02/17/2011
The recession has brought mixed results for the various sectors of San Diego's health care labor market. The biomedical industry saw job gains in 2009, while hospitals consolidated or froze jobs. Although nursing graduates are struggling to find work in the region now, hospital officials predict future shortages of nurses and allied health professionals. by Lisa Zamosky, California Healthline Regional Correspondent
02/03/2011
Partnerships between schools and health care providers in California are helping to train the next generation of health care workers in tight economic times. by George Lauer, California Healthline Features Editor
01/24/2011
A new study suggests that for-profit universities produce too few graduates in the most needed health care professions, such as nursing and diagnostic technology, and too many in the support occupations, such as medical assistants and massage therapists. by George Lauer, California Healthline Features Editor
01/03/2011
If value-based purchasing of health care spreads as many predict it will, would a logical next step be to reward consumers for choosing a low-priced alternative by sharing some of the profit? We asked insurers, consumer advocates, employers and employer groups to weigh in.
11/29/2010
Emergency departments in California often struggle to get paid for treating patients with a certain type of health insurance. In those cases, reimbursement is routinely delayed or denied, physicians say. Doctors complain that state officials are refusing to address the problem. by David Gorn, California Healthline Sacramento Bureau
11/08/2010
The country's only national urgent care franchise, Doctors Express, opened its first California-based center in San Diego this fall, with a second on its way in early 2011. Not everyone is convinced the new centers will provide much-needed relief to local emergency departments. by Lisa Zamosky, California Healthline Regional Correspondent
08/02/2010
Medical clinics in drugstores and large retail emporiums have spread slowly but surely in California, but impending changes from national health care reform could change the nascent retail clinic industry's growth pattern. Will it get a boost, or will it slow down even further? by David Gorn, California Healthline Sacramento Bureau
07/12/2010
The idea of a "medical home" to make primary care work better for patients, physicians and insurers is gaining a foothold on the North Coast, but many say California as a whole is behind the curve nationally. by Pat McConahay, California Healthline Regional Correspondent
07/01/2010
We asked small business experts and insurers to share insights about how California small businesses can make the most of health care reform while dealing with new administrative burdens it brings.
06/28/2010
San Diego, a national hub for biotechnology, has seen a flurry of activity as companies prepare to apply for a new tax credit included the health care reform package that will provide $1 billion to small biotech and life sciences companies. by Lisa Zamosky, California Healthline Regional Correspondent
06/24/2010
Should hospitals or health districts be allowed to directly employ physicians? The charged issue crosses party lines, and the Assembly's recent floor vote showed just how divided it is. by David Gorn, California Healthline Sacramento Bureau
06/14/2010
Although health care reform has moved into the national spotlight, the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 continues to develop health care-related projects and grant programs. This update summarizes significant developments over the past few months. by Helen Pfister and Sandy Newman, Manatt Health Solutions
05/13/2010
The plan by the California Task Force on Affordable Care is not likely to help the state close an estimated $20 billion budget gap, but it could be an important step in helping the state implement national health reform. by George Lauer, California Healthline Features Editor
04/14/2009
Rapid action on bills dealing with Medi-Cal and COBRA funding set the stage for part of the federal stimulus money to begin flowing into California. The third and perhaps biggest flow of health care-related funds -- for health information technology -- will take longer and could be thornier. by George Lauer
06/24/2008
At a smoking cessation forum last week in San Francisco, tobacco foes argued for stronger anti-smoking policies, and two large California employers announced new programs to help their workers quit the habit. By George Lauer