Latest California Healthline Stories
Ventura County Employees Represented by SEIU Local 998 Plan to Extend Strike
“Scores of county services … slowed or stopped” yesterday in Ventura County as its “largest employee union” continued to strike because of a dispute over a pension benefit plan, the Ventura County Star reports.
Alta Bates Summit Medical Center to Cut 300 Jobs by Mid-August
Alta Bates Summit Medical Center in Berkeley and Oakland announced yesterday that it will cut 300 jobs by the middle of August, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Number of Sonoma County Physicians Hits Lowest Level in 20 Years, Survey Says
The number of practicing physicians in Sonoma County has dropped nearly 10% since 1995, reaching the lowest level in 20 years, according to a recent Sonoma County Medical Association survey, the Santa Rosa Press-Democrat reports.
FDA, ePocrates Team to Bring Safety Alerts to Physician Handhelds
FDA MedWatch, the FDA Safety Information and Adverse Event Reporting Program, will partner with ePocrates, a provider of handheld computer software and services for physicians, to deliver safety alerts, drug and product recalls, withdrawals and labeling changes to physicians.
CMS to Reject All Pending State Requests for Family Planning
The federal government has decided to reject all pending waiver requests from states asking to expand contraception coverage and other family planning services through their Medicaid programs, the Washington Post reports.
Stark Lends Support to Pharmacists’ Suit Against Rx Discount Suit
Rep. Pete Stark (D-Calif.), ranking member of the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health, announced yesterday that he will join pharmacy industry groups in their lawsuit against the Bush administration over the proposed prescription drug discount card plan for Medicare beneficiaries, CongressDaily reports.
Kaiser Permanente Backs Union Proposal to Increase Nurse Staffing Levels in California Hospitals
In an “apparent departure” from its previous stance on nurse staffing levels, Kaiser Permanente yesterday announced its support for a union proposal to increase nurse-to-patient ratios at California hospitals, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Fletcher Patients’ Rights Bill Attracts Two New Backers
Supporters of the patients’ rights bill backed by the House GOP leadership yesterday “paraded” two additional Republican votes that they have “peeled away” from the rival bill sponsored by Reps. Charlie Norwood (R-Ga.), John Dingell (D-Mich.) and Greg Ganske (R-Iowa), CongressDaily/AM reports.
Wellstone Holds Ergonomics Hearing
Just days after the Bush administration held the first of three scheduled forums on ergonomics, Sen. Paul Wellstone (D-Minn.), chair of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Subcommittee on Employment, Safety and Training, held a separate hearing yesterday, calling repetitive-stress injuries “the most critical workplace safety issue of our time,” the Minneapolis Star-Tribune, 7/19) reports.
Norwood et al. to Introduce New Patients’ Rights Bill
House supporters of the Senate-passed patients’ rights bill will “shelve” the House version of the bill, which they proposed in February, and introduce new legislation today that includes amendments adopted in the Senate last month, the Washington Times reports.