Health Care Headlines

Some 60 patient advocacy organizations and medical professional societies are calling on Congress and the Trump Administration to end the stalemate and reopen the federal government, saying that the shutdown is cutting into the US Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA’s) ability to ensure that Americans are protected from harm and have access to the latest therapies.

Melissa Hidde, M.D., is seeing lots of patients whose anxiety is through the roof at the Green Bay, Wisconsin, practice where she works.  And the family practitioner is not alone, as a new survey found that 74% of primary care physicians in the U.S. report that their patients have been affected by the current government shutdown.  “There’s this pervasive, underlying anxiety,” Hidde said.

Seven leading national hospital associations today released a report urging all stakeholders to unite in accelerating interoperability to fuel improved health and care, engage individuals, and promote value.

The Patient Safety Movement Foundation (PSMF) announced today at the 7th Annual Patient Safety, Science & Technology Summit that 90,146 lives were saved in 2018, thanks to the efforts of more than 4,710 hospitals committing to patient safety, and 89 healthcare technology companies that have signed the open data pledge. A total of 273,077 lives have been saved since the anniversary of the first summit in 2013.

With more than 39,000 products in any given grocery store, it can be challenging to find what’s healthy.  Add in the confusing labels and mixed messages from the media, sometimes you just want to ask a nutrition and health expert for advice.

We’re 11 days into 2019 … we’ve returned to a divided government … and the partial government shutdown continues.  While the southern border is getting the attention right now, it’s worth remembering that health care was the top issue for voters in November’s midterm election, especially coverage for people with pre-existing conditions.

We know that primary care is essential for good health, but access to primary care in California varies greatly, with large swaths of the state competing for attention from increasingly fewer doctors. The primary care shortage is complex, rooted in decisions that future doctors make long before they attend medical school, the cost of their education, where they choose to live, and the financial lure of specialty practice.

Last week, California’s new governor, Gavin Newsom, promised to pursue a smorgasbord of changes to his state’s health care system: state negotiation of drug prices; a requirement that every Californian have health insurance; more assistance to help middle-class Californians afford it; and health care for undocumented immigrants up to age 26.

Nurse Wendie Skala worked with teens who were victims of street violence — and she always felt she was getting to them too late.  Eventually, she learned about something called “adverse childhood experiences,” or ACEs: The idea that trauma early in life can cause disruptive and unhealthy behavior. And that’s when Skala says a “huge light bulb” went on.

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While the Trump administration decides whether to adopt a controversial policy that could jeopardize the legal status of immigrants who use public programs such as Medicaid, doctors and clinics are torn between informing patients about the potential risks and unnecessarily scaring them into dropping their coverage or avoiding care.

California’s health workforce faces major shortages. The good news? There’s no shortage of workable solutions.

Three people have died in flu-linked deaths in Ventura County so far this flu season but the surge of illness appears far less deadly than last year’s record onslaught.

On its face, it might seem Dr. Fred Meyers at the UC Davis School of Medicine is looking at one very specific problem.  He’s studying soldiers with complex trauma, such as a serious burn combined with a head injury. But he says the method he’s using — called precision medicine — could ultimately change the way doctors nationwide treat both military and civilian patients.

Providence Hospital group has launched a new program to put “patient navigators” at three of its hospitals in the San Fernando Valley to help screen and enroll homeless individuals who experience substance abuse and mental health issues into Tarzana Treatment Centers.

Some people’s faces — or even just a photo of them — hint at the genes they carry. And now, an algorithm can predict not only whether they carry a genetic mutation, but which genes were mutated.

On his first day in office, Gov. Gavin Newsom unveiled a sweeping health care plan that would prop up the Affordable Care Act, expand health care for undocumented immigrants and give the state new powers to negotiate drug prices.

The price tag is in: It would cost $400 billion to remake California’s health insurance marketplace and create a publicly funded universal health care system, according to a state financial analysis released Monday.  

