Latest California Healthline Stories
Calif. Surgery Rates Influenced by Lack of Shared Decision-Making
A project in Humboldt County finds that miscommunication among doctors and a lack of shared decision-making between physicians and patients can contribute to varied surgery rates throughout California. The project was launched after a California HealthCare Foundation report in 2011 found surgery rates varied significantly across the state. Stateline.
Avalon Ventures, GSK Dole Out $20M for Two New Biotech Companies in San Diego
On Monday, Avalon Ventures in La Jolla and the British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline announced a $20 million joint investment in two San Diego-based biotechnology companies. Under the deal, Silarus Therapeutics, a developer of treatments for anemia, and Thyritope Biosciences, a developer of an experimental thyroid drug, will each receive up to $10 million to bolster research efforts. U-T San Diego.
DOJ Files Civil Complaint Against Former Ventura Surgeon, Investors Over Alleged Medicare Fraud
A civil complaint filed by the U.S. Department of Justice alleges that a former Ventura surgeon and three investors in a spinal implant distribution company encouraged unnecessary or overly extensive spinal surgeries, which then were fraudulently billed to Medicare. The complaint seeks to recover Medicare reimbursements. KPCC’s “KPCC News.”
UCSF Researchers Find ED Wait Times Vary Across U.S.
Emergency department waiting times vary significantly at hospitals across the U.S., according to two research letters published in JAMA Internal Medicine. The letters, written by UC-San Francisco researchers, found that patients who were admitted spent more time waiting than those who were not admitted and that patients in urban areas had longer wait times than those at smaller, rural hospitals. Lafayette Journal & Courier.
Lifting Ban on Blood Donations From Men Who Have Sex With Men Could Save 2M Lives, Study Finds
The additional blood that would be made available if FDA lifted its ban on donations from men who have sex with men could save nearly two million lives, according to a study by the Williams Institute on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity Law. The study found that lifting the ban entirely would result in about 615,300 extra pints of blood donated annually. Reuters.
100 Oakland Schools To Offer Students No-Cost Flu Shots in Effort to Prevent Outbreak
Under a partnership between the Alameda County Public Health Department, California Department of Public Health and Oakland Unified School District, more than 100 Oakland schools will offer students no-cost influenza vaccinations this fall. The initiative aims to protect the region from a flu outbreak. KQED’s “State of Health.”
HealthCare.gov Gets Facelift; OIG Finds Critical Security Flaws in Site
The Obama administration announced that it is overhauling the federal health insurance exchange website to ease the enrollment process for first-time applicants and that it has extended its contract with QSSI through March 2015. Meanwhile, an HHS Office of Inspector General report shows that hackers hired by HHS found critical security flaws in HealthCare.gov. New York Times et al.
Appeals Court Dismisses Lawsuit Over ACA Employer Mandate Delay
A federal appeals court has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the Association of American Physicians and Surgeons that challenged President Obama’s authority to delay the Affordable Care Act’s employer mandate. The judges ruled that the group does not have standing to challenge the delay because they were not directly harmed by the action. The Hill, Politico.
30K Covered Calif. Enrollees Face Delays, Coverage Cancellation
About 30,000 consumers have experienced delays or confusion over their health care coverage after Covered California failed to send some applications to insurers in a timely manner and prematurely canceled coverage for some enrollees who qualify for Medicaid. Meanwhile, about 50,000 enrollees must verify their lawful presence in the U.S. Los Angeles Times, Sacramento Business Journal.
Nine Calif. Health Data Exchange Organizations Sign Trust Agreement
A multi-party trust agreement has been signed by nine health information exchange organizations in California. The HIEs now will make up the California Interoperability Committee and will establish a data sharing network for unaffiliated providers. Healthcare Informatics, California Association of Health Information Exchanges release.