Latest California Healthline Stories
HIPAA Changes Seek Balance of Compliance, Right To Know
HHS hopes proposed changes to the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act’s privacy rules will be relatively easy for health care providers to comply with and give individuals more details about who has access to their protected health information.
Fragmented Long-Term Care System Needs Help, Report Says
Health care reform during a “time of substantial fiscal challenge and constraint in California” offers a good opportunity for the state’s long-term care system to get a much-needed makeover, according to a new report from the SCAN Foundation.
U.S. Facing Dramatic Decline in Number of Emergency Departments, According to Study
Renee Hsia of UC-San Francisco, Sandra Schneider of the American College of Emergency Physicians and Caroline Steinberg of the American Hospital Association spoke with California Healthline about a recent study on emergency department closures.
Innovative Dental Idea Goes Outside the Box
A new study gives California a “C” grade for children’s dental care. The level of care could rise with federal health care reform changes in 2014 but only if the state has a plan for handling an anticipated one million newly insured youngsters in need of dental work.
New ACOs Emerging in Northern California
Two new accountable care organizations are taking shape in San Francisco. Exactly how ACOs work and where they fit in reform are still to be determined, but there is little doubt they will have significant influence on how health care is delivered and paid for.
Advocates: Skimping on Mental Health Funding Has Consequences
Mental health experts say two disparate decisions last week — the Supreme Court ordering California to reduce its prison population and the state Legislature’s decision to improve security at state mental hospitals — are related to a larger, longstanding problem of chronic underfunding for mental health care in California.
Bridget Duffy of ExperiaHealth Discusses How Empowering Patients Can Help Improve Care
Bridget Duffy, CEO of ExperiaHealth, spoke with California Healthline about efforts to help patients navigate the health care system and the benefits of focusing on patient experience.
Milestones Mark ARRA, HITECH First Quarter
The arrival of a new national coordinator for health information technology and an invitation to the public to help define the country’s health IT strategy highlighted developments early this year in the federal government’s implementation of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009.
Amid Clinic Closures, One Health Care Center Keeps Expanding
State budget shortfalls, declining Medi-Cal reimbursement and recent federal cutbacks have led many community clinics in California to the financial edge. But the Sacramento Native American Health Center has bucked that trend and is expanding at a rapid rate — and it may offer a new model of care to handle the growing patient load in California.
Riverside Hopes New Policies Will Help Curb Sprawl, Obesity
Riverside County’s Public Health and Planning departments have joined forces to develop a large-scale approach that will guide future community development. The new policies set the stage for communities that will be walkable and bikeable with convenient access to nutritious food.