The County of Orange is launching a data-sharing tool for medical providers and agencies in Orange County, California to coordinate the myriad of homeless services.

According to this week’s FluView report(https://www.cdc.gov/flu/weekly/index.htm#_blank), seasonal influenza activity is elevated nationally and continues to increase. The number of states experiencing high influenza activity went from two during the last reporting week to nine plus New York City.

There seems to be no end in sight for the current partial government shutdown, the third since the beginning of the Trump administration.  For the vast majority of the federal government’s public health efforts, though, it’s business as usual.

To combat security threats in the health sector, HHS issued a voluminous report that details ways small, local clinics and large hospital systems alike can reduce their cybersecurity risks. The guidelines are voluntary, so providers will not be required to adopt the practices identified in the report. 

Ten years ago, Congress passed a law requiring insurance companies to cover behavioral health conditions in the same way they covered physical conditions. And there seems to have been some progress — in the years since, use of treatment services for mental illness and substance use disorders has skyrocketed.

The Texas judge who said this month that core provisions of the Affordable Care Act were unconstitutional decided to halt his decision pending an appeal.

Nurses who work at Riverside County’s hospital are getting raises, a move the county hopes will be a cost-effective way to counter departures that add long-term expenses to the county-run health care system.

New health care market entrants and vertical integrators are challenging the traditional business models and operational tactics of hospitals and health systems. This report from the American Hospital Association (AHA) Center for Health Innovation outlines the moves hospitals and health systems should make to convert that challenge into more opportunities to serve the health needs of their patients.

More Americans are now employed in health care than in any other industry.

America’s hospitals and health systems are extremely disappointed with today’s federal district court ruling on the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act.

Behavioral health affects all of us – young, old, rich, poor. Caucasian, Latino, African-American, Asian.

Healthcare is in the midst of a dramatic shift, as new players surge into the business of health. Technology giants are signaling growing interest in entering the industry and disrupting traditional ways in which healthcare has been provided.

Could a federal judge in Texas be the catalyst that finally brings down the Affordable Care Act, a law that has withstood countless assaults from Republicans in Congress and two Supreme Court challenges?

On December 10, 2018, the California Supreme Court handed down its unanimous decision in Gerard, et al. v. Orange Coast Memorial Medical Center, affirming the Court of Appeal ruling that voluntary meal period waivers are permissible for healthcare employees who work long shifts, even if they work more than 12 hours.

Brandon Nelsons descent into Californias fractured mental health treatment system illustrates the dysfunction that has put thousands of mentally ill people on the streets, experts say.  It began decades ago, after California closed psychiatric hospitals to usher in more informal and less expensive community-based care, according to reports by the California Hospital Association.  The result was a devastating drop in psychiatric inpatient services.

On Oct. 22,  the Behavioral Health Action coalition held an historic meeting with California Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, engaging him in an in-depth conversation about California’s behavioral health system. Newsom is the highest-ranking California official in state history to meet with such a diverse coalition of leaders with a specific focus on mental illness and substance use challenges.

Four thousand Kaiser Permanente mental health professionals will begin a five-day strike Monday demanding the HMO address their concerns about what they called understaffing problems.

The midterm elections may have focused extensively on health care, but the results have done little to clarify where health care reform is headed. “

More than 40% of Americans have not been vaccinated against influenza this year and don’t plan to get vaccinated, despite repeated warnings about the potential dangers of the flu, as well as last year’s record-high number of deaths from flu, a new survey indicates.

A city task force focused on the homeless crisis released a comprehensive report on Wednesday calling for more than $220 million in funding for efforts including expanding the number of shelter beds, assisting tenants in relocation and building more than 2,000 low-income housing units.

About 15 percent of physicians in 2016 worked in practices that used telemedicine to interact with patients, while 11 percent worked in practices that used it to interact with health care professionals, according to a survey by the American Medical Association reported in Health Affairs.

