Latest California Healthline Stories
CongressDaily/AM Outlines Issues Yet To Be Resolved in Medicare Negotiations
Although negotiators charged with reconciling the House and Senate Medicare bills (HR 1 and S 1) have addressed a number of “central” issues, including the design of a new drug benefit and drug coverage for those dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid, they have yet to resolve some of the “most difficult” issues, CongressDaily/AM reports.
Democratic Presidential Candidate John Kerry Offers Medicare, Social Security Plan
Democratic presidential candidate Sen. John Kerry (Mass.) on Monday unveiled his “Compact With the Greatest Generation,” a plan to ensure the future of Medicare and Social Security and to make prescription drug coverage more accessible to seniors, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports.
Two Fresno County Schools Begin Pilot Program Linking Applications for Medi-Cal, Free Lunches
Two Fresno elementary schools and Fresno County have begun a two-year pilot program in which they share information to determine if students receiving free school lunches also qualify for Medi-Cal, the Fresno Bee reports.
Life Expectancy for U.S. Residents Increases by Four Months Since 2000, Report Finds
Overall life expectancy in the United States in 2001 was 77.2 years, up almost four months from a life expectancy of 76.9 years in 2000, according to the National Center for Health Statistics 471-page annual report on the nation’s health, the Washington Post reports.
Southern California Supermarket Chains, Union Grocery Clerks Fail To Reach Contract
About 70,000 Southern California grocery clerks represented by the United Food and Commercial Workers could strike as early as Saturday after contract negotiations with supermarket chains over health care and pension benefits failed Sunday, the AP/San Jose Mercury News reports.
More Voters Oppose Proposition 54 Than Support It, Field Poll Finds
For the first time since Field Poll began asking likely voters about Proposition 54 in April, more people oppose the measure than support it, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Access To Mental Health Care for Children Varies by State, Study Finds
Access to mental health care varies widely by state, according to a study published Monday in the journal Pediatrics, USA Today reports.
California Could Be Epicenter of West Coast Outbreak of West Nile in 2004, CDC Says
The West Coast likely will be hit hard by West Nile virus in 2004, and California is “the next likely place for large numbers of human cases,” Dr. Lyle Petersen, acting director of vector-borne diseases for the CDC said Wednesday, the San Jose Mercury News reports.
Simi Valley Hospital Replaces Emergency Room Physician Group Effective Immediately
Simi Valley Hospital administrators on Thursday announced that they had hired Marina del Rey-based Janzen, Johnson & Rockwell Emergency Medicine Management Services to provide services in the facility’s emergency room beginning Friday, ending the hospital’s relationship with Equality Emergency Medical Group, the physician group to which it previously had contracted ER services, the Ventura County Star reports.
Farm Worker Advocates Launch Statewide Campaign To Improve Interpretive Services at Hospitals
Farm worker advocates have launched a statewide campaign to improve interpreter services at hospitals and other health care facilities for patients who are not fluent in English or Spanish, the Los Angeles Times reports.