State Highlights: In California, It’s The Single-Payer-Or-Bust Camp Versus The Realists; A Grim Look Inside Mississippi’s Private Prison Conditions

Politico: California’s Path To Universal Health Care Pits Pragmatists Against Single-Payer Holdouts
It’s the pragmatists versus the idealists in California’s latest quest for universal health care. Increasing numbers of lawmakers and advocates are pushing for policy goals that realistically can be accomplished this year. But there’s an unrelenting camp clinging to single-payer-or-bust. The Golden State, which has been pushing back against the Trump administration on multiple fronts, is leaning toward the more incremental approach. This includes bills and budget items that would cover everything from insuring undocumented adults to preventing Medicaid work requirements and shielding the state from insurance products favored by the GOP, such as short-term plans. (Colliver, 4/3)

The New York Times: Inside A Private Prison: Blood, Suicide And Poorly Paid Guards
On the witness stand and under pressure, Frank Shaw, the warden of the East Mississippi Correctional Facility, could not guarantee that the prison was capable of performing its most basic function. Asked if the guards were supposed to keep inmates in their cells, he said, wearily, “They do their best.” According to evidence and testimony at a federal civil rights trial, far worse things were happening at the prison than inmates strolling around during a lockdown: A mentally ill man on suicide watch hanged himself, gang members were allowed to beat other prisoners, and those whose cries for medical attention were ignored resorted to setting fires in their cells. (Williams, 4/3)

Pioneer Press: State Faults Eagan Assisted Living Facility After Resident Found Dead 
Debbie Singer walked up to her mother’s apartment at an Eagan senior living community to find multiple packages and two newspapers outside the door. Her mother’s bed and bathroom looked as if they hadn’t been used in days. Medication for the past two days had not been taken, and her mother was wearing the same clothing she’d been in two days earlier.June Alice Thompson, 92, was dead, and most likely had been for two days. ...The Health Department alleges that while Thompson’s death was most likely natural, Commons on Marice failed to complete the daily checks the privately operated facility advertises and did not notice Thompson’s death for two days. The name of the victim and her daughter were included in the Eagan Police Department report on the incident, but not in the state report. (Chavey, 4/3)

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Gov. Scott Walker Removes Most Abortion Coverage For Public Workers
Most abortions for state and local workers would not be covered by their public insurance plans, under legislation signed by Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker Tuesday. Assembly Bill 128 prohibits government-provided health insurance plans from paying for abortions except in cases of rape or incest or to preserve the life of the mother. (Stein, 4/3)

New Orleans Times-Picayune: 3 New Orleans Health Providers Named Leaders In LGBT Care 
Three New Orleans healthcare providers have been recognized as "LGBT Healthcare Equality Leaders" by the Human Rights Campaign Foundation for their commitment to provide inclusive environments for their LGBT (lesbian, gay, bi-sexual, transgender) patients and employees. A total of seven Ochsner locations -- including Ochsner Baptist, the Ochsner Medical Centers on Jefferson Highway, Kenner, North Shore and its West Bank Campus -- as well as the New Orleans Veterans Administration Hospital and the Crescent Care Community Health Center were recognized in the HRC Foundation's annual Healthcare Equality Index (HEI) released March 27. (Clark, 4/3)

The Washington Post: Ancestry.Com DNA Test Revealed A Woman’s Biological Father Was Her Family’s Fertility Doctor, Lawsuit Says
When Kelli Rowlette received the results from a DNA sample she had sent to a popular genealogy website, she assumed there had been a mistake. The test showed that her DNA matched a sample from a doctor more than 500 miles away — and, though she had never heard of him, Ancestry.com predicted a parent-child relationship between the two. At the time, Rowlette was not aware that more than 36 years ago, her parents had struggled to conceive. (Bever, 4/3)

New Orleans Times-Picayune: Proposal Could Force All Louisiana Bars And Gaming Facilities To Go Smoke-Free
It's been three years since a smoking ban cleared the air in New Orleans' bars and entertainment venues. Now, a proposal could expand the ban statewide. A measure that will be introduced Tuesday (April 3) by Representative Dustin Miller calls for a statewide comprehensive smoke-free policy that would make all workplaces, including bars, casinos and gaming facilities smoke-free. (Clark, 4/3)