Michael DeBlasio thought it was really bad stomach cramps, but the pain in his abdomen wouldn’t go away. Even though he considers himself “a healthy guy who doesn’t rush to the hospital,” in July, he drove 15 minutes from his house in Volcano to the local Sutter Health emergency room in rural Amador County.

There are many reasons to get a flu vaccine each year. Below is a summary of the benefits of flu vaccination, and selected scientific studies that support these benefits.

California nurse Allyn Pierce risked his life twice to evacuate patients in Paradise, Calif., rescuing patients before heading out for his own safety as the region’s record-setting wildfire closed in on Adventist Health Feather River Hospital, NBC’s Today reports.

Rural hospitals and other eligible providers can apply through March 4 for a portion of $21 million in Health Resources and Services Administration grants to develop new rural residency programs or training tracks in family medicine, internal medicine and psychiatry to expand the physician workforce in rural areas.

The Hospital Association of San Diego & Imperial Counties is staying closely connected to local hospitals and public services as the area waits for a potential influx of Central American migrants currently encamped in Tijuana, Mexico.

The Latest on a Northern California wildfire (all times local):  6 p.m.  A spokeswoman for the hospital that was damaged in the deadly wildfire in Northern California says the facility will reopen.

Measles cases surged in 2017, as multiple countries experienced severe and prolonged outbreaks of the disease due to gaps in vaccination coverage, according to new data from the World Health Organization (WHO) and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

In an effort to mitigate the state’s health disparities, the Medical University of South Carolina provides 77 telehealth services to more than 200 sites in 27 South Carolina counties, and MUSC’s aggregate number of annual telehealth interactions has grown from 1,078 in 2013 to more than 235,000 in 2017. Seventy-eight percent of its telehealth sites are in completely or partially medically underserved regions.

The man, 50 years old, wore a “Seattle” cap, sunglasses and had a goatee a few days past its last trim. He had come out of the brush and trees that separate Highway 101 from The Oaks mall, near the entrance to Nordstrom and some 100 yards from a freeway underpass where people sleep.

Virtual reality is often confined to the usual Silicon Valley crowd — mostly white and mostly wealthy. But at Stanford University, a new clinical trial is testing the technology in an underserved population: Spanish speakers with limited proficiency in English.

U.S. health officials said Monday they plan to overhaul the nation’s decades-old system for approving most medical devices, which has long been criticized by experts for failing to catch problems with risky implants and related products.

Naxheli Zuniga Contreras first came to the Integrated Wellness Center in Santa Rosa to get her kids some tutoring help. She liked that it was a place open after school and work, that she didn’t need any documentation and the services were free.

Those who have been impacted by the recent wildfires across the state are encouraged to utilize services available from Mental Health America of California, including a disaster distress helpline.

Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar yesterday declared a public health emergency in California due to the wildfires, and waived or modified certain Medicare, Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program requirements to help health care providers meet patients’ needs. HHS also has deployed emergency coordinators to the region and its National Disaster Medical System and Public Health Service Commissioned Corps are prepared to provide medical care and support if needed, the agency said.

Under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) millions of Californians have gained health coverage. With new data from the 2017 California Health Interview Survey (CHIS), this issue brief examines trends in coverage rates among nonelderly (under age 65) Californians from 2013, the year prior to full ACA implementation, through 2017.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has confirmed 90 cases of acute flaccid myelitis in 27 states so far this year, triple the number in 2017, according to a report the agency released today.

Gun violence has become a part of everyday life in America and of the work lives of doctors, nurses and first responders, too.

The Camp Fire seriously damaged part of Adventist Health Feather River hospital in Paradise, Calif., including some inpatient units and multiple hospital outbuildings, the hospital reports.

Population health and palliative care are two disciplines that bring new ways of thinking about health and illness. While they play distinct roles, they both promote optimal wellbeing.

Maggie Merritt, executive director of the Steinberg Institute, offers her insight into mental health advocacy. For more from the Steinberg Institute, check out “Minding the Gap” in our November issue. Sign up for our newsletter and we’ll email you when it’s available online.

