State Highlights: Colo.’s Health Care Campaign Seeks Help From Bernie Sanders; Minn. Accused Of Segregating People With Disabilities

Kaiser Health News: Campaign For Universal Health Care In Colorado Seeks Bernie Sanders' Help
Backers of ColoradoCare — the state ballot initiative that would establish universal health care in Colorado — think they have the perfect job for former presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders. With the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia behind him, Sanders "comes to Colorado and campaigns for single-payer — and we win," said T.R. Reid, one of the architects of ColoradoCare. The initiative aims to provide every resident of Colorado with affordable health insurance. Sanders made universal coverage one of the cornerstones of his presidential bid. (Daley, 8/4)

Star Tribune: State Accused Of Segregating Minnesotans With Disabilities In Group Homes
Hundreds, and possibly thousands, of Minnesotans with disabilities are being forced to live in segregated group homes, according to a lawsuit filed Wednesday that asserts that they are cut off from mainstream society and prevented from living in communities of their choosing. In a class-action suit against the state of Minnesota, attorneys with Mid-Minnesota Legal Aid allege that the Department of Human Services maintains a "discriminatory residential service system" that funnels individuals with disabilities into nearly 3,500 group homes statewide, where they are surrounded by other people with disabilities and have little control over their daily lives, while depriving them of access to housing options that would enable them to live more independently. (Serres, 8/3)

New Hampshire Public Radio: State Supreme Court Overturns N.H. Law That Cut Aid To Parents Of Kids With Disabilities
The state supreme court has cleared the way for hundreds of low-income families to receive more financial assistance from the state. The ruling centers on a 2011 law aimed at reducing state spending by cutting funding to low-income families. That law basically said families who receive social security income - specifically families with disabled kids - were eligible for less state aid. The federal assistance was essentially counted against a family's eligibility level for help from New Hampshire. (Rodolico, 8/3)

The Tennessean: Report: Tennessee Dental Board Not Following State Law
In Tennessee, only a licensed dentist can own a dental practice. But no one at the Tennessee Board of Dentistry is following the law and ensuring dentist offices are in compliance, according to a new report from the Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury. The comptroller's office, which found several other issues with the board, said state statute is clear that the board needs to ensure dental practices don't break the law. (Boucher, 8/3)

The Seattle Times: Seattle Health-Care Startup Raises $11M, Seeks To Hire Doctors
The company, 98point6, has raised $11 million in debt financing of a larger $15 million round, according to documents filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The downtown Seattle health-care technology company’s website says it is working on “the next generation of primary care.” That’s about all the startup is saying for now. According to its LinkedIn page, it’s in “stealth mode.” (Lerman, 8/3)

St. Louis Public Radio: Researchers Find 12-Year Life Expectancy Gap In North St. Louis County
People who live in different parts of north St. Louis County may have a 12-year difference in how long they can expect to live, according to an analysis of census tracts by Virginia Commonwealth University. The school’s Center on Society and Health has released two dozen maps of life expectancy gaps in selected metro areas over the past three years. The findings in St. Louis closely mirror the results of the For the Sake of All study in 2014, which used zip code-level data to reach its conclusions. (Bouscaren, 8/3)

Bloomberg: Trinity Health Settles Church Pension Suit For $75M
Trinity Health Corp. will pay $75 million to settle class action claims that it underfunded its pension plans by improperly treating them as “church plans” exempt from federal law...The settlement requires Trinity Health to contribute $75 million among nine different pension plans within the Trinity Health umbrella, including the plan for Catholic Health East, which merged with Trinity in 2014. While this settlement is less than the $107 million deal Connecticut-based St. Francis Hospital agreed to in May, it dwarfs the $8 million settlement reached by Ascension Health and its workers in a similar case last year. (Wille, 8/3)

KQED: California Overhauling Foster Care Rates To Support Family Caregivers
After years of complaints, California is drastically changing the way it financially supports foster families. It’s a move that aims to prioritize the needs of the state’s 62,000 foster children and make it easier for grandparents ans other relatives to care for them. Starting Jan. 1, California’s foster care rates will be tied to the health and behavioral needs of each child. In the present system, the income of the home the child was removed from and whether the child was placed with relatives or non-relatives were bigger factors in determining support. (Romero, 8/3)

East Bay Times: Alameda County May Switch Health Care Provider For Jails
Alameda County appears close to cutting ties with Corizon Health, a company that has provided health care services at county jails for about two decades but has been criticized for its handling of medically vulnerable inmates. The Alameda County Board of Supervisors on Tuesday scheduled a special meeting at 10:30 a.m. Friday to vote on a new contract with California Forensics Medical Group, a company favored by the National Union of Healthcare Workers. (DeBolt, 8/3)