The Washington Post: New D.C. Public Hospital Will Be Half As Large As Current Facility, Report Says
D.C. Mayor Muriel E. Bowser’s plan to replace United Medical Center, Southeast Washington’s troubled public hospital, calls for a new facility less than half its size, according to proposals to be released Tuesday. The new medical center would be built by the city on the sprawling campus of St. Elizabeths Hospital — a 19th-century psychiatric facility that today is home to a small public hospital for the mentally ill and a large swath of land slated for redevelopment — and would have 106 beds, at a cost of $248 million, according to the reports. (Jamison, 4/3)

Houston Chronicle: Texas Intensifies Efforts To Boost Maternal Health Care 
Hoping to curb the state’s continuing crisis with pregnancy-related deaths, Texas health officials are ramping up efforts to impose new guidelines credited with reducing the number of mothers dying during childbirth by up to 22 percent in other states. In December, Texas became one of 23 states across the country to join the Alliance for Innovation on Maternal Health, or AIM, a national data-driven program focused on improving the safety and care of pregnant women by partnering with state health departments. The guidelines come in the form of “bundles,” or standardized sets of plans and instructions that participating hospital staff can use when patients have severe pregnancy complications, like hemorrhaging or hypertension. (Milburn, 4/3)

Georgia Health News: Governor Comes To Aid Of State Workers Hit By Insurance Standoff
Gov. Nathan Deal, continuing his public pressure on Piedmont and Blue Cross in their contract stalemate, said Tuesday that the state and University System of Georgia will absorb out-of-network costs for employees for up to 30 days to reduce their potential financial burden. The extraordinary step comes in the wake of Sunday’s lapse of a contract between Piedmont Healthcare and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia. Since the beginning of this week, Piedmont hospitals and doctors are out of network for Blue Cross members. (Miller, 4/3)

Pioneer Press: MN Needs New Computer System To Track Elder Abuse. How Should It Work? 
The Minnesota Department of Health wants public input on the best way to manage electronic records related to complaints of elder abuse. The health department’s Office of Health Facility Complaints released a nine-page “request for information” Tuesday to help determine what attributes its new case-management system needs to best serve the public. (Magan, 4/3)

Houston Chronicle: New Practice Focuses On Women's Health In The Heights
Total Women's Care has opened and is seeking appointments geared toward women's health in the Heights. Total Women's Care of the Heights offers a full range of care for women of all ages and stages of life. Dr. Vonne Jones, a Houston native and obstetrics and gynecology specialist, has practiced in Houston since graduation from Georgetown University School of Medicine in 2008. (4/3)

Pioneer Press: Allina Health To Run Clinics In Eagan And Lakeville Hy-Vee Stores 
Allina Health is partnering with Hy-Vee to operate clinics in the grocer’s Eagan and Lakeville stores. An Allina Health Everyday Clinic opened Monday at the Eagan store on Central Park Commons Drive, and the Lakeville store on Pilot Knob Road will have a clinic later this spring. The clinics will be staffed by Allina Health board-certified advance-practice clinicians, offering care for minor illnesses and rapid laboratory testing for patients ages 18 months and older. Hours will be 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. Monday through Friday and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. (Ferraro, 4/3)

Detroit Free Press: Blue Cross Reverses Decision, Will Pay For Knee Arthritis Shots
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan has reversed its decision to stop covering an anti-arthritis injection for knees that some doctors insist helps patients but others contend is little better than a placebo. Blue Cross told medical providers last week that it will continue paying for hyaluronic acid injections, also known as viscosupplementation therapy, as it reviews additional information about the injections' effectiveness. (Reindl, 4/4)

Modern Healthcare: Health Systems Overlook Potential Of Real Estate Assets
While Memphis-based Baptist Memorial Health Care owns the land that its 49-bed rehabilitation hospital sits on in Germantown, Tenn., it rents the facility from commercial real estate developer Duke Realty Corp. Duke paid for the $33 million construction cost, freeing up capital for Baptist to spend on equipment, physicians and other investments aimed at improving care. Baptist also operates the hospital in a joint venture with Kindred Healthcare, which specializes in post-acute care. (Kacik, 4/3)