Amazon continues to look for new ways to be relevant to healthcare workers. Amazon Web Services, the company’s cloud business, announced last week that three of its most popular services — Amazon Translate, Amazon Comprehend and Amazon Transcribe — are now HIPAA-eligible.

L.A. County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas led the groundbreaking ceremony for the newest addition to the Martin Luther King, Jr. Medical Campus in Willowbrook: a medical office building that will increase access to healthcare in South Los Angeles by creating more space for physicians to care for patients.

Yesterday marked the beginning of open enrollment in the Health Care Marketplaces—the best chance for people who do not get coverage through their employer or programs like Medicare and Medicaid to get covered for the upcoming year. Last year, hospitals and health systems played a key role in getting the word out in their communities. As a result, nearly 12 million people enrolled in coverage for 2018, meaning they now have access to preventive care, critical treatments, and more affordable prescriptions.

Democrats declared victory Wednesday in two of five closely-watched Southern California congressional races that have traditionally been represented by Republicans.  Republicans were poised to win in two other districts while one district, in coastal Orange County, is still too close to call.

An increasing number of children are showing up in U.S. emergency rooms in the throes of a mental health crisis, researchers reported Friday. And the increases are seen in minority children, in particular.

No single factor explains any election. First-term presidents almost always face a backlash from a ginned-up opposition, and hardly a day has passed over the last two years in which Trump has not done something to gin up his opposition. But for the almost infinite list of reasons voters broke the Republican hammerlock on the House, health care has been the dominant theme. It is their most visceral and undeniable betrayal of their promises to the voters. Attempting to repeal Obamacare probably cost Republicans the House.

Completing the final phase of construction work at Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital is a milestone, according to Ron Werft, Cottage Health’s president and CEO.  The project, which added about 134,000 square feet to the hospital, increases capacity to 90 licensed beds in two new pavilions, and elevates the comfort, technology and privacy in an emergency department that served more than 46,000 patients last year.

The AHA opposes tariffs that have been imposed on medical equipment and medical products imported from China that are used in hospitals, as well as potential tariffs under consideration that would impact the health care field. 

Voters this year have told pollsters in no uncertain terms that health care is important to them. In particular, maintaining insurance protections for preexisting conditions is the top issue to many.

Physicians were furious earlier this year when Medicare proposed consolidating most billing codes for routine office visits into a single code next year. Medicare now says it won’t go that far or that quickly, but it will move forward with the general idea.

LOS ANGELES — In October 2016, a 55-year-old retired software engineer with early-onset Alzheimer’s wandered out of the Los Angeles County Museum of Art as her husband used the restroom. Nancy Paulikas hasn’t been seen since.

The following statement is being issued by Carmela Coyle, President & CEO, California Hospital Association:  California hospitals are deeply disappointed by today’s announcement that Medicare payments to hospitals that operate off-campus outpatient clinics will be slashed by 60 percent over two years starting January 1, 2019. These clinics provide care to some of the sickest and most vulnerable patients in our communities the elderly and people who suffer from cancer, heart disease or other complex medical conditions.

Healthcare-associated infections (HAIs) fell by 16% between 2011 and 2015, according to a point-prevalence survey. In 2011, 4% of inpatients in US hospitals developed HAIs compared with 3.2% in 2015.

Nearly half of consumers have abandoned a medication prescribed by their physician because it was too expensive, according to a survey released today by DrFirst.

The California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) is proposing significant changes to its telehealth policy in the state’s Medicaid program known as Medi-Cal. The nonprofit Center for Connected Health Policy (CCHP) calls the proposal “a remarkable step forward.”

The Food and Drug Administration last week approved a new antiviral flu medication for patients aged 12 and older. While yearly vaccination is the primary means of preventing and controlling flu outbreaks, antiviral drugs can reduce flu symptoms and duration when used within 48 hours of becoming sick.

