- California Healthline Original Stories 2
- Measure To Cap Dialysis Profits Pummeled After Record Spending By Industry
- California’s Top Lawyer Sees Election Win As Mandate To Sustain Trump Resistance
- Elections 3
- Governor Newsom Will Have To Reckon With Single-Payer Promises That Candidate Newsom Made
- Voters Greenlight Plan To Pump $1.5 Billion Into Children's Hospitals
- Residents Overwhelmingly Support Expansion Of Desert Healthcare District To Eastern Part Of Coachella Valley
- The Opioid Crisis 1
- More Physicians Face Accusations As Result Of 'Death Certificate' Initiative Geared Toward Curbing Opioid Prescriptions
Latest From California Healthline:
California Healthline Original Stories
Measure To Cap Dialysis Profits Pummeled After Record Spending By Industry
The dialysis industry raised nearly $111 million in a successful bid to defeat the measure, which also was opposed by hospitals and doctors. The union that sponsored the measure collected about one-sixth that amount. (Ana B. Ibarra and Anna Gorman, )
California’s Top Lawyer Sees Election Win As Mandate To Sustain Trump Resistance
Attorney General Xavier Becerra views his resounding Election Day win as a “clear signal” from voters to continue his work defending the Affordable Care Act and pushing back against the Trump administration. (Samantha Young, )
More News From Across The State
Governor Newsom Will Have To Reckon With Single-Payer Promises That Candidate Newsom Made
Gavin Newsom sailed to victory with help from supporters who are backing him because he champions a single-payer future for California. But the opposition to the model remains stiff.
KQED:
High Expectations On The Left For Governor-Elect Gavin Newsom
Single-payer is where state government essentially replaces insurance companies in paying health care providers. Last year, nurses were furious when a bill to advance single-payer died in the state Assembly and Gov. Jerry Brown expressed doubt the state could afford it. Now, with Newsom set to replace Brown as governor, Stephanie Roberson, legislative advocate with the California Nurses Association, hopes to move the single-payer ball down the field. (Shafer, 11/7)
The San Diego Union-Tribune:
7 Things To Know About Gavin Newsom, California's New Governor
[Gavin] Newsom focused much of his time on homelessness and health care during his time as mayor, emphasizing services for homeless individuals, though his success doing so was mixed. An advocate for recreational and medical marijuana, Newsom led the campaign for Proposition 64 — which voters approved in 2016 to make recreational marijuana use legal in California 20 years after the electorate embraced medical marijuana. ... As mayor, Newsom helped create one of the nation’s first city-wide universal health care initiative, and he wants to see a similar program established for the entire state. Newsom also believes in universal preschool and two free years of community college tuition. (Hamblin, 11/7)
Voters Greenlight Plan To Pump $1.5 Billion Into Children's Hospitals
Much of the money will be used for infrastructure projects. No money was raised to oppose the measure, but critics point out that this was the third time in recent years that children’s hospitals came to voters for money.
KQED:
Proposition 4: Voters Pass $1.5 Billion Children's Hospital Bond
California voters on Tuesday approved Proposition 4, which authorizes the state to sell $1.5 billion in bonds for children's hospitals to be used mainly on infrastructure projects. As of 8 am on Wednesday, the measure had 60 percent support. More than two-thirds of the bond money will go to eight nonprofit children’s hospitals. Smaller amounts will go to University of California children’s hospitals and hospitals not specifically designated for children, but with a children's program or a children's wing. (Klivans and Dembosky, 11/7)
In other news —
San Francisco Chronicle:
Dialysis Stocks Soar After California Voters Reject Prop. 8
Shares of two of the nation’s largest dialysis providers, DaVita and Fresenius Medical Care, soared Wednesday after California voters defeated Proposition 8 — a state ballot measure that sought to cap revenue for dialysis centers. DaVita’s stock jumped 10 percent, closing at $76.08 a share; Fresenius was up nearly 9 percent, closing at $43.17 a share. (Ho, 11/7)
The vote was long-coming, with 15 years of activism leading up to it. Officials have continually argued that the artificial boundary was problematic, excluding funding from areas of the Coachella Valley that need it most.
