Latest California Healthline Stories
Thompson Gets ‘Earful’ on Medicare from House Committee
The House Budget Committee gave HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson “an earful” yesterday about President Bush’s budget proposals for Medicare, CongressDaily reports.
Seismic Upgrades to Cost Hospitals Billions, Safety Reports Say
Some Bay area hospitals could collapse in a “major earthquake,” and repairing the facilities could cost billions of dollars, according to recent hospital seismic safety reports submitted to the state, the San Jose Mercury News reports.
LAT Calls For Balanced Approach to Medical Privacy
A Los Angeles Times editorial applauds Congress for its consideration of several bills to strengthen Internet privacy, but states that any action taken on privacy — including HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson’s consideration of the Clinton administration’s medical privacy rules — should “strike a … balance” between protecting individual privacy and preserving necessary data sharing.
Senate Rejects Medical Debts Provision of Bankruptcy Reform
The Senate Wednesday voted 65-34 against an amendment to “sweeping” bankruptcy reform legislation that would have allowed people filing for bankruptcy due to “disastrous” medical bills to have “a better chance” of erasing their debts in court than those “filing for other reasons,” the AP/Omaha World-Herald reports.
Safety Advocates Say State Ergonomics Standards are Weak, Rarely Enforced
More than three years after California became the first state to implement its own ergonomics standards, it is uncertain what effect the rules have had on reducing the number of workplace injuries, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Lawmakers Want More Money for Rx Drug Benefit than Bush Proposed
Congressional members drafting a budget blueprint said yesterday at a Senate Budget Committee hearing that they would dedicate “substantially more money” than President Bush would to a Medicare prescription drug benefit, the New York Times reports.
Long Beach Community Hospital Needs $1.7M More to Reopen
The coalition working to reopen Long Beach Community Medical Center needs to raise an additional $1.7 million before the facility can begin operating, the Long Beach Press-Telegram reports.
Senate Votes to Repeal Ergonomics Rules
In a “major victory for business groups,” the Senate yesterday voted 56-44 to repeal “far-reaching” ergonomics regulations issued by the Clinton administration in attempt to reduce the number of workplace injuries, the Washington Post reports.
California Study Finds No Conclusive Link Between Autism and MMR
California researchers dispute the possible connection between autism and the MMR vaccine in a study in today’s Journal of the American Medical Association.
House to Debate State Funding Bill for Organ Sharing
“Tentatively stepping back into” the organ transplant debate, the House today will likely consider legislation that would provide funding for states to “help facilitate organ donations” and establish a grant program to pay transportation and living costs for low- and moderate-income “living organ donors,” CongressDaily/AM reports.