Latest California Healthline Stories
Medicare Physicians Nervously Await Yearly ‘Doc Fix’
In the wake of the congressional debt panel’s failure to come up with long-range budget solutions, California physicians are nervously awaiting the annual holiday tradition of a temporary “doc fix” to adjust the equation that determines how much they’ll get paid for treating Medicare beneficiaries.
Lyle Hurst of the Encore Fellowships Network Talks About Supporting Social-Purpose Groups
Lyle Hurst, network developer for the Encore Fellowships Network, spoke with California Healthline about a program that matches mid-career workers from the private sector with social-purpose organizations, including community clinics.
Settlement Sets New Course for Adult Day Health Care
The settlement of a lawsuit over adult day health care essentially reinstitutes many benefits for some of the state’s most vulnerable residents in a new program, but many of the details — such as who will be eligible and how many centers will remain open — have yet to be worked out.
Premium Hikes Report May Be Kindling for California Initiative
Premiums for employer-based health insurance increased by 50% nationally in the seven years before passage of the Affordable Care Act, according to a new report from the Commonwealth Fund. The report comes at the start of a statewide campaign for a ballot measure to give California authority over health insurance rate hikes.
More Employers Turn to Wellness Incentive Programs To Trim Rising Health Care Costs
Tom Hubbard of the New England Healthcare Institute, Steven Noeldner of Mercer Health & Benefits and Joe Woods of HumanaVitality spoke with California Healthline about the growing popularity of employee wellness incentive programs.
Data Could Be King in Reformed Health Care System
The unfettered distribution of health information could mean better, more timely care and could be invaluable for public health efforts. But in California’s complex and multitiered health system, that’s easier desired than done.
Spotlight on New PHR Model Privacy Notice
To help address consumer privacy concerns, the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology has released a Personal Health Record Model Privacy Notice that allows providers of Web-based PHRs to inform consumers about their data sharing and privacy and security policies.
New Cost Tool Aims To Boost Pay-for-Performance Model of Care
In an effort to measure value in health care transactions, the Integrated Healthcare Association is introducing a “Total Cost of Care” metric to be used in its pay-for-performance program. IHA hopes the new tool will speed up improvements in clinical quality by providing financial incentives to physicians.
Austerity Won’t Help Physician Shortage, Experts Predict
Cutbacks in Medicare and Medicaid could make it more difficult to deal with a physician shortage in California that threatens to become more severe as millions of newly insured people join the reformed health care system. California groups are lobbying to streamline and subsidize the training of new primary care doctors.
Advocates, Health Plans, State Eyeing ADHC Hearing
The state is moving forward with its plans to move 35,000 people who had been receiving adult day health care through Medi-Cal to other programs. However, the transition could be derailed on Nov. 8 when a judge will consider whether the state’s plan adequately cares for patients.