Latest California Healthline Stories
Appellate Court Rules Lesbian Has Right To Sue Doctor Who Refused To Provide Artificial Insemination
A state appellate court on Tuesday ruled that a lesbian who was denied artificial insemination by her doctor, who said it was “against her Christian beliefs to help a homosexual become pregnant,” has the right to sue, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Trio of Bills Targeting Hospital Pricing Introduced
Assembly member Dario Frommer (D-Glendale) yesterday unveiled a series of bills that would require hospitals to “tell patients the price of everything from aspirin to X-rays,” the Sacramento Bee reports.
President Bush’s proposed Medicaid reforms would “force many states to cut back a vital and effective health insurance program at the very moment their citizens need it most,” Jonathan Cohn, senior editor of The New Republic, writes in a New York Times opinion piece.
Senate Democrats Reintroduce Bills To Reduce Prescription Drug Prices
Senate Democrats yesterday reintroduced a series of bills that they said would help control the “spiraling cost” of prescription drugs, CongressDaily reports.
Burlingame Nursing Home Receives a 30-Day Extensionon Closing Date, Remains Open
A San Mateo County Superior Court judge yesterday approved a 30-day extension of Burlingame Nursing Home’s closing date, allowing more time for the state to find a buyer for the bankrupt facility and relocate its 175 residents to other nursing homes, the San Jose Mercury News reports.
Bush Administration Unveils Smallpox Vaccine Compensation Program
The Bush administration yesterday proposed a limited compensation program for health care workers who experience adverse reactions to the smallpox vaccine as part of the national vaccination plan, the Washington Post reports.
Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.) last week introduced a bill that would deny tax breaks to pharmaceutical companies that block U.S. consumers’ access to prescription drugs from Canada.
Aspirin May Reduce Risk of Colon Cancer for Patients at High Risk for the Disease, Studies Find
Aspirin can reduce the risk of colorectal polyps, the precursors of colon cancer, in patients at a high risk for the disease, according to two studies published in today’s New England Journal of Medicine, the New York Times reports.
California Medical Marijuana Activist Seeks Refugee Status in Canada
California medical marijuana activist Steve Kubby, who fled to British Columbia after a 1999 raid on his medical marijuana garden, is seeking political refugee status in Canada and says he would face persecution and death if he were deported back to the United States, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Many Employers Enter National Debate Over the Uninsured
The New York Times today looks at a shift in the health care debate among employers, who “have long viewed the uninsured as the responsibility of the government” but are now advocating expanding health coverage because growing numbers of uninsured people are increasing costs for their employees’ health care.