The Desert Sun:
Election Results: Desert Healthcare District Expands To East Valley
Voters voiced clear support to expand the Desert Healthcare District to the eastern part of the Coachella Valley on Tuesday night. Unofficial results showed 78 percent of people cast “yes” votes in support of the expansion, dubbed Measure BB, as of Wednesday morning. This vote could expand the district to include the second half of Palm Desert, as well as Indian Wells, La Quinta, Indio, Coachella and unincorporated areas like Mecca and Thermal. The district manages the allocation of $4 million in annual discretionary funds to help support primary care, behavioral health and homelessness initiatives throughout the valley. (Hayden, 11/7)
In other local election news —
The San Diego Union-Tribune:
Election Delivers Changes For Tri-City, Palomar Health Districts
Though a few races are still so close that they could change in the coming days or weeks, it’s clear that the governing boards of Palomar Health and Tri-City Medical Center will see leadership changes in 2019. In Oceanside, Tri-City incumbent Laura Mitchell trailed challenger and state Assemblyman Rocky Chavez by 343 votes. Board chair Jim Dagostino led challenger and health care executive Tracy Younger in Tri-City’s Carlsbad subdivision, but only by 119 votes. (Sisson, 11/7)
The Mercury News:
Cannabis Measure Leads In Half Moon Bay
A controversial Half Moon Bay cannabis measure on Tuesday’s ballot is holding on to a narrow lead, suggesting that the town’s three greenhouse farmers will be allowed grow legal marijuana sprouts in “nurseries” – but residents have rejected other measures that would have expanded cultivation and sales in the traditional coastal town. The measure – ahead by only 39 votes in a 51.2 to 48.8 percent tally, would help farmers like 72-year-old “Farmer John” Muller, former mayor and longtime pumpkin farmer, who seeks to rent out his dilapidated greenhouses as a place for the baby plants. (Krieger, 11/7)
As part of the project, the Medical Board of California has been reviewing death certificates from 2012 and 2013 listing overdose of a prescription drug in an effort to target poor prescription practices.
Medpage Today:
Calif.'s 'Death Certificate Project' Nabs 11 More Physicians
Another 11 physicians now face new "Death Certificate Project" accusations from the Medical Board of California, filed over the last month, because a patient for whom they had prescribed narcotics fatally overdosed years ago. That brings the total to 23 physicians who face new disciplinary actions. (Clark, 11/6)
If the council approves the declaration, the city would receive about $7.7 million. Also as part of the declaration, the city would pass an administrative order that says the city can only cite people for unlawful camping when a police officer confirms that a shelter bed is available, transports the person to the bed and the person rejects the bed.
Sacramento Bee:
The City Could Get $7.7 Million While The County Will Get $12.7 Million.
The Sacramento City Council will vote Thursday on whether to declare an emergency shelter crisis, potentially unlocking millions of dollars in state funding as the city struggles to find shelter for its more than 1,000 homeless people. A state law, signed in June, gives Sacramento and 10 other California cities the option to declare a shelter crisis to gain access to a portion of $553 million in state funds. (Clift, 11/8)
In other news from across the state —
Sacramento Bee:
U.S. Department Of Justice To Investigate SLO County Jail
Amid a series of deaths, lawsuits and an ongoing FBI investigation into alleged civil rights abuses of mentally and medically ill County Jail inmates, San Luis Obispo County officials now say the U.S. Department of Justice is getting involved. ...The FBI formally launched an investigation into the county’s treatment of inmates in May 2017, a spokeswoman previously confirmed, after receiving at least one complaint related to the January 2017 death of Atascadero resident Andrew Holland. (Fountain, 11/7)
The San Diego Union-Tribune:
$120 Million Raised By San Diego's Mirum Pharmaceuticals
San Diego’s Mirum Pharmaceuticals said Wednesday it has raised $120 million in venture capital funding. The newly formed biomedical company will use the money to complete development of an unsuccessful pediatric liver disease drug it has acquired and plans to revive. The orally taken drug, maralixibat, treats certain liver diseases that cause excess buildup of bile acids in the blood. This produces extreme itching, which may cause children to scratch themselves bloody and distracts them from school. (Fikes, 11/7)
Democrats' House Win Is Likely End For Republicans' Years-Long 'Repeal And Replace' Battle
“I think it is very obvious that a Democratic House is not going to be interested in" changes to the health law, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said. The battle over health care will likely shift toward "Medicare for all," a plan touted by the progressive wing of the Democratic Party. Meanwhile, 26 percent of voters said health care was the most important issue for them in deciding their vote, and three out of four voters who listed health care as their top issue voted for Democrats.
