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New hospital clinic in Michigan seeks to reduce traffic to ER; Minneapolis doctors and hospital merge operations

The Grand Rapids clinic is reaching out to people who have been to the hospital's emergency department at least 10 times in the past year.

1 Dec 2011

State roundup: Calif. hospital allegedly overbilling Medicare; Wash. hospitals ER 'boom'; Rehab scams in Florida?

Health policy news from California, Florida, Washington state, Oregon, Vermont and Texas.

28 Nov 2011

State roundup: Another Medi-Cal lawsuit; medical homes in Tenn.; Pa. moving forward on exchanges

Some California hospitals would take a significant and long-lasting hit from Medi-Cal reimbursement cuts recently approved by CMS, according to the California Hospital Association, which this week filed a petition in federal court to put a temporary halt to those reductions. CHA's lawsuit and injunction request are separate from the court action taken earlier this week by the California Medical Association and other provider organizations.

24 Nov 2011

Victory for seniors: Calif. Adult Day Health Care center lawsuit resolved

Senior advocates had sued the state because of Gov. Jerry Brown's plan to shut down the ADHC program to save money.

19 Nov 2011

State roundup: Calif. cuts make public health outlook bleak

One thing Gov. Mitch Daniels believes with absolute conviction is that consumers need to pay more of the cost of their health care. ... No one can say Daniels isn't practicing what he preaches. Indiana has been using a version of consumer-driven health care for state employees since 2006. Starting next year, 90 percent of Indiana state workers will be covered by a consumer-driven plan with low premiums and high out-of-pocket expenses for actual care.

18 Nov 2011

Viewpoints: Questions of partisanship and timing could complicate Supreme Court's decision on health law

The Supreme Court's decision to review the constitutionality of health care reform means it will be issuing a ruling in the middle of the 2012 presidential campaign. This can be a highly politicized court, and, for the public good and its own credibility, it must resist that impulse.

16 Nov 2011

GE Capitol healthcare flexes muscle, reaps benefits

The full breadth of health care reform has yet to be felt, but GE Capital Healthcare Financial Services is reaping the benefits. The Bethesda-based specialty finance firm is witnessing an upturn in business that has it on track to surpass its 2010 lending activity by roughly 15 percent. … Through the first nine months of the year, the company, which provides financing to some 40 sectors of the health care industry, deployed more than $5 billion in loans.

15 Nov 2011

State roundup: Md.'s medical home; N.Y. malpractice action; Texas nursing homes

Instead of a doctor seeing patients mostly when they're sick -; and the physician is getting paid for that visit or service -; this program gives financial rewards to practices that use a team of doctors, nurses and other staff to treat the whole person on a continuing basis, not just for one illness. ... The state initiative is among dozens of public and private experiments across the country that are trying to fundamentally change the way doctors practice medicine.

15 Nov 2011

Researchers identify how to design drugs to target specific brain areas

The future of drug design lies in developing therapies that can target specific cellular processes without causing adverse reactions in other areas of the nervous system. Scientists at the Universities of Bristol and Li-ge in Belgium have discovered how to design drugs to target specific areas of the brain.

11 Nov 2011

State roundup: Alaska's dental problem; some Minn. health funding blocked

The need for dental care in rural Alaska is huge. According to a recent CDC report, the rate of cavities among rural Alaska Native children is four and a half times greater than the general population of U.S. children of the same age. ... But it's important to note the dental therapist program in Alaska is not without controversy.

10 Nov 2011

State roundup: Kansas Medicaid announcement; pilot projects for nursing homes, C-sections; Calif. marijuana clinics

Gov. Sam Brownback, Lt. Gov. Jeff Colyer and three Cabinet officials have scheduled a news conference for 10 a.m. Tuesday to describe details of their plan for making over the Kansas Medicaid program. ... The plan is expected to include a significant expansion of managed care.

9 Nov 2011

Viewpoints: Romney's plan to cut the debt; congressional squabbles on spending; spurning insurers' concerns about new labels

First, eliminate every government program that is not absolutely essential. There are many things government does that we may like but that we do not need. … For example: Repeal ObamaCare, which would save $95 billion in 2016. …Eliminate Title X family planning programs benefiting abortion groups like Planned Parenthood. … Second, return federal programs to the states where innovation, cost management and reduction of fraud and abuse can far exceed what Washington achieves. I will block grant Medicaid and workforce training, saving well over $100 billion in 2016.

5 Nov 2011

Viewpoints: Super committee clock is ticking; replacing CLASS; 'personhood' amendment in Miss.

There are only three weeks left for the Congressional supercommittee to come up with a plan to reduce the federal deficit by at least $1.2 trillion, and there is no sign that the panel is anywhere close to reaching an agreement. Only one side, in fact, seems to be trying -; the Democrats -; and it is being far too accommodating, given the fierce obstructionism of the other side, the Republicans.

2 Nov 2011

Federal officials approve Calif. cuts in Medicaid

Gov. Jerry Brown sought the waiver from the Obama administration to reduce reimbursements to doctors, pharmacies, nursing homes and other providers by 10 percent.

29 Oct 2011

Viewpoints: Health law curbs savings from OTC meds; Calif. wrestles with managing medical marijuana

[Over-the-counter] medicines play an important role in our nation's health care system, with almost 90 percent of physicians recommending patients try to address many ailments with self-care interventions, including the use of OTC medication, before seeking professional care.

24 Oct 2011

Viewpoints: CLASS decision ends fear of government bailout; the strengths and failings of U.S. health care

The problem, as numerous experts warned at the time, was whether the program could be run, as the law required, in a way that made it financially solvent for at least 75 years. The difficulty with the CLASS Act was ensuring that premiums could be set low enough to attract widespread participation but high enough to pay tbenefits. The risk was that the program would attract the sickest participants, who thought they might need its protections, and thereby drive premium prices ever higher in a spiral of dysfunctionhe promised.

19 Oct 2011

Blue Shield of Calif. adds additional $283 million to policyholder 'giveback'

Blue Shield of California says it will give customers in the state a $283-million credit on their insurance premiums, saying it is fulfilling a promise to return money to policyholders when its net income exceeds 2 percent of revenue.

15 Oct 2011

State news: Texas pharmacies fear lower Medicaid fees

In Rio Grande City, Rene Martinez's Starr Pharmacy has one line for Medicaid patients and another for non-Medicaid patients. On some days, most of his clients can be found waiting on the Medicaid line, a testament to the importance of that federal-state health insurance program in this poor city along the Texas-Mexico border -; and to Mr. Martinez's bottom line.

15 Oct 2011

Viewpoints: The value of testing for prostate cancer; rewards for transplant donors; Calif.'s medical marijuana problem

For men older than 50, a simple blood test to screen for prostate cancer is as much a part of annual physicals as weigh-ins and stethoscopes. The PSA test is painless, inexpensive and the only way to detect the disease -; the most common male cancer -; before symptoms turn up.

12 Oct 2011

Brown signs Calif. measures to aid children with autism, ban kids younger than 18 from using tanning beds

In other state news, Wisconsin last month began scrutinizing health insurance rate increases, Los Angeles County steps in ahead of health law's mandated coverage expansions and a Georgia report notes the state's progress in providing services for people with mental illness and developmental disabilities.

11 Oct 2011