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Latest California Healthline Stories

Election Gift for Florida? Trump Poised to Approve Drug Imports From Canada

The Trump administration is primed to approve a plan designed to help lower costs of some prescription drugs by allowing states to import them from Canada. The announcement could come before Election Day, and Florida appears to be in line to go first.

Urban Hospitals of Last Resort Cling to Life in Time of COVID

Rural hospitals have been closing at a quickening pace in recent years, but a number of inner-city hospitals now face a similar fate. Experts fear that the economic damage inflicted by the COVID pandemic is helping push some of these urban hospitals over the edge at the very time their services are most needed.

In Face of COVID Threat, More Dialysis Patients Bring Treatment Home

Since the COVID-19 pandemic hit, more patients are administering dialysis to themselves at home rather than receiving it in a clinic. Although home dialysis limits exposure to the virus, it comes with its own challenges.

COVID Vaccine Trials Move at Warp Speed, But Recruiting Black Volunteers Takes Time

The National Institutes of Health has suggested minorities should be overrepresented in COVID-19 vaccine trials — perhaps at rates that are double their percentage of the U.S. population. But efforts to recruit patients from racial minority groups are just beginning, while some trials have already advanced to phase 3.

‘It Seems Systematic’: Doctors Cite 115 Cases of Head Injuries From Crowd Control Devices

In the most comprehensive tally of such injuries to date, the Physicians for Human Rights scoured publicly available data — including social media, news accounts and lawsuits — to document and name victims of summer protests. Still, the group cautions, it’s likely an undercount.

With No Legal Guardrails for Patients, Ambulances Drive Surprise Medical Billing

Studies show that at least half of ground ambulance rides across the nation leave patients with “surprise” medical bills. And a $300-a-mile ride is not unusual. Yet federal legislation to stem what’s known as balance billing has largely ignored ambulance costs.