Latest California Healthline Stories
Ventura County Supervisor Announces a Plan to Improve Mental Health Care
With thousands of mentally ill Ventura County residents “walking the streets” or “locked up in overcrowded” jails, Supervisor John Flynn on Monday urged law enforcement, churches, courts and elected officials to end the “immoral condition” of state mental health services, the Ventura County Star reports.
Blue Cross, Sutter Health Negotiations Continue
Capitation payment levels are the “sticking point” in ongoing negotiations between Blue Cross of California and Sutter Health as the Dec. 31 expiration date of the companies’ current contract draws near, the San Francisco Business Times reports.
Aetna Will Cut Customers, Jobs to Shore Up ‘Bottom Line’
Hartford-based Aetna Inc., the nation’s largest health insurer, will cut 5,000 jobs, “aggressively” hike premium rates and “shed” about 10% of its customers to boost the company’s “bottom line,” the Washington Post reports.
San Francisco Plans Construction of New Medical Center
To alleviate some of the “strain” and financial burden on San Francisco General Hospital, Mayor Willie Brown (D) on Friday “threw his support behind” a proposal to construct a new medical center across the street from the “aging” facility, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Overtime Law Affecting ER Doctors Hurts Physician Groups
A one-year-old state law that effectively mandates emergency room doctors receive overtime pay when they work more than eight hours per day has created a new financial burden on physician groups and managed care companies, the East Bay Business Times reports.
Ventura County Public Health Department Recommends Needle Exchange Program
To curb the number of HIV and hepatitis C infections, the Ventura County Public Health Department is recommending that the county Board of Supervisors implement a needle exchange program, the Los Angeles Times reports.
Cheney Discusses Rx Drug Benefit on ‘This Week’
Appearing on ABC’s “This Week” yesterday, Vice President-elect Dick Cheney addressed the Bush administration’s agenda for several key issues, including Medicare reform and prescription drugs.
HMOs Must Adapt or ‘Perish,’ Experts Say
Although the managed care industry may prove “reasonably prosperous” next year, many critics say that HMOs will soon have to “reinvent themselves, or perish,” the New York Times reports.
New Nursing Home Oversight Rules Raise Concerns
State officials are hopeful that new regulations set to take effect Jan. 1 will allow them to inspect and monitor nursing homes more extensively, but both nursing home administrators and patient advocates remain skeptical of the new rules, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.
Reed Elsevier Purchases MD Consult
For the second time in less than a year, MD Consult, a Web-based subscription service that provides physicians and other health care professionals with clinical information, news and journal articles, is being sold, the St. Louis Post- Dispatch reports.