- California Healthline Original Stories 1
- A Baby Was Treated With A Nap And A Bottle Of Formula. The Bill Was $18,000.
- Women's Health 1
- California's Gubernatorial Candidates On Opposite Ends Of Spectrum In Abortion Debate
- Public Health and Education 1
- California Wants To Focus On Making People Healthier Instead Of Just Treating Illnesses
- Around California 1
- Workers To Picket At Dignity Health Facilities As Negotiators Struggle To Find Common Ground
- National Roundup 3
- Administration Freezes Program That Pays Billions To Insurers To Help Stabilize Health Law Marketplaces
- Trump Holds Cards Close To Chest, Stokes The Dramatics Surrounding Supreme Court Nomination
- Alzheimer's Drug Results Send Stocks Soaring, But Experts Temper Expectations After String Of Failures Against Disease
Latest From California Healthline:
California Healthline Original Stories
A Baby Was Treated With A Nap And A Bottle Of Formula. The Bill Was $18,000.
An ER patient can be charged thousands of dollars in “trauma fees” — even if they weren’t treated for trauma. (Jenny Gold and Sarah Kliff, Vox, )
More News From Across The State
California's Gubernatorial Candidates On Opposite Ends Of Spectrum In Abortion Debate
Republican John Cox has been vocally against abortion for years, while Democrat Gavin Newsom uses his fight for more money for Planned Parenthood and calls for increasing access to abortion as campaign talking points.
Los Angeles Times:
Abortion Debate Surfaces In California Governor’s Race
The nation’s divide over abortion rights is expected to be a telltale flashpoint between the two candidates for California governor who embrace starkly different views on the issue, even though protections for legal access to abortion have been cemented into state law for decades. ...With President Trump’s pending appointment to the U.S. Supreme Court rekindling the nation’s longstanding political clash over the issue, advocates on both sides foresee the court shifting to the right and a possible overturning of Roe vs. Wade, the landmark 1973 decision that guaranteed a nationwide right to abortion. (Willon, 7/7)
In other women's health news —
LA Daily News:
How Can Latina Mothers Overcome Health Factors That Put Their Babies At Risk?
According to March of Dimes 2013-2015 birth data, Latino births in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties outnumbered black births by more than seven to one, about the same as the statewide ratio. Latino infant deaths in the region in 2016 outnumbered black infant deaths 514 to 177, a ratio of almost 3 to 1. (Salazar, 7/9)
The Bakersfield Californian:
New Cancer Screening Program Honors Sikh Woman
Bakersfield resident and Sikh Gurbinder Kaur was only 43 when she was diagnosed with stage 4 cervical cancer. She died in April at 45, rocking the Sikh community. Local leaders and health professionals say that like many other Sikh women, she avoided any kind of preventive cancer screening before her death. “If she had had a routine pap smear, she would have been fine,” said Raji Brar, co-founder of the Bakersfield Sikh Women’s Association. “The devastating part of it is she was this healthy, vibrant woman. It was sad to see her get demolished by the cancer.” (Luiz, 7/6)
California Wants To Focus On Making People Healthier Instead Of Just Treating Illnesses
Several state initiatives have been launched over the past few years that aim to achieve savings by keeping people out of the expensive health care system.
CALmatters:
California’s Push To Make People Healthy—And Save Taxpayers Money
That idea is at the heart of the state’s effort over the past two decades to revamp its system for delivering health care to the neediest. The strategy has included a shift to managed care, meshing mental health services with physical care and creating programs specifically to coordinate an array of services so patients don’t have to hunt them down one at a time. (Gorn, 7/8)
In other news about health care costs —
Sacramento Bee:
This Man Cost Sacramento County More In One Year Than Any Other Homeless Person
In a study, officials discovered that 250 homeless people cost the city and county more than $11 million in 2015-16 in jail stays, ambulance rides, emergency police response and use of behavioral services such as mental health treatment. Using a relatively new database that tracks services provided to homeless people, they identified 500 of the top users of public resources and set about trying to find them. (Hubert, 7/8)
Workers To Picket At Dignity Health Facilities As Negotiators Struggle To Find Common Ground
The picket is informational, and must be conducted during employees' free time. The union is currently negotiating contracts at Woodland Memorial Hospital, St. Joseph's Medical Center in Stockton and Mercy San Juan in Carmichael.