Georgia Health News: Plan For Georgia Rural Hospital’s Future Has As Many Twists As A Mountain Road
Northeast Georgia Health System, based in Gainesville, announced Friday that it has agreed to buy the hospital property and some equipment from DL Investment Holdings LLC, a company based in Florida that currently owns Chestatee Regional.But another transaction is already in the planning stages. State lawmakers have earmarked dollars in Georgia’s fiscal 2019 budget for the Board of Regents eventually to buy the current Chestatee Regional property from Northeast Georgia Health System. (Miller, 4/3)

Kaiser Health News: Atlanta Struggles To Meet MLK’s Legacy On Health Care
While public safety commissioner Bull Connor’s police dogs in 1963 attacked civil rights protesters in Birmingham, Ala., leaders in Martin Luther King Jr.’s hometown of Atlanta were burnishing its reputation as “the city too busy to hate. ”Yet 50 years after the civil rights leader was killed, some public health leaders here wonder whether the city is failing to live up to King’s call for justice in health care. They point to substantial disparities, particularly in preventive care. (Anderson, 4/4)

San Jose Mercury News: Fight Over Sexual Education In Fremont Schools Intensifying
Until further review, a sex education curriculum criticized by many as too graphic for children in grades 4-6 won’t be taught later this month as initially planned. At a March 28 meeting packed by hundreds of parents, teachers and students, the Fremont school board voted 3-2 to examine the course and possibly order modifications before offering it to elementary school students. (Geha, 4/3)

The Washington Post: Synthetic Cannabinoids Linked To Severe Bleeding, Deaths In Chicago And Central Illinois
Health officials in Illinois are warning people about mock marijuana that is spreading across Chicago and the central part of the state, causing severe bleeding among users and, in some cases, death. Synthetic cannabinoids, also known as K2 or Spice, has been linked to 56 cases in which people in the state experienced severe bleeding after using the substance, officials with the Illinois Department of Public Health said in a statement. The users were hospitalized — and two of them died — after coughing up blood, finding blood in their urine or bleeding from their noses or gums, officials said. (Bever, 4/3)

Los Angeles Times: Judge Threatens To Bar O.C. From Enforcing Anti-Camping Laws If It Can't Shelter Homeless
The political crisis over homelessness in Orange County approached a crucial moment Tuesday as a federal judge raised the prospect of barring local governments from enforcing anti-camping ordinances if officials cannot create temporary shelters for hundreds being swept out of tent cities. The county for weeks has been struggling to find locations to place the homeless after removing them from an encampment along the Santa Ana River. A plan to place temporary shelters in Irvine, Laguna Niguel and Huntington Beach died amid loud protests from residents last week, and the problem is expected to get worse as officials move to clear out another tent city at the Santa Ana Civic Center. (Fry, 4/3)

Tampa Bay Times: Medical Marijuana Provider Sues Department Of Health Over Caps On Dispensaries
Florida medical marijuana provider Trulieve is challenging a state law that caps how many dispensaries it can open and where, saying it unfairly restricts its constitutional right to open storefronts "without arbitrary and unreasonable limits." The Gadsden County-based business filed a lawsuit against the state Department of Health, dated late last week in Leon County circuit court, asking a judge to exempt Trulieve from a provision in a 2017 law that limits businesses to 25 dispensaries for medical marijuana. (Koh, 4/3)

Miami Herald: Former President Bill Clinton Secures Millions For Hurricane-Struck Caribbean
Caribbean islands struck by last year’s hurricanes Irma and Maria are getting some much needed help with their recovery — from rebuilt schools and improved healthcare to mental health access and solar lights. The commitments — coming less than 60 days before the June 1 start of hurricane season — were announced Tuesday by former President Bill Clinton at the University of Miami as part of the newly launched Clinton Global Initiative Action Network on Post-Disaster Recovery. (Charles, 4/3)