Latest California Healthline Stories
San Luis Obispo Physicians Petition City Council To Change Zoning Requirements for Medical Offices
Doctors in San Luis Obispo are petitioning city officials to change zoning requirements that restrict medical offices to certain locations, the San Luis Obispo Tribune reports.
Health Care a ‘Critical Issue,’ Bush Says in State of the Union Address
During his State of the Union address on Tuesday, President Bush called upon members of Congress to improve access to health care and contain health costs by passing legislation that would permit the formation of association health plans, give tax credits to help people purchase health insurance, cap awards in medical malpractice lawsuits to help decrease insurance premiums and encourage people to purchase health savings accounts, the New York Times reports.
El Dorado County Group Proposes Community Medical Marijuana Garden
A group of about 20 El Dorado County residents who are eligible to use marijuana for medical purposes under a state law have asked local authorities to work with them to create a community garden to grow and harvest marijuana plants, the Sacramento Bee reports.
Eli Lilly Expected To Participate in Medicare Drug Discount Card Program
Indianapolis-based Eli Lilly is expected to become the first major pharmaceutical company to offer discounted drugs to low-income seniors under the prescription drug discount card program created in the new Medicare law (HR 1), the Wall Street Journal reports.
Ties Between Medical Residents, Pharmaceutical Industry Questioned
Medical residency programs should limit contact between medical residents and drug company representatives in part because residents and doctors who meet with pharmaceutical representatives “are far more likely” to prescribe the drugs representatives promote “even when [the prescription drugs] are more expensive or have no benefit over alternatives,” Dr. Dan Shapiro, assistant professor of clinical psychiatry at the University of Arizona, wrote on Monday in a New York Times commentary.
House, Senate To Investigate Potential Conflicts of Interest at NIH
Reps. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio), John Dingell (D-Mich.) and Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) on Friday asked the General Accounting Office to investigate consulting fees and stock options paid by drug companies to NIH employees, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Medicare HMO Reimbursement Rates To Increase 10.6% in March Under New Law
CMS on Friday announced that Medicare would increase reimbursement rates for HMOs by an average of 10.6% on March 1, the Wall Street Journal reports.
New York Times Examines Effect of Schwarzenegger Budget Proposal on Public Health, the Uninsured
The New York Times on Sunday examined the potential impact of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s (R) proposed fiscal year 2004-2005 budget on public health and uninsured residents.
Placer County Ends Tobacco Tax-Funded Health Program
Placer County has become the first county in the state to withdraw from the California Healthcare for Indigents Program, which uses tobacco tax revenue to fund health services for residents who are not eligible for Medi-Cal or Healthy Families, the Sacramento Bee reports.
Democratic Presidential Candidate Sen. John Kerry Wins Iowa Caucuses
Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry (Mass.) on Monday “scored a commanding come-from-behind victory” in the Iowa caucuses, finishing first among the five Democratic candidates who competed there, the Washington Post reports.