Calvin Brown doesn’t have a primary care doctor — and the peripatetic 23-year-old doesn’t want one.  Since his graduation last year from the University of San Diego, Brown has held a series of jobs that have taken him to several California cities. “As a young person in a nomadic state,” Brown said, he prefers finding a walk-in clinic on the rare occasions when he’s sick.

In the span of less than 12 hours last week, the Trump administration took two seemingly contradictory actions that could have profound effects on the insurance marketplaces set up by the Affordable Care Act.

Linda Vollinger has been a school nurse for 10 years at Amos Alonzo Stagg High School in Palos Hills, Illinois. But if you think her job involves just handing out ice packs and Band-Aids, think again. President of her local chapter of the National Association of School Nurses (NASN) and a former ER trauma nurse, Vollinger says her fellow school nurses do a lot more. Beyond scrapes and stomach aches, many school nurses are now the first stop for treating kids’ mental health.

Young children who experience discrimination are at heightened risk for mental health and behavior problems, but less so if they have a strong sense of racial and ethnic identity, a new study suggests.

This past weekend, California Governor Jerry Brown signed a law that mandates a new process for discharging homeless patients from California hospitals. Though well-intentioned, this new law misses the bigger and more urgent problem: assuring that sufficient beds and supportive care are actually available for homeless patients.

California’s low rate of lung cancer deaths saved nearly 5,000 lives in 2014—and saved Californians at least $500 million just in that year, according to a CALmatters analysis in consultation with public health researchers. Those savings will likely grow into the billions of dollars in the decades ahead, experts say.

A $1 million gift from the Steven & Alexandra Cohen Foundation will advance UCLA’s mission to provide high-quality health care for people facing financial hardship and other challenges in access to quality care, as well as providing resources to treat children who are victims of sexual assault and victims of rape.

As health organizations grapple with widespread burnout among providers, a new report from Press Ganey suggests healthcare leaders looking to tackle the problem among nurses would do well to more strongly consider factors like the generation and roles those nurses occupy.

Increasing American Hospital Association Members’ Utilization of Community Health Workers on Clinical Care Teams. Community health workers (CHW) are community members who work in the community setting and serve as connectors between health care providers and consumers to promote health among groups that have traditionally been underserved.

With the 2018 midterm election season in full swing, health care has emerged as one of the top issues for voters. The issue is playing a prominent role in many House, Senate, and gubernatorial races, and health-related measures have made it onto the ballot in several states.

Many of the struggles facing hospitals and health systems are worse for community hospitals that  often resort to drastic measures to keep their doors open, according to the North Bay Business Journal.

Cottage Health has completed the final phase of new construction (called Phase 6) of the rebuilding of Santa Barbara Cottage Hospital.

The Food and Drug Administration today issued draft guidance that provides recommendations to the medical device industry on cybersecurity considerations for device design, labeling and documentation that the FDA recommends be included in premarket submissions for medical devices with cybersecurity risk. 

Penn Medicine has developed a behavioral design team to innovate its Epic electronic health record, which it calls “the first behavioral design team developed at a health system.Operating under the idea that physicians are influenced by behavioral design (a theory it has applied to patients) the team streamlined and tweaked its EHR to appeal to clinicians psychologically, Healthcare IT News reports.

Step outside Community Memorial Hospital’s recently completed Ocean Tower in Ventura, and you’ll find gardens that offer space for reflection, fountains that provide the soothing sounds of trickling water and brightly colored art that makes the exterior of the new building look more like a hotel than a hospital.

A climate change report recently released by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) paints a dire picture for our world. If current warming trends continue, the global average temperature is likely to rise 2.7 degrees Fahrenheit by 2052 and 3.6 degrees by 2100. Those figures represent an increase in combined surface air and sea surface temperatures averaged over the Earth.

On August 21, 2018, the federal Medicaid program approved California’s state plan amendment (SPA 17-017) to add non-medical transportation (NMT) as a fee-for-service (FFS) benefit.

A person in Ventura County died in a flu-related death this month, reported a public health official urging people to get their flu vaccinations before Nov. 1.