Latest California Healthline Stories
Analysis: Medicare Overpaid Hospitals by $2.6B for Complicated Cases
A Wall Street Journal analysis of hospital claims and financial filings shows that Medicare overpaid hospitals by $2.6 billion between 2010 and 2013 because it incorrectly estimated hospitals’ costs of caring for complicated patient cases. The analysis also finds that Medicare rarely seeks to recover overpayments. Wall Street Journal.
Jones Urges Covered California To Lower Specialty Rx Drug Price Cap
Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones has called on Covered California to adopt a lower specialty prescription drug price cap for its 2016 health plans. Jones says the proposed $500 per drug monthly cap would create barriers for consumers, and instead recommends that the exchange take up a $200 price cap. KPCC’s “KPCC News.”
Calif. Senate Committee OKs Bill for Undocumented Health Coverage
A California Senate committee has advanced a bill that would give undocumented immigrants access to Medi-Cal coverage and health coverage through a newly created insurance exchange. The bill is part of a legislative package to expand health care and other protections to undocumented immigrants. Orange County Register, Capital Public Radio’s “KXJZ News.”
Number of Large-Scale Health Data Breaches Increasing, Study Finds
A new Kaiser Permanente study finds that the percentage of health data breaches resulting from hacking more than doubled from 2010 to 2013, totaling nearly 1,000 breaches during that time period. The study shows that more than one-third of those breaches occurred in five states, including California. Reuters et al.
Antelope Valley Hospital Files Legal Claim Over Unfair, Insufficient Trauma Center Funding
On Monday, Antelope Valley Hospital filed a legal claim against Los Angeles County, alleging that the annual $1 million it receives from a state parcel tax for trauma centers is disproportionately low, considering increases in the number of patients it treats. The claim also alleges that that the county has failed to conduct assessments of the system. According to a lawyer for the hospital, officials plan on filing a lawsuit if the county denies the claim or lets it expire. Los Angeles Times, Modern Healthcare.
Board of Education Approves L.A. Unified School District’s Health Care Benefits Plan
On Tuesday, the Los Angeles Board of Education approved a Los Angeles Unified School District health care benefits plan for its employees that maintain benefits for three years. The plan includes annual increases in benefit expenses and reduces the district’s unfunded liability for lifetime health coverage for retirees and their dependents by 20%. The plan will cost more than $1 billion for 2015. Los Angeles Times‘ “L.A. Now.”
IBM’s Watson Health Unit Aims To Improve Quality of Personal Health Care
On Monday, IBM announced a new business unit, three partnerships and two acquisitions that together aim to leverage data analytics to improve the efficiency and quality of personal health. The new unit, called Watson Health, aggregates and analyzes health information from a large number of devices and sources to offer insights to various stakeholders, including providers, researchers and potentially patients. Reuters, New York Times‘ “Bits.”
UCLA-Led Review Finds Workplace Wellness Programs Are Not Evaluated Consistently
Workplace wellness programs are not consistently evaluated and often fail to track employees’ cardiovascular health, according to a review of such programs led by a UCLA professor of cardiology. Rather, such wellness programs tend to “focus more on processes than on the actual health that’s being achieved,” according to Gregg Fonarow, lead author of the study. NPR/KPCC’s “KPCC News.”
Sacramento County To Consider Plan To Reduce Deaths Among Young Black Residents
On Tuesday, the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors began considering a plan to spend $6 million annually to help reduce deaths among young black residents. The plan, which would focus on six neighborhoods with particularly high death rates, was developed by a steering committee of community health care providers. The plan will not receive formal action until its individual components are finalized during budget discussions this summer. Sacramento Bee.
CalPERS Recommends Increasing State, School Contributions
Yesterday, the CalPERS finance and administration committee said it plans to increase employee pension contributions for the state and its schools. The rate hikes would raise annual contributions by about $487 million for the state and $111 million for schools. The full board is expected to vote on the recommendations today. Reuters, Sacramento Bee‘s “Capitol Alert.”