The Associated Press:
Obama's Health Insurance Overhaul A Winner In Midterms
The personality looming over the 2018 midterms was President Donald Trump. The issue was health care, the top concern for voters as they decided how to cast their ballots. This week's election showed a nation increasingly — if belatedly — in step with former President Barack Obama's approach to it. (Mulvihill and Alonso-Zaldivar, 11/8)
The Washington Post:
Republicans Abandon The Fight To Repeal And Replace Obama’s Health Care Law
For eight years, Republicans waged a war against Barack Obama’s health-care law, holding dozens of repeal votes, filing lawsuits and branding it a dangerous government takeover. On Wednesday, they effectively surrendered. The day after crushing midterm election losses handed Democrats control of the House, GOP leaders signaled they had no appetite to make another go at shredding the signature accomplishment of Obama’s presidency anytime soon. (Sullivan, 11/7)
Bloomberg:
McConnell Says Drug Prices Are On The Agenda, Obamacare Is Off
Congress’s health-care priorities are likely to focus on drug prices as Obamacare repeal becomes a non-starter for a split legislature, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Wednesday. On changes to Obamacare, “I think it is very obvious that a Democratic House is not going to be interested in that,” McConnell said at a post-midterm elections news conference in Washington, after Democrats won control of the House of Representatives and Republicans added to their control of the Senate. (Armstrong, 11/7)
Bloomberg:
Obamacare Repeal In Congress Is Dead. Next, A Battle Over Medicare For All
Obamacare repeal is officially dead. On to the battle over Medicare for All. Tuesday’s midterm victories by Democrats mean that Republicans no longer have a path to make major changes to the Affordable Care Act. It also sets up a debate between Democrats’ liberal and moderate wings over whether to embrace a broad expansion of insurance to all Americans as they prepare to challenge President Donald Trump for the presidency in 2020. (Tozzi, 11/7)
Tackling High Drug Prices Likely At The Top Of Agenda For 116th Congress
The issue is one that lawmakers from both parties, as well as President Donald Trump, are eager to address. But other health care priorities from the Democrats might be checked by the cushy majority the Republicans hold in the Senate.
The New York Times:
House Democrats’ Agenda: Ethics, Infrastructure And Medical Legislation
Democratic leaders say they would use their first month in the House majority to advance sweeping changes to future campaign and ethics laws, requiring the disclosure of shadowy political donors, outlawing the gerrymandering of congressional districts and restoring key enforcement provisions to the Voting Rights Act. They would then turn to infrastructure investment and the climbing costs of prescription drugs, answering voter demands and challenging President Trump’s willingness to work on shared policy priorities with a party he has vilified. (Fandos, 11/7)
Bloomberg:
House Democrats Seek Deals With Trump On Infrastructure, Drugs
House Democrats will use their new majority to seek deals with President Donald Trump on infrastructure spending and prescription drug costs, but won’t back down on their oversight responsibilities, said party leader Nancy Pelosi, in line to regain the speaker’s gavel. "We believe we have a responsibility to seek common ground where we can," Pelosi of California told reporters at a news conference Wednesday. "Where we cannot, we must stand our ground." (Wasson and Flatley, 11/7)
Stat:
After Midterms, A Rare Consensus In Washington On Effort To Lower Drug Prices
Trump expressed his support for working across the aisle on drug prices at a press conference that spanned about an hour and a half on Wednesday. But at the same time, he threatened not to work with the Democrats in general if they use their investigative power to scrutinize his administration. “I expect that [Democrats] will come up with some fantastic ideas that I can support on the environment, on so many different things, including prescription drug prices, which we’ve made a big dent in already,” Trump said. It’s unclear if he has actually made such a dent. (Swetlitz, 11/7)
Kaiser Health News:
House Dems In New Seats Of Power Will Steer Health Policy, Attack Drug Prices
With the Senate (and the presidency) remaining under Republican control and even fewer moderate Republicans left in the House after this election, Democrats will struggle to move legislation without Republican support. What they can do is hold hearings, launch investigations and generally unnerve the pharmaceutical industry, among other likely adversaries. And there’s a chance they could strike a deal with President Donald Trump, whose administration is moving to crack down on drug companies. (Huetteman, 11/7)
Stat:
After Ballot-Box Success, These Drug Pricing Advocates Are Eyeing Results
The advocacy group Patients for Affordable Drugs had a near-perfect night at the polls on Tuesday, marking its first year on the national elections scene by claiming success in all but one of the competitive elections it had waded into. The group’s sole issue, lowering high prescription drug prices, even provided a rare point of agreement on Wednesday in a deeply divided Washington. In post-midterms remarks, President Trump cited high drug costs as a potential area for compromise with Democrats. Sens. Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer — the Senate’s top Republican and Democrat, respectively — extended the same olive branch. (Facher, 11/8)
