Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
State Highlights: Calif. Settlement On Farmworkers' Deaths; Training Doctors In Transgender Health
Los Angeles Times: Cal-OSHA Settles Farmworker Suits Over Heat-Related Deaths
The state's worker safety agency has agreed to refocus its enforcement of heat-related regulations covering farmworkers, audit those activities, and make complaints more accessible to the public as part of a settlement of two lawsuits. The agreement, announced Wednesday, settles suits brought on behalf of five farmworkers and the United Farm Workers union. They accused the California Division of Occupational Safety and Health, Cal-OSHA, of systematically neglecting its duty to enforce a 2005 law protecting outdoor workers from exposure to heat. (Mohan, 6/11)
USA Today: National Pilot Program To Train Doctors In Transgender Health
As Caitlyn Jenner's transition to a woman brings transgender issues to the public forefront, a national pilot program is launching [in Louisville, Ky.] to address this population's private struggles in the medical world. Beginning in August, the University of Louisville School of Medicine will be the pilot site for a new curriculum by the Association of American Medical Colleges that trains future doctors on the unique health care concerns of people who are transgender, gay, lesbian, bisexual, gender non-conforming or born with differences of sex development. (Ungar, 6/11)
The Associated Press: Kansas House Soundly Rejects Plan To Avert Steep Budget Cuts
Kansas faced the prospect of deep cuts to schools, prisons and other programs Thursday after the Republican-controlled House soundly rejected a proposal supported by Gov. Sam Brownback that would hike sales and cigarette taxes to close a budget deficit. In past years, legislators backed the GOP governor by slashing personal income taxes in an effort to stimulate the economy, but those policies contributed to a deficit that ballooned this year. ... [Brownback] said he and legislative allies have resisted spending cuts because the state must bolster its public pension system, cover rising Medicaid costs and meet court mandates on public school funding. (Hanna and Clayton, 6/11)
The Associated Press: Spike In Heroin Overdoses Takes Toll On Ohio Town's Psyche
The usual handwringing over the heroin problem turned into panic in this small city in May when a supercharged blue-tinted batch from Chicago sent more than 30 overdose victims to the hospital and two to the morgue in a 12-day stretch. Like many places in America, Marion — an hour’s drive north of the capital, Columbus — has gotten used to heroin. Emergency crews in the city of 37,000 have become accustomed to treating an overdose patient about once a day for the past year or so. But they were stunned when the unprecedented onslaught began on May 20. (Stacy, 6/11)
The Tennessean: Donelson Nursing Home Said To Have Endangered Residents
A Donelson nursing home has been barred from taking new patients, fined $3,000 and put under a special monitor after a series of quality care failures — some of which put residents in immediate jeopardy. Donelson Place Care and Rehabilitation Center at 2733 McCampbell Ave. failed to pass a revisit survey last month, which resulted in the June 4 punitive actions. However, the series of problems began as early as December, according to data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The nursing home is operated by Louisville-based Signature HealthCARE. (6/10)
California Healthline: Medi-Cal Autism Care May Be Lacking
Children with autism spectrum disorder who are in Medi-Cal managed care plans are not getting the care they need, according to children's health advocates. A specific autism therapy -- applied behavior analysis, known as ABA therapy -- became a Medi-Cal benefit in September 2014. But according to figures released last month by the Department of Health Care Services, as of May 5, fewer than 1,123 children have received behavioral health treatment services, which include ABA therapy. (Gorn, 6/11)
The Associated Press: State Says Many Vaccination Records At Schools Not Current
The Washington state Department of Health says that nearly 11 percent of the state’s kindergarteners don’t have up-to-date immunization information on file with their school. The agency said Thursday that the rate of missing immunization information has increased from past years. (6/11)
The Dallas Morning News: Medicare Fraud Is Often Cloaked As ‘Free’ Services For Seniors
A podiatrist and nail salon crew sweep through senior homes offering free pedicures while billing Medicare for diabetic foot surgeries. Physicians casually sign medical necessity forms for thousands of patients to get free home health care. Equipment suppliers hand out free knee braces while billing Medicare for more elaborate and expensive ones. These are just a few examples of how fraud, waste and abuse seep through America’s medical bills .... Many of these schemes offer consumers something that will not cost them anything, because their insurance will pay for it. Insurers, meanwhile, have to pay the claims within 30 days, which sometimes means a careful scrutiny won’t happen until the money is already out the door. (Landers, 6/11)
