Latest California Healthline Stories
Satcher Issues Report on Women and Tobacco, Thompson Supports FDA Oversight
U.S. Surgeon General David Satcher issued a report yesterday warning that tobacco-related diseases have taken a “grim toll” on women, prompting HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson to express his “personal” support for allowing the FDA to regulate tobacco products, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Davis Announces Appointments for Health Care Positions
Gov. Gray Davis (D) last week announced a number of health care-related appointments to state agencies, including the Department of Veterans’ Affairs, the Department of Mental Health and the Managed Risk Medical Insurance Board.
Republicans Battle with Medical Marijuana Advocates
With the Supreme Court set to consider the issue of medicinal marijuana today, Republican lawmakers opposed to its legalization “sparred” yesterday with the leader of the Marijuana Policy Project, a group advocating medicinal use, the AP/Spokane Spokesman-Review reports.
Alameda County to Transfer Long Term Care Patients to Private Nursing Homes
Cuts in state reimbursement rates have prompted the Alameda County Medical Center to plan the transfer of 16 “seriously ill long term patients” from its Fairmont Hospital campus to a private nursing home, the Contra Costa Times reports.
Thompson Expects to Change but Not Scrap Privacy Rules
Responding to industry complaints about cost and “complexity,” HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson said yesterday he will amend Clinton administration medical privacy rules but added that they will not be “scrapped altogether,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Los Angeles County Supervisors Approve Coverage for Some Home Health Workers
Ending “months of debate,” the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors yesterday voted to provide “basic health care coverage” to roughly 6,000 home health workers, the Los Angeles Times reports.
FDA Plans to Review Direct-to-Consumer Ad Policy
With the number of prescription drug commercials on television “skyrocket[ing],” the FDA plans to “explore whether the ads are causing more harm than good,” the Wall Street Journal reports.
Bill Moyers Documentary Exposes Risks of Toxic Chemicals
Of over 80,000 man-made chemicals registered with the Environmental Protection Agency for use in commerce, only 43% have been tested for their effect on public health and safety — one of the “risks that come with the benefits of the chemical revolution,” Bill Moyers reported in his two-hour documentary, “Trade Secrets,” which premiered on PBS Monday.
Class Teaches Consumers to Navigate the Internet for Health Information
A medical librarian at Santa Rosa’s Redwood Health Library has begun to offer two-hour classes on computer-based medical searches, the Santa Rosa Press-Democrat reports.
Uninsured Increase on Horizon, Congress Looks for Answers
With a slowing economy and rising health costs all but ensuring that the number of uninsured will increase in the near future, Congress has begun looking at ways to increase coverage, but lawmakers are divided on the best way to achieve this goal, the New York Times reports.