State Highlights: Fla., Calif. Tackle Surprise Bills; Birth Control Available Over The Counter In Calif.; D.C. Private Ambulances Hit Streets

Modern Healthcare: Florida And California Move To Shield Consumers From Surprise Medical Bills
Florida is poised to become the second big state after New York to shield patients from surprise out-of-network medical bills, and California may not be far behind if lawmakers there can cinch a similar deal with physicians. The issue has caught fire around the country, with even health professionals facing the personal experience of unexpected bills for hundreds or thousands of dollars. Consumers Union reported last year that among people who had emergency department visits, hospitalizations or operations in the previous two years, 37% received a bill for which their health plan paid less than expected; among those who received a surprise bill, nearly 1 out of 4 got a bill from a doctor they did not expect to get a bill from. (Meyer, 4/8)

The San Jose Mercury News: California Pharmacists Can Now Provide Birth Control To Women
Women in California no longer need their ob-gyn to prescribe the pill, the patch or other popular forms of birth control. As of Friday, a visit to the pharmacist will do. (Seipel, 4/8)

Los Angeles Times: Doubts Remain As California Allows Girls And Women To Get More Birth Control Without A Prescription
As of Friday, girls and women in California can pick up hormonal contraceptives, including pills and patches, at pharmacies without first visiting a doctor. Supporters of the change say that requiring an annual doctor’s visit creates unnecessary barriers to contraception and that easing access could reduce unintended pregnancies. ... Many people are raising questions about the new system, in which females of any age in California no longer need a doctor’s prescription to get certain types of birth control. California becomes just the third state to allow women to obtain hormonal birth control directly from a pharmacist, though many more are currently considering similar legislation. (Karlamangla, 4/8)

The Washington Post: Private Ambulances Deployed To Ease The District’s 911 Burden
Late last month, the District began using the commercial service to transport patients with less-serious symptoms. The new system is intended to free up city medics and ambulances for more dire cases and ease the strain on a department that has struggled to handle a growing number of medical calls. City paramedics or firefighters still respond to each 911 call and assess each patient’s condition. In the more serious cases, they transport patients as usual. During the first week, 2,135 people were taken to hospitals; 678 were transported by the private service, or about 32 percent of the overall cases. They represent about half of the patients with less-serious conditions. (Williams, 4/10)

The Columbus Dispatch: Abortion War Returning To Ohio Statehouse
After a string of legislative victories in Ohio, including passage of a bill blocking tax money from Planned Parenthood, abortion opponents this spring are pushing more restrictions on women seeking an abortion. (Candisky, 4/11)

The Associated Press: Maine To Get $6M To Help Expand Home Visits For Moms, Kids
The federal Health Resources and Services Administration is giving nearly $6 million to Maine in support of home visits for mothers and infants. The agency says the money will help the state expand voluntary home visiting services to women during pregnancy and to parents with children up to kindergarten age. (4/10)

The Des Moines Register: VA's Private-Care Program Is 'A Quagmire'
It’s hard to say which irritates Vietnam War veteran Martin Wines more — his chronic, itchy skin condition or the government’s botched attempt to help him get it treated. The Des Moines veteran says regular sessions in a special ultraviolet light booth are the only thing that provides relief from the scaling and itching of his severe eczema. The local Department of Veterans Affairs hospital doesn’t have such a booth, so a VA dermatologist referred him several years ago to Iowa Methodist Medical Center for treatment. (Leys, 4/10)

The Denver Post: Colorado's Proposed Universal Healthcare Would Be Bigger Than McDonald's, Report Says
An independent analysis of Colorado's proposed universal health care system estimates it would cover 83 percent of residents and create a massive new entity that would dwarf most U.S. corporations. (Olinger, 4/9)

The Idaho Statesman: Idaho Kidney Patients Trapped Between Insurer, Dialysis Companies
Debbie Birch’s kidneys failed last year. That made her one of more than 2,000 people in Idaho who regularly need dialysis, using a machine to filter their blood when their kidneys no longer do the job. But the 63-year-old woman is now caught in a rift between a national dialysis company and her health insurer. No dialysis centers within driving distance of Birch’s home in Caldwell will take her insurance plan, the Bronze Choice plan sold on Idaho’s exchange. (Dutton, 4/9)

The Baltimore Sun: Mid-Atlantic Health Care Plans An 80-Bed Skilled Nursing Center On Downtown's West Side
Mid-Atlantic Health Care plans to convert a largely vacant building in downtown Baltimore into a $20 million skilled nursing facility with 80 beds where frail, elderly residents could go for rehabilitation after a hospital stay. (Mirabella, 4/8)

The Associated Press: Nonprofit Focuses On Keeping Alzheimer's Sufferers Home
A St. Louis nonprofit is helping people with Alzheimer's disease stay in their homes longer, which its founder says benefits patients while saving taxpayers money that would otherwise go toward paying for nursing home care. (4/10)

The Arizona Republic: Advocates Renew Legislative Fight To Restore Kids Health Insurance
Children's advocates are calling on lawmakers to revive the KidsCare program as part of ongoing state budget negotiations, hoping to break an impasse in legislative efforts to restore health-insurance coverage for children in low-income families. (Alltucker, 4/9)

The St. Louis Post-Dispatch: Missouri Denies Medical License To Doctor Convicted In Fraud Case
The board that regulates Missouri physicians has denied a medical license to a St. Louis-area doctor who has twice been sentenced to federal prison. The Missouri Board of Registration for the Healing Arts found that Rajitha Johnson, 56, formerly Rajitha Goli, did not present satisfactory evidence of “good moral character. (Kohler, 4/9)

Bucks County Courier Times: Turning To Technology When Nature Isn't Enough For Pregnancy
Danette Peeples felt broken. For more than two years, she looked at women who were pregnant and thought: "Why can't this happen to me?" Though she had one child, the Hatboro resident wanted a sibling for her young son. After two years of trying, she began to lose hope — until a friend told her about the changes that have occurred in reproductive technology. (Callahan, 4/9)

The Arizona Republic: Health Insurance No Guarantee Of Lower Bills For Some Patients
More than a dozen former patients have been sued by Medical Society Business Services Inc., also known as the Bureau of Medical Economics. The surgeons’ collection agency has filed its lawsuits after collecting payments from patients’ insurers that were less than the full amount sought by the medical practice, court records show. (Alltucker, 4/10)