Latest California Healthline Stories
Schering-Plough Agrees To Settle Medicaid Fraud Allegations for $345.5 Million
New Jersey-based Schering-Plough on Friday pled guilty to violating federal anti-kickback laws by overcharging Medicaid for the allergy medicine Claritin and agreed to pay states $345.5 million in a settlement with the U.S. attorney’s office in Philadelphia, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
Boston Globe Examines Impact of Increased Patient Demand for Colonoscopies
The Boston Globe on Sunday examined a recent “rush” in patient demand for colonoscopies that has “strained the health care system, producing long waits and prompting some hospitals to bring patients in on weekends.”
U.S. Residents Have Symptoms of Depression Three Days Per Month, CDC Study Finds
U.S. residents have an average of three “sad, blue or depressed” days per month, according to a study published on Wednesday in the online journal Health and Quality of Life Outcomes, Dow Jones/Wall Street Journal reports.
USA Today Examines Study on Medicare Prescription Drug Discount Card Program
USA Today on Friday examined the results of a Kaiser Family Foundation study published this week that found that the new Medicare prescription drug discount cards can provide significant savings over retail prices for medicines, although the “excessive” number of cards available is confusing to seniors.
Feinstein Begins Online Signature Gathering Effort to Expand Stem Cell Research
U.S. Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D) on Thursday began a national online petition drive that aims to persuade the Bush administration to reverse a policy that limits federally funded stem cell research to 79 existing lines, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
The West Contra Costa Healthcare District on Sunday will take over operation of Doctors Medical Center San Pablo from Tenet Healthcare and try to reverse the hospital’s $10.5 million in losses so far this year, the Contra Costa Times reports.
Senate Approves $105 Billion Fiscal Year 2004-2005 State Budget Proposal
The Senate on Thursday voted 28-11 to approve a $105.3 billion 2004-2005 fiscal year state budget proposal, although “most Republicans abandoned” Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) and voted against the plan, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Kerry Addresses Health Care in Speech to Democratic National Convention
Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.), who accepted the Democratic presidential nomination on Thursday, said in his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention that he considers “affordable and accessible” health care a “right for all Americans,” the AP/Manchester Union Leader reports.
New Family Leave Program Sees Lower Demand Than Anticipated
Nearly one month after the state’s Paid Family Leave Insurance Program began, the Employment Development Department has received fewer than half the number of applications it had anticipated, the San Jose Mercury News reports.
Childhood Immunization Rates Reached Record High in 2003, CDC Says
The childhood immunization rate in the United States reached a record high of 79.4% in 2003, increasing nearly 5% over the 2002 level, CDC officials announced on Thursday, the Washington Post reports.