State Highlights: Data Breaches In Mass., Ore.; Hospitals In Fla. Agree To Settlement Over Medicare Fraud Allegations

The Boston Globe: Partners Data Breach Affects 3,300 Patients
Hackers may have accessed medical and personal information, including Social Security numbers, about 3,300 patients at Partners HealthCare, the health system said Thursday. The breach happened when some Partners employees responded to phishing e-mails, which allowed unauthorized access to their e-mail accounts. Some of the e-mails contained private patient information, including Social Security numbers, addresses, phone numbers, and information about medical treatments and health insurance. (Dayal McCluskey, 4/30)

The Oregonian: Oregon Health Insurer's Data Breach Alert Misfires, Sparks Do-Over
On Wednesday Sherwood residents Lester and Nora Brock were surprised to learn that personal data entrusted with their health insurer, Oregon's Health CO-OP, might be compromised. Even more surprising? They learned this not from a letter addressed to them, but from five different letters addressed to other people – each in separate envelopes delivered to the Brocks' address. (Budnick, 4/30)

The Wall Street Journal: Florida Hospitals Agree To Settle Medicare-Fraud Allegations
Nine hospitals in the Jacksonville, Fla., area and a local ambulance company agreed to pay a total of $7.5 million to settle civil allegations that they defrauded Medicare with ambulance rides that were medically unnecessary. The case could have national implications, federal prosecutors say, because hospitals around the country often rely on ambulances to ferry patients to and from their facilities, at times with little regard for the cost or medical need. (Carryrou, 4/30)

The Connecticut Mirror: Will Lawmakers Take Action On Changing Health Care Landscape?
There’s still a budget to settle, but to Senate Minority Leader Len Fasano, the sense of urgency as the legislative session approaches its final weeks lies in addressing the state’s health care landscape, particularly the growth of large health systems that control multiple hospitals and physician practices. At stake, he said, are health care costs, consolidation, concentrated market power and hospital closures. (Levin Becker, 5/1)

The Oregonian: Some Oregonians Could Face Major Health Insurance Rate Hikes Next Year
Oregon's health insurers are already submitting proposed rates for 2016, and some consumers could be in for a shock. (Budnick, 4/30)

Texas Tribune: Study: Texas' Rate Of Uninsured Falls
The rate of Texans without health insurance has fallen 8 percentage points since enrollment in the federal Affordable Care Act began, according to a new study. ... But Texas remains the state with the highest percentage of uninsured people, the study found, and for the first time, the state has the largest raw number of uninsured residents in the country. (Walters, 4/30)

Pioneer Press: House GOP, DFL Split Over Expected Savings From Fraud In Health Bill
It's the $285 million question: how much waste, fraud and abuse is there in Minnesota's public health programs? In a health and human services budget passed 72-60 early Wednesday morning, House Republicans bank on $300 million in savings from a concerted crackdown on waste in Medicaid and other programs -- and believe the actual savings could be even higher. But an analysis prepared by the Department of Human Services and trumpeted by DFL lawmakers has a much lower savings estimate: $16.5 million in the next biennium. (Montgomery, 4/29)

Forum News Service: Rochester OKs 'Destination Medical Center' Projects
The board members of the Destination Medical Center group approved Thursday two new projects: construction of a Hilton hotel with special amenities tailored for medical clientele and the purchase of Chateau Theatre in downtown Rochester, [Minn.]. The four-star hotel will stand 23 stories tall on the corner of Broadway and Center Street. Developers said construction will start within weeks, and will have unique features like places for in-building blood draws for patients of nearby Mayo Clinic. (Jeffries, 4/30)

The Associated Press: Rural Hospitals Struggle To Stay Open, Adapt To Changes
After 45 years of providing health care in rural western Missouri, Sac-Osage Hospital is being sold piece by piece. ... Sac-Osage is one of a growing number of rural U.S. hospitals closing their doors, citing a complex combination of changing demographics, medical practices, management decisions and federal policies that have put more financial pressure on facilities that sometimes average only a few in-patients a day. (Lieb, 5/1)

The Associated Press: Q&A: Why Have Rural Hospitals Been Closing?
There are more than 4,700 hospitals in the U.S, spread about evenly between urban and rural areas. But that number has been dwindling. More than 100 hospitals have closed since 2010, and the pace has quickened in the past couple of years. Hospitals are closing at about the same rate in urban and rural areas, but health care analysts say the effect often is more pronounced in small towns, where residents typically must travel farther to get to the next nearest hospital. (Lieb, 5/1)

Texas Tribune: Teladoc Files Antitrust Suit Against Medical Board
In just over a month, a new state rule is set to kick in that could undercut the business model of Dallas-based Teladoc, a rapidly growing telemedicine company that connects patients and doctors over the telephone and internet. With the clock ticking, the company is brandishing every weapon in its arsenal, deploying teams of lobbyists and lawyers to fight a Texas Medical Board rule change that it says is more about stifling competition than protecting patient health. The board's rule, set to start June 3, would prevent doctors from treating people over the phone — making a diagnosis or prescribing medicine — unless another medical professional was physically present to examine the patient. (Walters, 4/30)

The Des Moines Register: Stalled Medical Marijuana Bill Causes Acrimony At Iowa Capitol
A debate over medical marijuana legislation is getting acrimonious at the Iowa Capitol, and is even spilling over into a fight over anti-abortion legislation. ... The bill would allow Iowans with a range of health problems to obtain medical marijuana. Those conditions could include cancer, multiple sclerosis, Crohn's disease, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other chronic and debilitating ailments. (Petroski, 4/30)

Providence Journal: Raimondo's Medicaid Group Unveils Proposed Cuts
After being brought together just nine weeks ago, Governor Raimondo's Reinventing Medicaid working group released a report on Thursday that, at the governor's request, offers recommendations on cutting $91 million in state spending on the health care program for people of low incomes. The two biggest cuts in the report, which the governor has already included in her 2016 budget proposal, would hit hospitals and nursing homes. These include cutting Medicaid payments to hospitals by 5 percent, saving the state $15.7 million, and 3 percent to nursing homes, for $13.3 million in savings. (Salit, 4/30)

NPR: Indiana Battles HIV Outbreak Linked To Intravenous Drug Use
Poverty, administrative red tape and politics stand in the way as the number of confirmed cases continues to climb. Health policy experts are calling for a needle-exchange program to be expanded. (Harrington, 5/1)