Latest California Healthline Stories
Providers Lament Congress’ Inaction on Medicare ‘Givebacks’
The decision by Congress not to address pending budget bills until after Thanksgiving has “distressed” health care providers eager to see the $31 million Medicare “givebacks” legislation approved, CongressDaily reports.
Business Suggests Ways to Reduce Medical Errors
The Leapfrog Group, a coalition of large businesses, is expected to unveil plans today to use its “mammoth healthcare buying power” to lobby the health care industry to adopt new safety and reporting standards to reduce medical errors, the Wall Street Journal reports.
More Hospitals, Clinics Banning Drug Sample Use
In response to concerns about prescription drug costs and the safety of medication samples, “a small but growing number” of hospitals and clinics are banning or limiting the brand name medication samples that their doctors can accept from drug companies, the New York Times reports.
JAMA Highlights Euthanasia Issues
This week’s issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association profiles a variety of issues related to euthanasia and physician-assisted suicide, including patient perceptions and opinions on the measures, communication between physicians and terminally ill patients and legal barriers to end-of-life care.
Doctors Would Consult Patients Via Email if Paid
More than half of physicians would embrace email communication with patients if they were reimbursed for it, a new survey finds.
UCSF Requests Temporary Reopening of Mt. Zion’s Operating Rooms
Nearly one year after winning the “bitterly contested” fight to limit Mount Zion Medical Center to “all but daytime surgeries and clinics,” the University of California-San Francisco is seeking state clearance to reopen some of Mt. Zion’s operating rooms and 30 of its beds, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Kaiser Permanente Moves to Expand After Financial ‘Turnaround’
To meet increasing service demands by new members, Kaiser Permanente is “cautiously” planning to hire more employees and build new medical facilities in the Santa Rosa and Sacramento areas, the East Bay Business Times reports.
WebMD Third-Quarter Losses Greater Than Predicted
Amid restructuring efforts and a pending change of location, WebMD Corp. reported a “wider-than-expected third-quarter loss” yesterday, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.
UCI Hospital to be Torn Down, Rebuilt as Seismically Safe
The University of California Board of Regents tomorrow is expected to approve a $235 million grant that would enable the University of California-Irvine Medical Center’s main hospital to be demolished and reconstructed by 2008, the Orange County Register reports.
CalPERS May Increase Premiums, Restrict Drug Benefits
Faced with an “unpredictable” health care market and “ballooning” prescription drug costs, the California Public Employees’ Retirement System may raise premiums and restrict drug benefits to control costs in its two PPO health plans, the
Sacramento Bee reports.