Latest California Healthline Stories
Officials from community health care organizations in Alameda County on Tuesday said that proposed funding cuts to county health care programs could inhibit their ability to serve uninsured and low-income residents but conceded that the cuts are necessary to address a $98.4 million county budget deficit, the Oakland Tribune reports.
Wall Street Analysts Examine Effects of New Medicare Law on Health Insurance Industry
Wall Street analysts at a conference on Thursday examined the impact that last year’s Medicare overhaul will have on the health insurance industry, CongressDaily reports.
Medicare Pilot Program To Provide Prescription Drug Coverage for 50,000 Beneficiaries
Beginning this fall, 50,000 Medicare beneficiaries will receive prescription drug coverage for some of their most expensive medications under an 18-month pilot project included in the new Medicare law, HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson and CMS Administrator Mark McClellan announced on Thursday, the AP/Billings Gazette reports.
Anthem Offers Assurances to State Regulators on Merger With WellPoint
Prior to a Department of Insurance public hearing scheduled Friday on a proposed $16.4 million merger between Indiana-based Anthem and California-based WellPoint Health Networks, Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi (D) released a 15-point document outlining compromises Anthem would make if granted regulatory approval for the merger, the Indianapolis Star reports.
Federal Database of Clinical Trial Results Likely, NIH Director Elias Zerhouni Says
NIH Director Elias Zerhouni on Thursday at a meeting with Massachusetts General Hospital physicians said that the federal government likely would establish a database of clinical trial results in the near future and that pharmaceutical companies likely would agree to participate, the Boston Globe reports.
House Subcommittee Holds Hearing on Hospital Billing, Collection Practices for Uninsured Patients
The House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations on Thursday discussed findings of its yearlong investigation of for-profit and not-for-profit hospitals’ billing and collections practices, CongressDaily reports. The investigation found that overall, hospitals were charging uninsured patients “by far the highest rates of any segment of the population,” according to CongressDaily.
Attorney General Sues Costume Jewelry Retailers Under State Toxins Law
Attorney General Bill Lockyer (D) on Wednesday filed a lawsuit in Alameda Superior Court alleging that retailers and distributors of certain brands of costume jewelry are not complying with Proposition 65, a state law requiring businesses to provide “clear and reasonable” warnings about any product that could cause reproductive or developmental harm, the Sacramento Bee reports.
AARP Opposes Budget Enforcement Bill, Says It Could Affect Medicare Benefits
AARP CEO Bill Novelli on Tuesday wrote a letter saying that budget enforcement legislation drafted by House Budget Committee Chair Jim Nussle (R-Iowa) would impose “unrealistically low” discretionary spending caps in the coming years and could affect new benefits called for under the Medicare law.
Sen. Baucus Proposes ‘Pay-for-Performance’ System To Reward Quality in Medicare
Sen. Max Baucus (D-Mont.) on Wednesday introduced a bill that would establish a “pay-for-performance” system for some parts of Medicare, CongressDaily reports.
Assembly Committee Approves Universal Health Coverage Bill
The Assembly Health Committee on Tuesday voted 12-5 to approve a bill (SB 921) that would create a state-run universal health insurance system, the AP/Orange County Register reports.