Latest California Healthline Stories
Rate Regulation, Basic Health Headed to Floor?
The state Legislature reconvenes today, starting with a Senate Committee on Appropriations hearing with 167 items on the agenda. The Assembly’s Appropriations Committee meets Wednesday, with 184 items to consider.
Those numbers will be whittled down for this week’s hearings, but generally Appropriations is the final destination before an actual floor vote for any bill that might spend money. That’s why the two committees will have so many menu items from which to choose.
Among the bills that still need to clear the Appropriations hurdle is AB 52 — by Assembly members Mike Feuer (D-Los Angeles) and Jared Huffman (D-San Rafael) — which is the health insurance rate regulation bill. Also up is the bill to create a Basic Health Program, SB 703, by Sen. Ed Hernandez (D-West Covina).
Effort Aims To Fight Obesity by Bringing More Grocery Stores to California’s ‘Food Deserts’
Janne Boone-Heinonen of Oregon Health and Science University, Margaret Gee of the Bay Area Local Initiatives Support Corporation and Marion Standish of the California Endowment spoke with California Healthline about efforts to combat obesity by increasing access to grocery stores.
Medicaid Waiver Good News for L.A.’s Homeless
Strategies to provide health care to the homeless could shift as California prepares its Medicaid program and safety-net providers for reform-driven expansion in 2014. The state’s Bridge to Reform Medicaid waiver could help pave the way in Los Angeles County, which is “home” to almost one-third of the state’s homeless population.
Non-Contracted Services at Heart of Two Court Cases
A woman named Fucino, who is eligible for the County Medically Indigent Services Program (CMISP) and gets her care in Sacramento County, one day traveled to Monterey County to visit family. While in Monterey, she had a health issue that landed her in the emergency department in that county.
Does Sacramento County have to pay for that out-of-county ED visit? And more important, what does all of that have to do with a multimillion-dollar lawsuit filed against the county by UC-Davis?
The answer to the latter question is: non-contracted services. It’s the same principle at the core of both cases, where the court has to decide whether or not the county should pay for non-contracted services.
Gay Latinos Fighting Bias, Stereotypes on Many Levels
Health risks for gay and transgender Latinos run high in part because of multiple social pressures and several different types of discrimination. A recent legislative hearing brought this often hidden community into the light, exploring what can be done to help them.
Food Fight Over Vending Machines
The intent is simple, according to AB 727 author Assembly member Holly Mitchell (D-Los Angeles).
“We would like the food sold in vending machines and cafeterias in state buildings to meet minimum nutritional and sustainability standards,” Mitchell said. “AB 727 will promote a healthier workforce by making healthy food options more acceptable and affordable.”
The Assembly Committee on Health last week approved AB 727, but only after a long, protracted and surprisingly emotional hearing.
How Can California Solve Family Physician Shortage?
California — like many parts of the country — is facing a shortage of family physicians on the eve of a significant expansion of the health care system. We asked experts and stakeholders what California policymakers can do to encourage a healthy supply of care providers.
Health Committee Alters BPA Ban Bill
The bill seemed simple enough — trying to keep endocrine disruptors out of babies’ mouths. But arguments get complicated in Sacramento, and yesterday the Senate Committee on Health decided that only a lighter version of that argument made sense.
On a 5-3 vote, the committee approved AB 1319 by Betsy Butler (D-Marina del Rey), but only after the author agreed to amendments that significantly altered the bill.
It now moves to the Senate Committee on Environmental Quality.
California Running Out of Health Care Providers
Study after study on work force issues in California all come to the same conclusion: There are not enough doctors, nurses and allied health providers to meet projected need. On top of that, those providers are not distributed evenly across the state. But what can be done about it?
Senate Vote Could Be Swayed by AMA Stance
On Monday, the American Medical Association came out against use of bisphenol-A (BPA) in consumer products, citing the chemical’s effect as an endocrine disruptor. That specifically includes endorsement of a ban on use of BPA in baby bottles and baby “sippy” cups, and that ban is at issue in today’s Senate Committee on Health.
AB 1319 (Betsy Butler, D-Marina del Rey) would limit BPA use in baby bottles and cups, infant formula and baby food sold in California. It passed the Assembly at the end of May, and now is up for a vote in today’s Senate health committee hearing.
“The AMA has found that BPA is an endocrine disruptor and it would like to ban products that contain it,” Butler said. “It’s all about the science. There are many medical and health organizations promoting this idea [of banning BPA in baby products]. The opposition to BPA has grown stronger and stronger from the health community.”