Stat:
8 Burning Questions As Washington Braces For A Health Policy Shakeup
Will House Democrats set their sights on high drug prices over Russian election hacking? Should drug industry CEOs be checking their mailboxes for subpoenas? Is Bob Casey or Greg Walden the next Orrin Hatch? What about the next Claire McCaskill? Drug industry executives are no doubt buzzing over many questions in the wake of the Democrats’ takeover of the House. Democrats made health care a central plank of their re-election drive, and they’ve made clear that they’ll leverage their new power to make lots of noise about the high cost of prescription drugs. (Florko, 11/8)
Stat:
Three Proposals To Bring Down Drug Prices That Have A Fighting Chance
The drug industry is bracing for a deluge of drug pricing proposals from the soon-to-be Democratic House of Representatives. But it’s not worried about the controversial policies that have been blaring in TV ads and featured in stump speeches in recent months. Democrats campaigned on a slate of sweeping drug pricing proposals, like allowing Medicare to negotiate directly with drug companies and creating a Senate-confirmed price-gouging enforcer. But those ideas are likely dead on arrival in the Senate, which remains in Republican control. (Florko, 11/7)
CQ:
Health Care Issues In The 116th Congress
The Democrats’ takeover of the House changes the dynamic on health care issues, which played a prominent role in the midterm elections. This is a look at likely scenarios in the 116th Congress under a Democratic House and GOP Senate. The health care law remains a divisive and politically charged issue a year after Republicans fell short of overhauling the law (PL 111-148, PL 111-152). Congress has been unable to move a bipartisan compromise on legislation to update the law in a significant way and that is unlikely to become easier in a divided Congress. (Clason, McIntire and Siddons, 11/7)
The Oregonian:
Democrats Ran On 'Medicare For All' And Won. Now What? Something Much Less Than 'Medicare For All'
Democratic House leader Nancy Pelosi repeated over and over in the run-up to Nov. 6 that the midterm election wasn't about President Donald Trump.It was about health care. All of the Democratic Party's young, rising leaders -- and thus much of the old guard as well -- are embracing some form of universal health insurance. So what happens now that the Dems retook the U.S. House majority but remain in the minority in the U.S. Senate? (Perry, 11/7)
Marketplace:
Health Care Tops Voter Concerns In The Midterm Election
According to the Associated Press, 26 percent of voters said health care was the most important issue for them in deciding their vote, and three out of four voters who listed health care as their top issue voted for Democrats. Economic issues like health care premiums and protections for pre-existing conditions were dominant themes in political ads throughout the campaign, and seemed to resonate with voters. (Adams, 11/7)
The Wall Street Journal:
Meet The New Agenda Setters In The House
In winning control of the House of Representatives, Democrats take over the chairman’s seat in the chamber’s committees. Here are the men and women likely to be setting the agenda for key committees, and what policy changes to expect from them. (11/7)
The policy change is much more narrow than a previous proposed rule that is now stuck in the courts, and applies mainly to religious organizations, nonprofits and small businesses. Advocates, however, are already vowing to fight the rule in court.
The Associated Press:
Trump Administration Finalizes Birth Control Opt-Out Policy
A day after Republicans expanded their Senate majority, the Trump administration on Wednesday finalized a policy change that allows some employers with religious or moral objections to opt out of providing no-cost birth control for female workers. The new regulations from several federal agencies apply mainly to religious organizations, nonprofits and small businesses. Women's rights groups already suing the administration over an earlier version of the opt-out vowed to continue their court battle. (Alonso-Zaldivar, 11/7)
The Washington Post:
Trump Administration Issues Rules Letting Some Employers Deny Contraceptive Coverage
The rules notch a deep exception to a federal requirement under the Obama-era interpretation of the Affordable Care Act that essential health benefits must include coverage of contraception at no charge to consumers. The circumvention of this mandate, first proposed by Trump health officials a year ago, is part of the administration’s alliance with social conservatives for whom “religious liberty” has become a central cause and who had objected to the contraceptive mandate. (Goldstein, 11/7)
The Wall Street Journal:
HHS To Let Some Employers Opt Out Of Birth-Control Mandate
The exemptions, which the department of Health and Human Services announced Wednesday, are less sweeping than an original set of rules laid out a year ago that would have allowed virtually any employer to opt out of the contraceptive mandate by claiming a religious or moral objection. Those rules were blocked from going into effect by two federal judges. ... A group of Democratic state attorneys general filed suit last year against the administration’s original set of exemptions, and are likely to pursue legal action to attempt to prevent the new exemptions from taking effect. (Hackman, 11/7)