Latest California Healthline Stories
The Los Angeles-based AIDS Healthcare Foundation, the “largest provider of specialized HIV/AIDS medical care in the United States,” on Friday filed a lawsuit against PacifiCare of California, charging that the insurer has violated state law by not providing “standing referrals” to people with HIV enrolled in its HMO plan.
Seniors Buying Drugs in Mexico Despite Risks
In increasing numbers, U.S. seniors are crossing the border into Mexico to purchase “their favorite prescription drugs” for up to 80% less than what they would pay in the United States, the New York Times reports.
Los Robles Medical Center Begins ICU Expansion to Alleviate Patient Diversions
To alleviate the problem of diverting patients because of a lack of critical care beds, construction has begun on an addition to the Los Robles Regional Medical Center’s intensive care unit, the Ventura County Star reports.
Only 5% of Tobacco Settlement Money Spent on Anti-Smoking Efforts
States have allocated only 5% of the funds received from the 1998 national tobacco settlement for smoking prevention and cessation programs, a figure well below levels recommended by the CDC, according to a report released Saturday by the National Conference of State Legislatures.
Washington Post Looks at Proposition 36
The Washington Post today examines Proposition 36, the voter-passed initiative that represents California’s “U-turn in the war on drugs.”
Medicare Review System Not Working, OIG Report Finds
The peer review system used to investigate quality of care complaints by Medicare beneficiaries is “ineffective and rarely punishes doctors and hospitals when they provide poor care,” according to a report released today by the HHS Inspector General’s office, USA Today reports.
Bush Administration Should Grant Healthy Families Expansion Waiver ‘Now,’ Chronicle Says
President Bush should “act now” to approve a waiver allowing California to expand Healthy Families coverage to an additional 130,000 eligible children and 320,000 low-income parents, a San Francisco Chronicle editorial says.
Minority Doctors Have More Difficulty Obtaining Services for Patients than White Doctors
A study published Aug. 9 in Medscape General Medicine, a online medical journal, revealed that African-American and Hispanic doctors nationwide have “greater difficulty” obtaining hospital admissions and specialty referrals for patients than white physicians, the Cleveland Plain Dealer reports.
Oklahoma Physician, Pharmacist Indicted for Illegally Selling Prescription Drugs Online
A physician and a pharmacist in Oklahoma were indicted last week by a federal grand jury for allegedly conspiring to sell “controlled and dangerous” substances over the Internet, the Daily Oklahoman reports.
Bush Will Block ‘Any Efforts’ to Expand Federal Funding for Stem Cell Research
Aides to President Bush said he plans to “oppose any efforts to broaden” funding for embryonic stem cell research beyond the guidelines he announced on Thursday night, the Washington Post reports.