State Highlights: Calif. Officials Continue To Search For Source Of Legionnaires’ Cases; Texas Lawmakers Fund Anti-Abortion Program

Los Angeles Times: Officials Are Still Searching For The Source Of 4 Legionnaires' Cases. Disneyland Cooling Towers Haven't Been Ruled Out
After several people in Orange County fell sick with Legionnaires’ disease in recent weeks, officials said two cooling towers at Disneyland had been linked to the outbreak. Those towers were shut down, and officials say they no longer pose a risk to park visitors. But a key question remains unanswered: How did four people who had not visited Disneyland become infected? (Karlamangla, 11/16)

Texas Tribune: State Gives Alternatives To Abortion Program $20 Million More In Funding
The Texas Legislature's budget for the next two years includes $20 million more in funding for a controversial program that seeks to discourage women from getting abortions in the state. Alternatives to Abortion uses contracted providers to offer services such as financial counseling and support groups for new parents, as well as children's items such as car seats and infant formula. (Choi, 11/16)

CT Mirror: A Hospital-Insurance Fight, And ‘A Dead Zone’ Of Care
Consumer advocates said Thursday the impact of a prolonged contract dispute between the insurer Anthem Blue Cross & Blue Shield and Hartford HealthCare, has been exacerbated by the rapid consolidation of hospitals, physician groups and clinics in Connecticut. (Pazniokas, 11/16)

The Associated Press: 4 Indicted In Multistate Health Care Fraud Case
Four people have been indicted on multiple counts of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and aggravated identity theft related to fraudulent claims filed with Medicaid programs in Georgia, Florida and Louisiana. U.S. Attorney Byung J. “BJay” Pak, in a news release Thursday, announced indictments against 42-year-old Matthew Harrell, of Atlanta; 42-year-old Nikki Richardson, of Fairburn, Georgia; 42-year-old Tomeka Howard, of Decatur, Georgia; and 42-year-old Andrea Barrett, of Virginia Beach, Virginia. (11/16)

Boston Globe: Brandeis Students Hope To Bring ‘Plan B’ Vending Machine To Campus
A student group at Brandeis University wants to install a vending machine on the school’s Waltham campus that would dispense health care products like Plan B, the emergency contraceptive used to prevent pregnancy after having unprotected sex. (Annear, 11/16)

The Philadelphia Inquirer: Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield Of New Jersey Names New CEO
Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey named Kevin P. Conlin to succeed Robert A. Marino as chief executive of New Jersey’s largest health insurer effective Jan. 1, the Newark company said Thursday. Marino has been Horizon’s president and CEO since March 2011 and chairman since March 2012. He is retiring on Dec. 31. (Brubaker, 11/16)

Miami Herald: This Doctor Signed Off On Hundreds Of Medical Tests. Treatment Wasn’t The Reason
A Miramar doctor has been sentenced in federal court for his part in a $5.5 million healthcare fraud case. ... As medical director of Chatman’s Reflections Treatment Center, Mendez should have been responsible for patient diagnosis and care. Instead, Chatman “dictated the type and frequency of different types of lab testing that would be performed based upon the kickbacks and bribes that he was receiving from different clinical laboratories,” he admitted in court documents. (Neal, 11/16)

San Jose Mercury News: Santa Clara County Reports Its First Flu Death Of The Season
A Santa Clara County adult under age 65 is the first flu-related death reported in the county this flu season, public health officials announced Thursday. The victim, who died earlier this month, had not received this year’s flu vaccine and suffered from other medical conditions that placed the person at greater risk of severe complications from the flu, Santa Clara County health officials said. (Seipel, 11/16)

Richmond Times-Dispatch: Study Shows Cost Of Long-Term Care Continues To Rise Nationally And In Virginia
The cost of long-term care such as nursing homes or at-home care continued to rise both nationally and in Virginia from 2016 to 2017, one recent survey showed. The national, median cost of long-term care services increased an average of 4.5 percent from 2016 to 2017, with the national median, annual cost for a private room in a nursing home reaching $97,455, according to research conducted by Henrico County-based insurance company Genworth Financial Inc. (Reid Blackwell, 11/16)

The Baltimore Sun: Hopkins Partners With Investment Management Firm To Boost Early Stage Research
Johns Hopkins University scientists will get a $65 million infusion of funding from a Wall Street investment firm that they hope will help bring more drugs and other medical treatments to market. The investment from New York-based Deerfield Management Co. comes as government funding for scientific research continues to decline and drug companies remain cautious about which studies they choose to invest in. Many funders want proof of a drug’s potential before they invest. (McDaniels and Cohn, 11/16)

The Associated Press: Hospital Patient Escaped To Prove He Could Behave Properly
A man who acknowledges killing a woman nearly 40 years ago said he needed to plot and carry out his escape from a Hawaii psychiatric hospital to prove that he could behave properly out in the community. Randall Saito told San Francisco television station KGO-TV in an interview that the Hawaii State Hospital wouldn't give him a chance. He says every time he applied for release, officials made him "sound like a bad guy." (11/17)

Cleveland Plain Dealer: Summa Health System's Credit Rating Lowered As Revenue Strengthens
Summa Health System's recent struggles could be stabilizing, despite a downgrade by Moody's Investors Service. ... The largest employer in Summit County, Summa Health has had diminishing revenues and waning consumer confidence over the past year, triggered by a variety of factors. (Conn, 11/16)

Richmond Times-Dispatch: A Denver-Based Mobile Health Care Company Has Landed In Richmond Through A Partnership With Bon Secours
A Denver-based mobile health care company has landed in Richmond through a partnership with Bon Secours Richmond Health System. Officially launched Tuesday in Richmond, DispatchHealth sends a medical team, including nurse practitioners and physician assistants, to a patient’s home once summoned through an app, website or phone call. (O'Connor, 11/16)

Pioneer Press: What Makes Twin Cities Residents Happy? Going To The Dentist Helps, Expert Says
Dental visits and satisfying jobs help make the Twin Cities one of the happiest metro areas in the country. But poor body-mass-index scores and high smoking rates prevent it from topping the list, according to National Geographic Fellow and New York Times best-selling author Dan Buettner, a native of St. Paul. (Chavey, 11/16)

Des Moines Register: Iowa Psychiatrist Turns In Medical License Over Bill-Padding Allegations
A former Iowa psychiatrist who served prison time for padding his bills to health-insurers has surrendered his medical license. Richard L. Hauser, 68, practiced psychiatry in Grinnell, Iowa City and Pella, state and federal records show. He surrendered his license last week to settle administrative charges of unethical conduct, which were brought by the Iowa Board of Medicine. (Leys, 11/16)