Latest California Healthline Stories
Bee Applauds Proposal to Shift Treatment Risks to Insurers
Weighing in on the debate over whether insurers or physician groups should carry the financial risk of paying for expensive treatments, a Sacramento Bee editorial says that a proposed bill that would shift risk to health plans “deserves consideration.”
States Make Mediaid Cuts to Deal with Rising Costs
With Medicaid expenditures rising at a faster pace than states can afford, many are looking to reduce health care costs and also are being forced to make cuts throughout their budgets, the Wall Street Journal reports.
USDA Targets Soda, Sweets in Report on School Food
To help eliminate obesity and other health problems, the USDA recommended in a report to Congress that only foods that meet nutritional standards be sold in schools, the AP/Florida Times Union reports.
Blue Cross, Sutter Dispute Leads Some Employers to Reopen Enrollment
In the wake of the failed contract negotiations between Blue Cross of California and Sutter Health, several large employers in Northern California are taking the “unusual step” of reopening annual insurance plan enrollment to give employees a chance to switch health plans, the San Francisco Business Times reports.
Community Memorial Hospital Spent $2.7M on Measure O
Community Memorial Hospital spent nearly $2.7 million in its effort to gain support for Measure O, the voter-rejected ballot initiative that would have diverted Ventura County’s share of the tobacco settlement to private hospitals, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Rural Officials Seek Medicare Reimbursement Adjustment
The federal government should adjust Medicare reimbursement rates to eliminate the payment disparity between hospitals in urban and rural settings, health and hospital officials from rural states said Monday at a meeting of the National Rural Health Association, Reuters/New York Times reports.
Sutter, St. Luke’s Merger Could ‘Weaken’ Charity Care, Commission Says
The San Francisco Health Commission yesterday warned that an affiliation between Sutter Health and St. Luke’s Hospital could “weaken” the hospital’s “longtime commitment to charity care,” the San Jose Mercury News reports.
CDC Aims to Cut HIV Infections by 50%
The CDC yesterday announced a new effort intended to “break the back” of the AIDS epidemic by halving the number of new HIV infections by 2005, the AP/Philadelphia Inquirer reports.
McCain, Kennedy Unveil Patients Rights Plan
As expected, Sens. John McCain (R-Ariz.), Edward Kennedy (D-Mass.) and a coalition of Democrat and GOP lawmakers yesterday unveiled the “Bipartisan Patient Protection Act of 2001” — new patients’ rights legislation which would allow individuals to sue their HMOs but would impose a cap of $5 million on any damages awarded in federal court, the Washington Post reports.
HIV/AIDS Particularly Prevalent in Minority Community
While one in 10 gay or bisexual men is infected with AIDS, the infection is “far more prevalent in communities of color,” according to a CDC study released this week, the Los Angeles Times reports.