Latest California Healthline Stories
Local Governments To Push Ahead With Ballot Initiative To Require State To Pay for Mandates
Local governments and police agencies on Monday received permission from the state to begin gathering signatures in support of a proposed state constitutional amendment that would require the state to pay local governments for programs that it requires cities and counties to administer, the Sacramento Bee reports.
Washington Post Examines Debate About Overuse of Mammograms
The Washington Post on Tuesday profiled an “intense new debate about mammography” prompted by a “vocal cadre” of patients, cancer specialists and health care advocates who maintain that women, particularly those in their forties, “are blithely undergoing mammograms without knowing nearly enough about them.”
Schwarzenegger Expected To Address Workers’ Compensation Reform in State of the State Speech
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) likely will call for reforms to the state’s “troubled” workers’ compensation system in his first State of the State address, which is scheduled for 5 p.m. Tuesday, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Trial Date Delayed for Lawsuit Filed by Physicians Against HMOs
Judge Federico Moreno of the Federal District Court in Miami on Monday delayed until Sept. 13 the trial date for a class-action lawsuit filed against several large health plans on behalf of about 950,000 physicians nationwide, the AP/Florida Times-Union reports.
NIH To Review Consulting Fees, Guidelines for Agreements
NIH Director Elias Zerhouni last month acknowledged “concerns” about consulting agreements between drug companies and agency employees and said that he has ordered a review of consulting fees paid to NIH scientists, the Los Angeles Times reports.
MTA Workers Vote To Approve Three-Year Contract
Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority employees on Dec. 28 voted “overwhelmingly” in favor of a new, three-year labor contract that will increase the MTA’s monthly contribution to the union’s health care fund, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Federal Judge Issues Preliminary Injunction To Block Medi-Cal Reimbursement Rate Cuts
Chief U.S. District Judge David Levi on Dec. 23 issued a preliminary injunction that will prevent the implementation of 5% cuts to Medi-Cal reimbursement rates for providers who serve traditional fee-for-service beneficiaries, who make up about half of the program’s beneficiaries, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
VA Proposes New Rule for Veterans’ Health Care Appointments
The Department of Veterans Affairs on Friday announced new rule requiring VA facilities to schedule appointments within 30 days of a request by veterans with service-related injuries, the AP/Washington Times reports.
Officials in states with prescription drug assistance programs say it remains unclear how the new Medicare law (HR 1) will affect prescription drug costs for the elderly, the New York Times reports.
Charles R. Drew University of Medicine Places President on Administrative Leave
The Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, the medical school affiliated with Los Angeles-based Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center, on Friday placed its president, Dr. Charles Francis, on paid administrative leave following a task force report stating that he has “lost confidence of many on the board, the faculty and the surrounding community,” the Los Angeles Times reports.