Latest California Healthline Stories
As UVA Scales Back Lawsuits, Pain For Past Patients Persists
Patients were thrilled last month when UVA announced it would scale back lawsuits and provide more financial assistance, but the excitement has waned.
FDA Keeps Brand-Name Drugs On A Fast Path To Market ― Despite Manufacturing Concerns
The agency approved Gilead’s “game changer” hepatitis C cure, bypassing concerns raised by its own federal inspectors. The problems they found at the company’s main U.S. drug-testing laboratory in Foster City, Calif., were so bad, they recommended withholding approval.
Cigarettes Vs. Vaping: That’s The ‘Wrong Comparison,’ Says Inhalation Researcher
Ilona Jaspers, an inhalation toxicologist at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, believes the common notion of comparing e-cigarettes with traditional, combustible cigarettes is the wrong analogy because the vaping products expose consumers to chemicals in a fundamentally different way.
Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes
Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health care policy stories each week, so you don’t have to.
If Power Outages Are California’s New Normal, What About Home Medical Needs?
Those who rely on plug-in health devices or medicine that requires refrigeration are scrambling to find ways to avoid potentially life-threatening disruptions now and in future fire season shutdowns.
Obamacare’s Star Ratings Offer A Glimmer Of Insight ― But Not For All
Federal officials unveil new ratings for the Affordable Care Act’s marketplace plans. Missouri is one of eight states that has no plans earning at least three stars on a five-star scale.
Meth Trip Or Mental Illness? Police Who Need To Know Often Can’t Tell
The calming techniques that officers learn during training to intervene in a mental health crisis don’t seem to work as well when a suspect is high on meth. Meth calls can be much more dangerous, police say.
KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: Spooky Stuff
If it’s Halloween, that means open enrollment for plans on the Affordable Care Act exchanges is right around the corner. Prices are down this year, but the future of the health law remains in doubt due to a lawsuit seeking to have the entire measure thrown out. This week, Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal, Mary Agnes Carey of Kaiser Health News and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, the panelists read the top entries in KHN’s Halloween Health Haiku Contest.
For Young People With Psychosis, Early Intervention Is Crucial
California budget provides $20 million to expand early psychosis treatment around the state.
‘Invincible’ Teen Vapers Face Fears, Ask For Help
Starting to vape is easy, but quitting a nicotine habit can be tough, teens are finding. Some vaping cessation programs have begun to reach out to teens where they live — on their phones.