Latest California Healthline Stories
A Petaluma school board policy that permits students to leave school grounds without parental consent for “confidential medical services,” including STD treatment, birth control and abortions, is being challenged by parents and the newest member of the school board, the Santa Rosa Press-Democrat reports.
Satcher to Leave Office When Term Ends in February
U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher, who “riled the Bush White House over the issue of teaching sexual abstinence in schools,” announced Friday that he will step down at the end of his four-year term in February, the AP/Baltimore Sun reports.
Texas Launches Bilingual Web Site Allowing Residents to Determine Eligibility for Public Programs
The Texas Department of Human Services, in conjunction with American Management Systems, last week launched a bilingual, Web-based tool to help residents determine eligibility for more than 50 state assistance programs, including Medicaid and a variety of medical assistance programs.
Bioterror Highlights ‘Flaws’ in Public Health System
The “national commitment to an effective public health system” has been on the decline for the past 50 years, leaving the nation’s public health institutions “programed to fail” as evidenced by the recent anthrax scare, Gregg Bloche and Lawrence Gostin, who teach health law and policy at Georgetown and Johns Hopkins universities, write in an opinion piece for the Los Angeles Times.
Court Rules California Youth Authority Facilities Must Have Licensed Hospitals
A state appeals court ruled last Thursday that the California Youth Authority “must provide licensed medical care at its 11 juvenile incarceration facilities,” the AP/San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Catholic Healthcare West Cuts Operating Losses by More Than 50%
Catholic Healthcare West yesterday announced that its operating losses in the fiscal year that ended June 30 are more than 50% smaller than they were last year, the Sacramento Bee reports.
House Panel Discusses Computer Systems Disease Tracking
Wanting to improve the federal government’s ability to respond to a large-scale bioterrorist attack, members of the House Energy and Commerce Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations yesterday heard several proposals for bolstering the nation’s disease surveillance system using computers, USA Today reports.
J. David Gladstone Institutes to Build New San Francisco Facility
The J. David Gladstone Institutes, affiliated with the University of California-San Francisco, is planning to build a 185,000-square-foot research facility south of Pacific Bell Park in 2004, the AP/Contra Costa Times reports.
Illinois State’s Attorney Files Suit Against Three Online Companies Selling Cipro
Cook County State’s Attorney Richard Devine yesterday filed suit on behalf of Illinois against three out-of-state businesses that sell Cipro online, saying that the companies lack the proper licenses to conduct business in the state, the Chicago Tribune reports.
A bioterrorism symptom surveillance system that Stanford University researchers are testing could soon be adopted by hospitals in Santa Clara and San Mateo counties, the San Jose Mercury News reports.