State Highlights: Calif. Judge Denies Challenge To Aid-In-Dying Law; Rise In Pregnancy-Related Deaths Worries Texas Lawmakers

The Associated Press: California Judge Rejects Request To Suspend Assisted Suicide Law
A California judge has rejected a request by physicians to immediately suspend a new state law allowing terminally ill people to end their lives. Judge Daniel A. Ottolia of Riverside County Superior Court ruled on Friday that the law would remain in effect for now. But he agreed to allow the physicians to pursue their lawsuit claiming that the law lacks safeguards against abuse. (8/27)

Houston Chronicle: Texas Lawmakers Troubled By Spike In Pregnancy-Related Deaths, Committed To Tackling Problem
Key Texas lawmakers expressed alarm about the state's disturbingly high rate of pregnancy-related deaths, but hope the problem can be solved through the additional investment of $150 million the legislature made in women's health programs beginning in 2013. The Republican leaders last week downplayed the state's funding cuts in 2011 to women's health and family planning services that a national study earlier this month said might have been a factor in a dramatic spike in the maternal mortality rate the last five years. (Ackerman, 8/27)

Modern Healthcare: How One Safety Net Hospital Lowered Its Readmission Penalties 
Bellevue is a safety net hospital, the kind charged with taking care of everyone no matter how poor or sick. Such hospitals tend to see disproportionate numbers of patients who are homeless, uninsured or simply sicker because they can't afford regular medical care. As a result, safety net hospitals say, they are handicapped in not only healing these patients, but in keeping them from returning to the hospital after the initial discharge. (Whitman, 8/27)

Oakland Tribune: Danville's Bob Pack Nears Victory For California Prescription Drug Law
For more than a decade, Bob Pack has been haunting the hallways in and around the state Capitol, knocking on doors of California lawmakers, lobbyists and doctors' groups -- in the hopes that his family's tragic tale would persuade them to pass legislation that might prevent others from having to live through his nightmare. ... Now, Pack is on the verge of victory: Senate Bill 482, which would require doctors to check a database for a patient's prescription history before prescribing opioids and other potentially dangerous drugs, unanimously passed the California Assembly last week and is expected to get final clearance from the state Senate early this week before heading to Gov. Jerry Brown's desk. (Seipel, 8/26)

The Star Tribune: Allina Health Nurses Set Open-Ended Hospital Strike That Begins On Labor Day 
Nurses at five Allina Health hospitals will go on strike starting at 7 a.m. on Labor Day, their union said Friday in a mandatory 10-day notice sent to the health system. The walkout would be the second by the Allina nurses since negotiations started in February over a new three-year contract. Following a one-week strike in June, the nurses rejected a contract offer from Allina and authorized strike planning in voting last week. But negotiators with the Minnesota Nurses Association (MNA) opted to wait to set a date pending the outcome of talks that occurred Tuesday. (Olson, 8/26)

Des Moines Register: Cardinal Health Buys Iowa Telepharmacy Startup
Cardinal Health, a large provider of health care services, has purchased a four-year old Iowa startup that has focused on setting up telepharmacies across rural parts of the state. Ohio-based Cardinal health acquired TelePharm, based in Iowa City, in a deal that closed last month, representatives from both companies confirmed to the Register Friday. (Patane, 8/26)

Houston Chronicle: Merger Of Hermann And Memorial Systems Expanded Options For Patients 
A medical marriage expanded the health care options for Houstonians in 1997, when the historic Hermann Hospital merged with Memorial Healthcare System, a network of nonprofit suburban hospitals. Hermann Hospital, Houston's flagship provider of charity care, was a standalone institution in the Texas Medical Center that served as the hands-on classroom for aspiring physicians, nurses and other health professionals through its partnership with the University of Texas Medical School. (George, 8/28)

Richmond Times Dispatch: Virginia's Free Clinics 'Really Struggling' In The Face Of Growing Hurdles
The transgender community is considered an underserved population, meaning available health services are few and far between. It is just one of the many underserved communities that seek care at the dozens of free clinics across Virginia, such as Health Brigade. But the landscape for the free clinic is rapidly changing. The needs of the low-income populations they serve are becoming more demanding, and many, such as Health Brigade, see themselves as much more than clinics. (Demeria, 8/27)

NPR: Arkansas Schools College Students In Avoiding Pregnancy
Orientation at Arkansas Tech University this year included a surprising topic for a Bible Belt state that pushes abstinence-only in high school. Every freshman was shown a newly produced video in which real students talk about the struggle of an unplanned pregnancy, and the challenge of staying in school as a parent. "I lost a lot of friends," says one young woman in the video who had dreamed of becoming a surgeon. A young man says he "went from not having any responsibility to having a full-time responsibility," while another laments that Friday nights are no longer spent with friends but at home "watching Dora. A lot of Dora." (Ludden, 8/26)

Cleveland Plain Dealer: Cleveland, Like Toledo, Looks For Ways To Prevent Lead Poisoning In Kids
Toledo recently became the first city in Ohio to require rental property inspections for lead hazards in order to prevent childhood lead poisoning. Cleveland city officials say they're similarly committed to that goal, but may go about it in a different way. Toledo's City Council, encouraged by a broad community coalition, unanimously passed a "lead safe" rental inspection law that requires both visual inspections for peeling paint and tests for lead. (Dissell and Zeltner, 8/27)

Los Angeles Times: After Court Rules Against Parents, Toddler Is Taken Off Life Support
Two-year-old Israel Stinson, the curly-haired, angelic-looking toddler whose fight for life gained international attention, died Thursday after he was removed from a breathing ventilator against his parents wishes. Now, supporters of the family are questioning why a Los Angeles hospital moved so quickly to remove him from life support immediately after a judge upheld the decision. Israel’s parents, Jonee Fonseca and Nathaniel Stinson, sought an injunction Aug. 18 to prevent Children’s Hospital of Los Angeles from taking action while they rushed to make arrangements to put him in home care. (Evans, 8/26)

Des Moines Register: Students, Accreditor See Improvement At ISU Health Center
Iowa State University’s student health center saw a record number of visits during the last school year, even as officials addressed a staff shortage and a scathing review of the center by an outside consultant. “Students are a lot happier with the health center than they were years ago, or even at this point last year,” said Cole Staudt, ISU student body president. “Now that the focus on our physical health is catching up, we can focus more on mental health.” (Charis-Carlson, 8/28)

Kaiser Health News: Teaching Medical Teamwork Right From The Start
There’s a new building going up on the campus of the Cleveland Clinic. A very big building. The structure will house the new Case Western Reserve University Health Education campus, eventually including Case Western’s medical, dental and nursing schools, as well as Cleveland Clinic’s in-house medical school. “The idea is to create a ‘mini campus’ that gives each school its own identity but fosters collaboration,” said Chris Connell, one of the architects. (Rovner, 8/29)