State Highlights: Ill. Weighs In On Aetna-Humana Merger; Allina Proposes New Terms To Minn. Nurses; Calif. Hits HIV Targets Early

Reuters: Illinois Insurance Regulator Approves Aetna Purchase Of Humana
The Illinois Department of Insurance has approved Aetna Inc's proposed $34 billion acquisition of Humana Inc provided it is approved by the U.S. Department of Justice, according to an order dated June 23 posted on the department's website. Aetna announced the deal last summer and it is under review by the Justice Department, which is looking at competition concerns around its combined Medicare Advantage business for older people and the disabled. (Humer, 6/27)

The Associated Press: Allina Health Offers New Contract Proposal To Union Nurses
Allina Health says it's offering a new contract proposal to its union nurses who staff five hospitals in the Twin Cities area. The company has asked the Minnesota Nurses Association to come back to the bargaining table. The union said Monday it will review the proposal. The nurses returned to work Sunday following a seven-day strike. (6/27)

KQED: California Surpasses National HIV Target — 6 Years Early
State health officials say California has passed a major goal in fighting HIV/AIDS: more than 90 percent of people living with the virus have been diagnosed, a necessary first step in treatment. The state accomplished this goal six years ahead of the target 2020 set in the National HIV/AIDS Strategy, established by the White House. Data released Monday from 2014 shows 91 percent of Californians with HIV had been diagnosed. (Aliferis, 6/27)

The Boston Globe: At Brigham, A Day Of Relief Tinged With Bitterness
Brigham and Women’s Hospital started returning to its regular routine on Monday, a day of relief tinged with lingering bitterness, after a threatened nurses strike was averted over the weekend. The Boston hospital is admitting patients, ramping up surgeries, and rescheduling canceled appointments now that a tentative new contract with the Massachusetts Nurses Association has been hammered out. (Dayal McCluskey, 6/27)

The Baltimore Sun: Maryland Hospitals Launch Effort To Inform Consumers On Changing Landscape
Hospitals in Maryland are changing the way they deliver care, focusing more on coordinating services and preventing complications...Called A Breath of Fresh Care, the campaign’s goal is to get patients to engage in their care by directing them to hospital wellness and chronic disease management initiatives, as well as information on interacting with providers or even the process of registering a complaint. (Cohn, 6/28)

The Baltimore Sun: Maryland Doctors Perform Kidney Transplant With No Dialysis
Doctors at the University of Maryland Medical Center were able to perform a kidney transplant on a patient with no need for dialysis — a feat they said was the first type of procedure in the country. (McDaniels, 6/27)

Wyoming Public Radio: Northern Arapaho Tribe Takes Over Its Health Clinic
Northern Arapaho officials on the Wind River Indian Reservation in Wyoming say they've experienced some bumps since the tribe took over management of their federal health clinic earlier this year. The Northern Arapaho Tribe has been working for many years to get full management of their health care system. In January, they finally took over for the Indian Health Services. Tribal Administrator Vonda Wells says the federal government has controlled the tribe’s health system since they were placed on the Wind River Reservation in the late 1800’s. (Edwards, 6/27)

California Healthline: Old Motels Get New Life Helping Homeless Heal
Just up the freeway from Disneyland, in the Orange County city of Buena Park, Paul Leon stood outside the beat-up remnant of a seedy motel. Above him, a faded pink sign advertised the Coral Motel, whose rooms back in its prime cost 35 bucks a night. “This particular motel was going to be taken back by the city of Buena Park, because of the drugs, alcohol, prostitution,” Leon explained. But Leon, CEO of the Irvine-based Illumination Foundation, a homeless services nonprofit, had a different idea. He proposed turning the motel lobby into a triage center and converting the rooms into clean recovery facilities for homeless people recently discharged from the hospital. And that’s what he did. (Gorn, 6/28)

San Francisco Chronicle: Oakland Council Votes To Block Coal-Shipping Plan
The Oakland City Council voted unanimously Monday to block the handling and storage of coal in Oakland, effectively halting a developer’s controversial plan to ship coal from the port. Hundreds of people crowded City Hall — and demonstrated outside — as seven council members weighed the proposal by Mayor Libby Schaaf and Councilman Dan Kalb to bar coal and petroleum coke from Oakland. Schaaf and Kalb advocated for their measure by arguing that these fossil fuels pollute the air and pose serious risks to workers and nearby residents. (Swan, 6/27)

Austin Statesman: Doctor Answers 6 Questions About Flesh-Eating Bacteria
Adrian Ruiz’s family was shocked to learn last week that the 42-year-old Texas man had become infected with a flesh-eating bacteria — and risked losing his leg — after returning from a fishing trip in Rockport and visiting the beach in Corpus Christi during Father’s Day weekend. ... Dr. A. Scott Lea, a professor of internal medicine and infectious diseases at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, spoke with the Austin American-Statesman about Vibrio vulnificus to answer some questions about the bacteria. (Hall, 6/28)

The California Health Report: Chronic Funding Shortfalls Frustrate County Coroners
In a refrigerated crypt at the Los Angeles County Coroner-Medical Examiner’s headquarters, the bodies lie awaiting examination on the shelves of metal racks, similar to what you might find in a Home Depot. The coroner’s office is responsible for investigating violent and unusual death. With up to 80,000 deaths in Los Angeles County annually, about 20,000 are reported each year to the medical examiner’s office. The department examines from 8,000 to 9,000 bodies a year, records show. (Richard, 6/28)