Latest California Healthline Stories
Veterans’ Health Groups, Lawmakers Oppose Deductible Plan
Veterans groups and members of Congress have said they will “resist” a Bush administration proposal that would make higher-income veterans and veterans without service-related disabilities pay a $1,500 annual deductible for care at Veterans Administration hospitals, the AP/Richmond Times-Dispatch reports.
Two Contaminated Herbal Supplements Recalled
Amid growing concern about the lack of regulation over herbal supplements, the FDA announced on Friday that it was launching an investigation of a California supplement manufacturer following the voluntary recall of two of its products that were discovered to be contaminated with “potentially harmful” prescription drugs, the Los Angeles Times reports.
New Center Will Help Immigrant Health Care Professionals Earn Accreditation in the United States
A new center opened last Thursday in Walnut that will help train immigrant health care professionals for “jobs in the U.S. health care system,” the Los Angeles Times reports.
Study Evaluates Why CHIP Beneficiaries Leave Program
More than two-thirds of families who disenroll from state CHIP programs do so because they are no longer eligible or because they have found insurance coverage privately, according to a study released by the National Academy for State Health Policy.
Wall Street Journal Looks at Obstacles to E-Mail Consultations
Although physicians increasingly are incorporating the Internet into their clinical and administrative processes, most still do not use e-mail to communicate with patients, according to a feature in today’s Wall Street Journal.
Ventura County Medical Center Administrator Dr. Sam Edwards plans to resign the position next month but will stay with the hospital to oversee “special projects” for an interim period, the Los Angeles Times reports.
‘Severe’ Vaccine Shortages Leading to Rationing
Shortages of vaccines for eight of the 11 vaccine-preventable diseases are so “severe” that the CDC’s National Immunization Program faces the “worst crisis” in its 29-year history, the Wall Street Journal reports.
The California HealthCare Foundation this month released a fact sheet that examines out-of-pocket expenses for Medicare+Choice beneficiaries in the state.
More Patients ‘Haggle’ with Doctors Over Costs
The Wall Street Journal‘s Weekend section today examines how an increasing number of patients, “[f]ed up with mounting health bills,” have started to negotiate with their doctors in an attempt to receive a discount.
CNA Files Unfair Labor Practices Claim Against Palomar Pomerado Health System
The California Nurses Association yesterday filed an unfair labor practices claim against Palomar Pomerado Health, saying that the system is interfering with nurses’ efforts to unionize, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.