Sacramento Bee:
Dignity Health Lab Workers Plan Informational Picket July 9
Union representatives for more than 200 laboratory scientists and technologists at Dignity Health say they plan informational picketing Monday at their employer's facilities in Woodland, Stockton and Carmichael, having rejected the company's latest contract offer for wages and benefits. Michael Aidan, assistant executive director of Engineers and Scientists of California Local 20, said a mediator from the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service will begin working with company and union contract negotiators on Monday to try and reach common ground. (Anderson, 7/9)
In other news from across the state —
Los Angeles Times:
Chinatown's Only Hospital Will Reopen As An Outpatient Clinic
An outpatient clinic will replace the shuttered Pacific Alliance Medical Center in Chinatown, marking the second time a group led by Chinese doctors has rescued the historic hospital property from closure. Allied Pacific, AHMC Healthcare and Network Medical Management partnered to buy the property for $33 million in a sale that closed last week, according to a release from CBRE, the real estate company representing the property’s owners, the French Society. (Shyong, 7/6)
KQED:
Health Advisory Lifted For Martinez, Pacheco After Shell Refinery 'Shutdown'
A public health advisory issued early Friday morning for residents of Martinez and Pacheco has been lifted following a "flaring incident" at the local Shell Refinery, officials said. The advisory warned about "a potential for odors" that could impact those with respiratory conditions. Residents who experience eye, skin, nose or throat irritation were advised to go indoors and rinse out the irritated area of their body. (Ahmed, 7/6)
Trump administration officials said they decided to suspend payments under the program because of a ruling in February from a Federal District Court in New Mexico. The judge tossed out the formula used to calculate payments, finding that it was flawed. Insurers warned that the move will have a detrimental effect on the marketplaces just as the companies are setting premiums for next year.
The New York Times:
Health Insurers Warn Of Market Turmoil As Trump Suspends Billions In Payments
The Trump administration said Saturday that it was suspending a program that pays billions of dollars to insurers to stabilize health insurance markets under the Affordable Care Act, a freeze that could increase uncertainty in the markets and drive up premiums this fall. Many insurers that enroll large numbers of unhealthy people depend on the “risk adjustment” payments, which are intended to reduce the incentives for insurers to seek out healthy consumers and shun those with chronic illnesses and other pre-existing conditions. (Pear, 7/7)
The Associated Press:
Trump Administration Takes Another Swipe At 'Obamacare'
In a weekend announcement, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said the administration is acting because of conflicting court ruling in lawsuits filed by some smaller insurers who question whether they are being fairly treated under the program. The so-called "risk adjustment" program takes payments from insurers with healthier customers and redistributes that money to companies with sicker enrollees. Payments for 2017 are $10.4 billion. No taxpayer subsidies are involved. (7/8)
The Wall Street Journal:
Trump’s Latest Affordable Care Act Move Adds To Insurers’ Uncertainty
CMS officials didn’t specify how long the suspension would last or what would trigger a resumption of payments in the program. CMS officials said they are looking for a quick resolution to the legal issues raised. “We’re now in the midst of the 2019 rate-filing process and it’s not clear how the risk-adjustment program will be operating,” said Cori Uccello, senior health fellow at the American Academy of Actuaries. (7/8)
Reuters:
Insurers Warn Of Rising Premiums After Trump Axes Obamacare Payments Again
America's Health Insurance Plans (AHIP), a trade group representing insurers offering plans via employers, through government programs and in the individual marketplace, said the CMS suspension would create a "new market disruption" at a "critical time" when insurers are setting premiums for next year. "It will create more market uncertainty and increase premiums for many health plans - putting a heavier burden on small businesses and consumers, and reducing coverage options. And costs for taxpayers will rise as the federal government spends more on premium subsidies," AHIP said in a statement. (7/8)
Politico:
Trump Administration Freezes Billions In Obamacare Payments, Outraging Advocates
Blue Cross Blue Shield Association President and CEO Scott Serota said the administration has the legal justification needed to move forward with the payments regardless of the New Mexico ruling. “This action will significantly increase 2019 premiums for millions of individuals and small business owners and could result in far fewer health plan choices,” Serota said in a statement. “It will undermine Americans’ access to affordable coverage, particularly those who need medical care the most.” (7/8)
The Washington Post:
Trump Administration Takes Another Major Swipe At The Affordable Care Act
Risk adjustment is one of three methods built into the 2010 health-care law to help insulate insurance companies from the ACA requirement that they accept all customers for the first time — healthy and sick — without charging more to those who need substantial care. The other two methods were temporary, but risk adjustment is permanent. Federal health officials are required each year to calculate which insurers with relatively low-cost consumers must chip in to a fund, and which ones with more expensive customers are owed money. This idea of pooling risk has had significant practical effects: encouraging insurers to participate in the insurance marketplaces the ACA created for Americans who cannot get affordable health benefits through a job. (Goldstein, 7/7)
In other health law news —
San Francisco Chronicle:
Affordable Care Act’s Unexpected Side Effect: An IOU To The IRS
It is unclear how many Americans are paying back some or all of the financial assistance they received to buy health insurance because their income turned out to be higher than they projected. The most recent analysis of the issue was done in 2015 by H&R Block, which found that 52 percent of people who enrolled in health insurance through Affordable Care Act marketplaces around the country ended up paying back some of the subsidies. (Ho, 7/8)
Trump Holds Cards Close To Chest, Stokes The Dramatics Surrounding Supreme Court Nomination
President Donald Trump says that he will make a decision today before a televised event announcing the pick. The four judges on the short-list are Brett Kavanaugh, Amy Coney Barrett, Thomas Hardiman and Raymond Kethledge. Kavanaugh was at one point rumored to be the front-runner, but it's unclear if that's still the case.
