Highlights: Fla.'s new Medicaid hospital formula; Kan. health coverage, autism bills; Va. hospitals expand in Richmond

A selection of health policy stories from Florida, Kansas, Virginia, California and Georgia.

Health News Florida: Hospitals Lose With New Medicaid Formula
The funding formula in Florida's Medicaid reform law means hospitals across the state will see millions of dollars in cuts, the Tampa Bay Times reports, while a handful will see funding increase ... Safety net hospitals as a group are expected to see cuts of $300 million under the new payment formula that in essence penalizes communities that have a local sales tax to benefit health care (3/3).

Kansas Health Institute: Legislature Still Wrestling With Bills Dealing With Health Insurance And Autism
Unlike here in Kansas, Missouri requires its state-regulated health insurance plans to offer coverage of autism diagnosis and treatment for children. That's why most of the youngsters enrolled at the Kansas City Autism Training Center in Prairie Village, actually live on the Missouri side of the state line, which is about four miles east of here as the crow flies (Ranney, 3/3).

The Richmond Times-Dispatch: As Economy Rebounds, Richmond Hospitals Expand
Hospital systems in the Richmond area are building, renovating and expanding -- taking advantage of improving economic conditions to do some much-needed projects. If there is a theme among the projects, it's that health care is coming to a neighborhood nearer to you, with both the Bon Secours Virginia and HCA Virginia health systems planning midsize projects in growing suburban areas. VCU Health System is making progress on its new children's hospital (Smith, 3/4).

Kaiser Health News: L.A. County Officials Told Inspectors To Cut Short Nursing Home Probes
Facing a backlog of hundreds of health and safety complaints about nursing homes, Los Angeles County public health officials told inspectors to close cases without fully investigating them, according to internal documents and interviews (Gorman, 3/3).

Georgia Health News: Update: House OKs Bills On Obamacare, Food Stamps
The 2014 legislative session was expected to be a quiet one for health care. Experts predicted that little of significance on health issues would pass before Georgia lawmakers wrapped up a quick, tidy General Assembly session.The predictions of a dull session were way off target -- sort of like picking Denver to beat Seattle in the Super Bowl. Major bills on medical marijuana, Medicaid expansion, insurance navigators, autism coverage, abortion, foster care, and the Department of Community Health board have all moved through a chamber or were pending for a vote Monday. In the process, these and other health care proposals captured major legislative attention (Miller, 3/3).