Latest California Healthline Stories
Lawmakers Look to Help Hospitals Pay for Seismic Upgrades
The state Legislature will consider four bills this week intended to help California hospitals pay for a series of seismic upgrades mandated by law, the Orange County Register reports.
Predictive Computer Programs Forecast Patients’ Expected Diseases, Treatments
Using “evidence-based predictive modeling,” some biotechnology companies are developing computer programs that could provide patients with a “more accurate forecast of what diseases they can expect to develop” and possible treatments, the Houston Chronicle reports.
New State HIV Tracking Rules to Face ‘Public Scrutiny’ During Upcoming Public Hearing
California health officials are “poised” to enact new rules that would establish a system for reporting HIV cases, the Sacramento Bee reports.
Oakland City Council Approves Bilingual Services Ordinance
The Oakland City Council yesterday unanimously approved an ordinance that would require city departments to translate “essential services and materials” into languages spoken by at least 10,000 residents, the Oakland Tribune reports.
IOM Report Calls on Researchers to Examine Gender Disparities
Men and women differ in both physiological and chemical ways, and scientists need to take these differences into account when analyzing research results, according to a new Institute of Medicine report.
CBO Says McCain-Kennedy-Edwards Patients’ Rights Bill Would Boost Premiums 4.2%
A new Congressional Budget Office study found that a patients’ rights bill (S 283) sponsored by Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.), Ted Kennedy (D-Mass.) and John Edwards (D-N.C.) would raise health insurance premiums by 4.2%, a number “slightly higher” than the Norwood-Dingell patients’ rights bill passed by the House in 1999, CongressDaily reports.
Funding Shortage May ‘Force’ DOJ to Drop Tobacco Lawsuit
A “confidential memo” from lawyers at the Justice Department to Attorney General John Ashcroft “warn[s]” that the government could be forced to drop its lawsuit against the tobacco industry because the Bush administration has not proposed adequate funding to support the litigation, the Washington Post reports.
Children More Vulnerable to Medical Mistakes
Hospitalized children are exposed to three times as many “potential” adverse drug events as adults, according to a study published in today’s Journal of the American Medical Association.
Supreme Court Will Hear Case on Coal Miners’ Benefits
The Supreme Court yesterday agreed to hear a case involving a 1992 law that gave retired coal miners and their dependents health care benefits “from the coal industry, even if the companies they worked for went out of business,” the New York Times reports.
Energy Crisis Could Mean Cuts for Los Angeles County’s Health Services
Los Angeles County unveiled its proposed $16 billion budget for 2001-02 yesterday, but officials expressed concern that the energy crisis, which is expected to cause the county’s energy bill to nearly double in the coming year, could cut into the county’s surplus and force cuts in some services, including health care, the Los Angeles Times reports.