The New York Times:
Trump ‘Very Close’ To Supreme Court Decision, But May Wait Till Final Hours
President Trump sought to mine a last bit of drama from his decision on a Supreme Court nominee on Sunday, saying he might need to extend the process well into Monday, just hours before he is scheduled to announce the pick in a prime-time address. “I’m very close to making a decision,” Mr. Trump said on Sunday afternoon as he boarded Air Force One to return to Washington after a weekend spent golfing at his private club in Bedminster, N.J., and soliciting opinions from dozens of people about what he should do. (Haberman, Liptak and Schmidt, 7/8)
Politico:
Teenage Immigrant Abortion Case Could Be Hurdle For Kavanaugh’s Supreme Court Bid
One of the leading contenders for the Supreme Court, D.C. Circuit Judge Brett Kavanaugh, could see his chance at the nomination hinge on his handling of a legal battle last year over a 17-year-old immigrant's request for an abortion. To Kavanaugh's backers, his role in the legal showdown that played out over a couple of weeks last October exhibits the kind of judicial restraint conservatives have long called for from members of the bench. (Gerstein, 7/6)
The Wall Street Journal:
Trump Takes A Final Look At Supreme Court Choices
Judge Kavanaugh had been a front-runner as late as Saturday, but the fact that Mr. Trump hadn’t settled on him suggested his front-runner status may have slipped by Sunday, several people familiar with the search said. (Nicholas and Radnofsky, 7/8)
The New York Times:
In Making His Second Supreme Court Pick, Trump Has A Model: His First
All four of President Trump’s candidates for the Supreme Court are white, middle-aged federal appeals court judges with reliably conservative legal records. One of them, Brett M. Kavanaugh, went to the same high school as Mr. Trump’s last nominee, Neil M. Gorsuch — Georgetown Preparatory School, outside Washington. Another, Raymond M. Kethledge of the Sixth Circuit, so resembles Justice Gorsuch in background, philosophy, hobbies — both are outdoorsmen who like fishing — and even physical appearance, that some conservatives have taken to calling him “Gorsuch 2.0.” (Landler and Haberman, 7/6)
The Washington Post:
Religious Liberty Becomes A Main Focus For Conservatives In Supreme Court Nomination
Raymond Kethledge, one of President Trump’s finalists for the U.S. Supreme Court, has never explicitly stated his views on abortion or same-sex marriage. But he has spoken loudly on an issue that is just as important to conservative court-watchers. In April, Kethledge ruled in favor of Cathedral Buffet, a church-run Ohio restaurant being sued by the government because of claims that congregants were “spiritually coerced” by their pastor to work without pay. Kethledge went further than his fellow judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 6th Circuit in arguing that the restaurant’s Christian affiliation shielded it from federal labor laws. (Goldstein, 7/7)
The Wall Street Journal:
Who Are The Supreme Court Contenders?
