Latest California Healthline Stories
San Diego County on Tuesday will file two lawsuits against the state pertaining to money spent on social services, including one that asks the county “to be relieved” from funding mental health services for students, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
The Washington Post on Tuesday looked at efforts by the Los Angeles City Council to ban Wal-Mart from opening its supercenters in the community in part because city leaders say doing so could raise the number of uninsured residents and increase demand at public hospitals and clinics.
San Luis Obispo County To Begin New Mental Health Court Program
San Luis Obispo County on Friday will begin a new court program that will require people with mental illnesses who are on probation to check in with a judge regularly, the San Luis Obispo Tribune reports.
California Youth Authority facilities, part of the youth corrections system, are “dangerous,” and their health care and mental health services are “inadequate,” according to a series of reports released Monday, the Sacramento Bee reports.
FDA Committee Recommends Stronger Warnings on Use of Certain Antidepressants in Children
An FDA committee on Monday recommended that the agency issue stronger warnings to doctors prescribing selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors to treat depression in children while the FDA studies the risk of increased suicidal thoughts and actions in children that take antidepressants, the New York Times reports.
President Bush Releases $2.4 Trillion Fiscal Year 2005 Budget With Funds for Health Care Programs
President Bush on Monday released a $2.4 trillion budget proposal for fiscal year 2005, which includes “a virtual freeze on spending for everything but national defense, homeland security and federal benefits,” the Los Angeles Times reports.
Medicare HMOs Likely To Reduce Rates, Increase Benefits in Response to Subsidies in New Medicare Law
Medicare HMOs are expected to make “substantial rate cuts and benefit increases” this year as a result of $500 million in federal subsidies included in the new Medicare law (HR 1), the AP/Hartford Courant reports.
Pharmaceutical Industry Donations May Affect State Mental Health Guidelines
The New York Times on Sunday examined efforts by pharmaceutical companies to influence state officials to include more expensive new generation antipsychotic treatments in prescribing guidelines for Medicaid beneficiaries with mental illnesses and patients in state-run institutions.
Democratic Presidential Candidate John Kerry Criticizes Bush Over New Medicare Cost Estimate
In a campaign speech Sunday in North Dakota, presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry (D-Mass.) accused the Bush administration of an “incredible cave-in” to pharmaceutical companies in response to new figures from the Office of Management and Budget that the Medicare law (HR 1) will cost more than previously estimated, AP/Long Island Newsday reports.
Century City Hospital To Remain Open Under New Management
Beverly Hills-based Salus Surgical Group on Friday announced that it will lease the building that houses the Century City Hospital and keep the hospital open after Tenet Healthcare’s lease ends in April, the Los Angeles Times reports.