Latest California Healthline Stories
The Public Employment Relations Board has denied a request by the California Nurses Association for “immediate action” on allegations of unfair labor practices against nurses in the Palomar Pomerado Health district, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
The state Health and Human Services Agency will unveil three proposals today to transform the state’s health care financing system to a single-payer model, which would save the state billions of dollars, according to a study of the plan.
Mergers Used by Hospitals to Increase HMO Reimbursements
In a front-page report, the Wall Street Journal today examines a “little-known power shift” since the late 1990s in which large hospital chains have “reshaped themselves into local oligopolists with the muscle to enforce much higher prices.”
Sales Reps Educate Doctors About Anthrax in National Effort
In the first phase of a new federal campaign to boost the United States’ preparedness for a bioterrorism attack, sales representatives from four drug companies yesterday delivered information about anthrax to doctors’ offices in 13 U.S. cities, the Washington Post reports.
BBC News Compares Kaiser Permanente to British NHS
A BBC news team on Tuesday filmed the delivery of health care at Kaiser Permanente facilities in Oakland and San Francisco in response to a study published in January that found the HMO provided “better care” to patients than the British National Health Service at a cost that was only 10% greater, the San Mateo County Times reports.
Senate Health and Human Services Committee Passes Soda Tax Bill on Party-Line Vote
A bill that would tax soda and other sweetened drinks passed the Senate Health and Human Services Committee yesterday on a 7-3 party-line vote, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Scully Defies Subpoena to Appear Before House Committee
CMS Administrator Thomas Scully yesterday defied a congressional subpoena to appear before a House committee to discuss the impact of Medicare regulations on small businesses, the Washington Post reports.
Davis Administration Announces Support for Legislative Review of State Medical Board
Members of Gov. Gray Davis’ (D) administration yesterday announced support for a “sweeping review” of the Medical Board of California, the Orange County Register reports.
Medicaid Loophole Closing Delayed Until May 14
A federal judge in Little Rock ruled yesterday that HHS cannot implement until May 14 a rule designed to lower the Medicaid loophole, the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette reports.
Bush Urges Senate to Pass Total Human Cloning Ban
In a speech yesterday before opponents of human cloning in the White House, President Bush called on the Senate to approve a bill banning all forms of human cloning, saying that “[a]dvances in biomedical technology must never come at the expense of human conscience,” the Washington Post reports.