As the clock ticks on President Donald Trump’s choice for a Supreme Court vacancy, each of the four people under close consideration could move the court in a more conservative direction for decades. “Republicans are holding four lottery tickets, and all of them are winners,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R., S.C.) said Sunday in a Fox News interview. Here’s a look at the top contenders. (Kendall and Bravin, 7/8)
The New York Times:
‘It’s A Terrible Vote’: Red-State Democrats Face An Agonizing Supreme Court Choice
Democratic senators running for re-election in Trump Country face an agonizing choice over President Trump’s coming Supreme Court nominee: Vote to confirm the pick and risk demoralizing Democratic voters ahead of the midterm elections, or stick with the party and possibly sacrifice their own seats — and any chance at a Democratic majority in 2019. The actions of a handful of Senate Democrats struggling to hold their seats in red states where Mr. Trump remains popular — notably Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, Joe Donnelly of Indiana and Joe Manchin III of West Virginia — will have broad implications for the party at a critical political juncture. (Hulse, 7/7)
Politico:
‘The Super Bowl Of Politics’: Trump’s Team Readies For Supreme Court Battle
In a sparsely decorated “war room” next to the West Wing on the White House grounds, Trump administration officials have been preparing for the president’s Supreme Court pick with an anything-can-happen approach to the historic task. With the knowledge that President Donald Trump could change his mind at the last minute — and with the president’s obsession to keep his final decision tightly held — Trump aides and Republicans familiar with the planning told POLITICO they initially were prepping for two possible nominees. (Cadelago, 7/8)
East Bay Times:
Dianne Feinstein: Trump Court Nominee Could ‘Eviscerate Women’s Freedoms For Generations’
President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee could “eviscerate women’s freedoms for generations,” Sen. Dianne Feinstein warned Friday, vowing to fight against any potential justice who would vote to overturn Roe v. Wade. With Trump expected to announce his nominee on Monday, Feinstein, the top Democrat on the Senate committee that will evaluate the nominee, framed the battle over retiring Justice Anthony Kennedy’s seat as a pivotal struggle for abortion rights in America. “When it comes to protecting a women’s right to control her own body, the effect of one seat on the Court has never, ever been clearer,” Feinstein told two dozen abortion rights supporters at a Planned Parenthood event in downtown Oakland. “Based on the president’s own promises and track record, we know that women’s rights are in serious and grave danger.” (Tolan, 7/6)
The Associated Press:
What To Expect In The Supreme Court Confirmation Battle
The coming battle over a Supreme Court nominee promises to be a bruising one. Republicans are eager for conservatives to gain a firm majority on the court. Democrats are voicing alarm about what the new justice could mean for charged issues such as abortion rights and gay rights. The stakes are enormous, and advocacy groups that don't have to unveil their donors are spending heavily to shape the fight. (7/9)
The Hill:
Dem Senator Promises 'Tough Questions' On Reproductive Rights For Trump Supreme Court Pick
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) said Sunday that he will ask President Trump’s Supreme Court nominee “really tough questions” on reproductive rights. Blumenthal told New York AM 970 radio host John Catsimatidis in an interview broadcast Sunday that he has “deep and serious concerns” about Trump’s top picks for the court. (Thomsen, 7/8)
Biogen and Eisai announced that the drug slowed the progression of Alzheimer’s disease and reduced the amount of clumps of a protein called beta amyloid that build up in the brains of patients. The data cheered even skeptics that have been burned by decades of failed Alzheimer's drugs. But they did warn about getting too excited, as the study is preliminary.
The Wall Street Journal:
Drugmakers Call Experimental Alzheimer’s Drug Study Positive
An experimental Alzheimer’s drug showed positive results and raised hopes anew that pharmaceutical companies were moving closer to a medicine that could finally disrupt the disease’s memory-robbing course, though a string of failures shadow the efforts. Alzheimer’s has proved an especially tough drug target. Approved therapies only relieve symptoms temporarily, and one experimental treatment after another promising to stymie the neurodegeneration has ultimately failed to work. Some pharmaceutical companies, after costly failures, pulled out. (Hernandez and Loftus, 7/6)
Stat:
4 Burning Questions After Biogen's $12 Billion Alzheimer's Surprise
Biogen (BIIB) is worth $12 billion more on Friday than it was the night before thanks to some surprising, if nebulous, new data on an in-development treatment for Alzheimer’s disease. The news is undoubtedly positive, but just how positive is a question that has all of biotech puzzling. Here are the biggest questions about BAN2401, Biogen’s Eisai-partnered Alzheimer’s drug that is either the saving grace for a whole wing of neurology or a red herring of tortured data. (Garde, 7/6)