01/05/2009
Emergency medical experts are voicing concerns that 911 ambulance personnel in San Francisco are not trained adequately and do not maintain patient charts that indicate what specific medical treatment they have provided. Meanwhile, emergency response times in the city have improved after San Francisco's 911 Call Center adopted new protocols. San Francisco Chronicle.
01/05/2009
On Jan. 1, various health care-related laws took effect in California. For example, new laws aim to establish a new state privacy office and require physicians to provide terminally ill patients with information about end-of-life care options. Los Angeles Times et al.
01/05/2009
State Sen. Elaine Alquist and Kathleen Billingsley, deputy director of the state Department of Public Health's Center for Health Care Quality, talked with California Healthline about two new laws aimed at curbing hospital-acquired infections.
12/23/2008
While still outpacing other industries, hospitals are beginning to feel the strain of the economic downturn. According to a yet-to-be released California Hospital Association survey, about two in five hospitals have halted construction plans or postponed major purchases. Meanwhile, 25% of hospitals surveyed said they are having trouble securing financing for construction projects. Sacramento Bee.
12/23/2008
An eight-month Baltimore Sun investigation looked into the aggressive efforts by Maryland hospitals to step up debt collection. The hospitals' trade group successfully defeated lawmakers' efforts to impose stricter oversight of hospitals' collection practices. Baltimore Sun.
12/23/2008
Los Angeles County probation officials are proposing the construction of a 70-bed hospital in Sylmar to treat and house incarcerated juveniles with serious mental illnesses. The facility would cost an estimated $5 million to $10 million. Los Angeles Times.
12/22/2008
Young Californians, who don't have a particularly rosy image of the employment situation in California, rank health care as the best place to look for a career, according to a survey commissioned by the California Wellness Foundation. by George Lauer
12/19/2008
El Camino Hospital agreed to buy Community Hospital of Los Gatos for $45 million, and Kaiser Permanente won approval for a new hospital building to replace its current facility in Fontana. Meanwhile, UC-Davis Medical Center announced plans to shutter its liver transplant program.
12/19/2008
The plan includes $7.3 billion in cuts from health care and other programs and would relax some rules for small construction projects at hospitals. Gov. Schwarzenegger said the plan did not go far enough in addressing the budget gap. Los Angeles Times, Ventura County Star.
12/19/2008
As expected, the Bush administration has issued rules that expand protections for health care workers who decline to participate in medical procedures that they find morally objectionable, sparking concerns from advocates about access to reproductive health services. AP/Denver Post et al.
12/18/2008
El Dorado County approved staffing cuts to its health services department, and Fresno County signed off on a trial for a needle-exchange program. Meanwhile, Sonoma County OK'd a plan to require a law enforcement union to pay more toward health benefits. Sacramento Bee et al.
12/18/2008
Senate Finance Committee ranking member Chuck Grassley is considering proposing early next year legislation that would hold not-for-profit hospitals more accountable for the tax exemptions they receive, according to his aides. Grassley aides say the bill would require not-for-profit hospitals to spend a minimum amount on charity care and set limits on executive compensation and conflicts of interest. Wall Street Journal.
12/17/2008
On Tuesday, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors voted to begin accepting applications from independent contractors to serve as a watchdog for the county Department of Health Services. The move is sparked by problems at the county-operated Martin Luther King Jr.-Harbor Hospital. AP/San Jose Mercury News.
12/17/2008
The San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors is evaluating the program as it studies options for dealing with the hospital's ongoing financial problems. A hospital administrator says the program improves efficiency at the hospital, but a report notes that the program is not self sustaining. Stockton Record.
12/17/2008
A study in the Annals of Internal Medicine found that Medi-Cal beneficiaries who experienced lapses in health care coverage were substantially more likely to be hospitalized for chronic conditions than beneficiaries whose coverage was not interrupted. The lead author of the study said that it raised questions about the cost-efficacy of increased eligibility checks. New York Times, CQ HealthBeat.