Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
State Highlights: Health Data From 3 Medi-Cal Providers Faced Security Risks; Conn. Legislators OK Budget Cuts With Big Hit For Hospitals' Medicaid Funding
The Associated Press: Report: 3 California Health Organizations Had Data Risks
Three Medi-Cal health providers risked having data stolen on thousands of patients because of security problems ranging from outdated anti-virus software to retaining the computer passwords of fired workers, according to a federal study released Tuesday. The Department of Health and Human Services reviewed information system controls for three managed-care organizations from 2012 to 2015 and found 74 potentially high-risk vulnerabilities, according to a report from the inspector general's office. (Jablon, 12/8)
The Wall Street Journal: Connecticut Legislature Approves Budget Cuts
Lawmakers in Connecticut on Tuesday approved a $350 million plan to address a shortfall in the state’s budget. ... Medicaid funding for hospitals took the biggest hit with a $34.2 million reduction. The Department of Developmental Services had cuts of $4.3 million and the Department of Correction $8.6 million. (De Avila, 12/8)
The Connecticut Mirror: Bill Closing Deficit, Cutting Business Taxes Heads To Malloy
The House of Representatives gave final legislative approval to a bill Tuesday night that closes the current budget deficit, mitigates bigger problems in the future, offers modest tax relief to businesses and restores a portion of funds cut this fall from hospitals and social services. (Phaneuf and Levin Becker, 12/8)
Georgia Health News: Network Deal OKs Bonuses For Pediatric Performance
A pediatric network has inked its first major contract with a health insurer that will pay the doctors based on incentives in meeting quality-of-care standards. The Children’s Care Network, which has more than 1,100 pediatricians in Georgia, has signed a two-year agreement with WellCare Health Plans that will include bonus pay if the provider organization achieves improvements on medical quality standards in its care for children. (Miller, 12/8)
Kaiser Health News: Drug Cocktails Fuel Massachusetts’ Overdose Crisis
In a brick plaza next to the Chelsea, Massachusetts city hall, Anthony, a bald but still-youthful man in grey sweats, tells me he spent the previous night in the hospital for what he says was his twelfth overdose. Anthony and other users of illegal drugs agreed to speak to NPR for this story on the condition that we use only their first names. He blames his overdose on what his dealer told him was a particularly strong bag of heroin laced with Fentanyl — or something like it. (Bebinger, 12/9)
St. Louis Public Radio: Health Clinics At Metro Stops? Researchers Take A Look
Two Metro passes and a flu shot, please. The parent company of Metro Transit St. Louis is looking into the possibility of building health clinics at Metro stops, particularly in north St. Louis County. Project manager John Wagner says the concept makes sense; transit stops are easy to get to, there’s parking and they get a lot of foot traffic. The Missouri Foundation for Health has awarded a $41,900 grant to the Bi-State Development Agency, of which Metro is a part, so its research arm can conduct a feasibility study for the concept. Wagner says he is looking into which stops would work best, where funding could come from and what services would be provided. (Bouscaren, 12/7)
Stateline: State, Local Officials Push Manufacturers To Pay For Drug Disposal
Each month Monty Scheele, a pharmacist in Lincoln, Nebraska, sends a big box of unused medications to be incinerated. He collects the drugs at his three pharmacies from customers who may be cleaning out their medicine cabinets or abandoning a prescription after an adverse reaction. His effort is part of a program using state funds to keep medications from polluting water supplies and out of the hands of people who might misuse them. But drug disposal is expensive — the Nebraska program spends $10 per pound to ship and destroy medication — and some states and municipalities want drug companies to pick up the tab. (Breitenbach, 12/4)
Health News Florida: WellCare Fires Chief Medical Officer
Tampa-based WellCare Health Plans Inc. announced Monday it is terminating Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer Steven Goldberg, according to a document filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. WellCare said Goldberg, who has been with WellCare since since July 2013, is as of Monday no longer an executive officer of the company. (10/8)
Health News Florida: Supreme Court Cancels Medical Pot Arguments
Oral arguments over a petition to put medical marijuana in the constitution was canceled by the Florida Supreme Court Monday. The Court is examining if a medical marijuana constitutional amendment is clear enough to be put on the ballot. Attorney General Pam Bondi’s office said in a statement it didn’t challenge the current amendment, but is concerned the ballot would expand the use of marijuana in Florida, particularly among youth. (Aboraya, 12/8)
