Latest California Healthline Stories
UCLA Researchers Part of Health Data Provenance Project
Case Western Reserve University’s School of Medicine in Cleveland is teaming up with researchers from UCLA and Harvard University to develop an engine for managing data provenance. The researchers then will test the provenance engine using de-identified data of patients with sleep disorders, epilepsy and/or lung cancer. The project is being funded by an NIH grant worth about $900,000. MedCity News.
Poll: Most Think Medicare Should Negotiate Drug Prices
Nearly nine in 10 U.S. residents want Medicare to be allowed to negotiate with drugmakers on the price of medications, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation poll. Federal law currently prohibits Medicare from negotiating drug prices. Previous efforts to allow Medicare to negotiate drug prices were met with charges of “government interference” in the market. However, recent attention on drug prices — brought about largely because of the introduction of several new hepatitis C drugs that cost more than $80,000 for a course of treatment — has fostered a change in public opinion. Reuters.
Many S.F. Bay Area Medical Students Forgo Residencies
Many medical students in the San Francisco Bay Area do not apply to residency programs, forgoing traditional career paths to instead become entrepreneurs, according to data from Doximity, an online physician network. For instance, just 65% of medical students at Stanford University went on to residencies in 2011. Meanwhile, 79% of UC-San Francisco medical students went on to residency programs that year. KQED’s “Future of You.”
Experts Say CMS Likely To Expand Alternative Payment Models
Some experts are calling on CMS to roll out more mandatory payment reform models throughout Medicare, following the agency’s proposal to provide bundled payments for knee and hip replacements. Experts say the new payment models could curb spending growth without reducing the quality of care. Modern Healthcare.
Medi-Cal Enrollment Growth Could Strain California’s Budget
California could face financial pressure as enrollment in the state’s Medicaid program continues to surpass expectations and federal matching funds decrease. So far, California has enrolled about 2.3 million people in the expanded Medi-Cal program — nearly three times more than it anticipated. AP/Salinas Californian et al.
CMS Launches Star Rating System for Home Health Care Agencies
CMS for the first time has unveiled star ratings for home health agencies on its Home Health Compare website. Of the 1,004 California-based facilities rated, 42% received four or five stars, while 13% received 2.5 stars or lower. Health Data Management, Kaiser Health News.
Oakland School Health Centers To Benefit From $34M S.F. Foundation Donation
Last week, the San Francisco Foundation announced a $34 million donation for “scaling proven solutions” to academic and economic barriers faced by Oakland residents. Among other things, the donation will help bolster school health centers. EdSource/KQED’s “State of Health.”
San Francisco To Offer Subsidies To Help Residents Purchase Exchange Plans
On Friday, San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee announced a plan to expand the “City Option” program by providing about 3,000 residents with annual incomes of $58,000 or less with subsidies to help purchase health coverage through the state’s insurance exchange. The program, which currently consists of about 900 companies, allows employers with at least 20 workers to pay the city a fee instead of offering health coverage and then the city provides reimbursements for medical costs. San Francisco Chronicle.
UCLA Health Reports Cyberattack Affecting Up to 4.5M
On Friday, UCLA Health announced that it suffered a cyberattack that could have compromised the personal health records of up to 4.5 million people. The health system said it confirmed the breach on May 5 and believes that hackers may have accessed parts of the network that contains personal information and some medical information as early as September 2014. Officials say there is no evidence that personal data were accessed or acquired, but the health system is offering affected individuals 12 months of no-cost identity theft and health care identity protection services. Modern Healthcare, KPCC’s “KPCC News.”
New California Bill Would Impose Flat Tax on Managed Care Plans
Assembly member Marc Levine has introduced a bill that would require managed care organizations to pay a $7.88 monthly flat tax per enrollee. The tax would generate nearly $2 billion to help raise Medicaid provider reimbursements, among other things. Sacramento Bee‘s “Capitol Alert.”