilities Consider Ballot Measures To Finance Construction Plans
California Healthline highlights recent news on hospital construction ballot measures that might be placed on the Nov. 2 election ballot.
Eli Lilly Announces Plans To Post Data on Past and Present Clinical Trials on its Web Site
Eli Lilly officials announced plans to release on the company’s Web site “extensive” data on all phases of clinical trials conducted on most of Lilly’s products, the Wall Street Journal reports.
John Kerry Says Deficit Would Not Affect Health Care Plan
Democratic presidential nominee Sen. John Kerry (Mass.) on Sunday night in a Los Angeles Times interview said that as president, he would move ahead with his health care plan regardless of whether the federal budget deficit increased.
Tulare County Shifting Clinic Duties To Reduce Wait Times, Nursing Shortage
The Tulare County Board of Supervisors last week approved a plan that seeks to reduce patients’ wait times and a nursing shortage at county clinics by creating a medical assistant position, which will assume some of the nurses’ responsibilities, the Fresno Bee reports.
FDA Approves Gilead, GlaxoSmithKline Fixed-Dose Combination HIV/AIDS Drugs
FDA on Monday approved two once-daily, fixed-dose combination antiretroviral drugs manufactured by Gilead Sciences and GlaxoSmithKline, Bloomberg/Los Angeles Times reports.
Nearly Half of Specialists Aware of Occurrence of Medical Errors
Almost half of ear, nose and throat surgeons said they were involved in or were aware of medical errors in their practices in the last six months, according to a survey of otolaryngologists published Tuesday in the journal Laryngoscope, the Boston Globe reports.
Schwarzenegger Expected To Turn Attention to Medi-Cal Overhaul
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) is expected on Monday to unveil a “fundamental overhaul” of Medi-Cal after signing the fiscal year 2004-2005 state budget Saturday, the Sacramento Bee reports.