Morning Breakouts

Latest California Healthline Stories

Conferees Fall Behind Schedule on Medicare Negotiations

Members of the conference committee charged with reconciling the House and Senate Medicare bills (HR 1 and S 1) have fallen behind their planned schedule to complete work on a final Medicare bill by Oct. 17, CongressDaily reports.

Office of the Patient Advocate Releases Annual HMO Ratings

California’s HMOs improved their immunization of children and management of chronic diseases over last year but did not do as well in preventive care and mental health services, according to a report released Tuesday by the Office of the Patient Advocate, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

Minnesota Attorney General Files Lawsuit Against GlaxoSmithKline Over Reimportation

Minnesota Attorney General Mike Hatch (D) on Tuesday filed a lawsuit against GlaxoSmithKline alleging that the pharmaceutical company is violating antitrust laws by “spearheading an industry-wide conspiracy” to prevent U.S. residents from reimporting U.S.-made prescription drugs at a lower cost from Canada, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

USA Today Examines Census Bureau Report on the Uninsured

The U.S. Census Bureau report that says the number of the uninsured rose last year at the fastest rate in a decade has “invigorated calls for legislative action, focused attention on a drop in employer-based coverage and raised questions about how the total number is tallied,” USA Today reports.

Additional Charges Filed Against Administrator at Tenet Healthcare-Owned Alvarado Medical Center

The Department of Justice on Thursday filed additional charges against Alvarado Hospital Medical Center associate administrator Mina Nazaryan, who was arrested last week as part of a federal investigation into alleged illegal payments to physicians by a subsidiary of Santa Barbara-based Tenet Healthcare that owns the hospital, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

NIH Director Zerhouni Outlines ‘Roadmap’ for Future Medical Research

NIH Director Dr. Elias Zerhouni on Tuesday unveiled a $2 billion “NIH Roadmap” intended to foster greater participation by the agency in medical research and more innovative approaches by members of the medical industry to develop new treatments, the Boston Globe reports.