Latest California Healthline Stories
IOM Panel Urges Accreditation System for Clinical Research
A panel of “scientific experts” convened by the Institute of Medicine called yesterday for a “new accreditation system for clinical research” that would address safety concerns about individuals who volunteer for medical experiments, the New York Times reports.
CalPERS Committee Approves Increased Copays, Board to Vote Today
CalPERS’ health benefits committee voted yesterday to approve 2002 contract proposals from eight HMOs that would increase copayments for CalPERs members for the first time since 1993, the Sacramento Bee reports.
FTC Receives Approval to Investigate Generic Drug Deals
The Bush administration has approved a federal investigation of whether drug makers have engaged in anti-competitive practices, specifically targeting agreements to settle patent disputes between brand-name drug makers and generic drug manufacturers, Reuters/Los Angeles Times reports.
Medi-Cal Policy Institute Report Analyzes Dental Programs
According to a report released on Monday, the Geographic Managed Care dental program, which serves beneficiaries of Medi-Cal in Sacramento County, has a “greater accountability for quality” of care than Denti-Cal, the state’s larger Medicaid dental program.
Bush Upholds Clinton Administration Rule on Lead Emissions
The Bush administration, which opponents have criticized for “car[ing] more about promoting industry than protecting the environment,” announced yesterday plans to “go forward” with a Clinton administration regulation that will force thousands of companies to report details of their lead emissions, the New York Times reports.
Silicon Valley Faces Possible Doctor Shortage, Business Journal Says
With starting salaries lagging behind the cost of living in Silicon Valley, it is “becoming more commonplace” for medical groups, hospitals and small physician practices to have difficulty recruiting new doctors, the Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal reports.
Attorney General Report Finds Statewide Nursing Home Violations
Surprise inspections of nursing homes statewide have uncovered “substantial problems in the quality of patient care and administrative practices” at those facilities, according to a report released yesterday by the attorney general’s office, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Harris Poll Finds 97 Million Adults Seek Health Information Online
Nearly 97 million adults use the Internet to access health information, a Harris Poll released today reports.
San Francisco Will Not Ban AIDS Drug Ads, Will Work with Drug Makers to Change Them
Following controversy surrounding “upbeat” AIDS drugs advertisements that depict healthy, active individuals, which some say “glamorize the disease and distort the reality of living with AIDS,” San Francisco officials have decided not to ban the ads but rather to work to “persuade” pharmaceutical companies to change their strategies, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Thompson Will Focus on Organ Donation, not Distribution
As expected, HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson unveiled new national efforts to boost organ and tissue donations yesterday, saying he would stay out of the more “contentious” debate over how to distribute organs and tissue, the Wall Street Journal reports.