State Highlights: In Wake Of Conn. Budget, Hospital Chain Plans To Cut 335 Jobs; Fallon Health To Exit Mass. Managed Care Pilot
News outlets report on health care developments in Connecticut, Massachusetts, California, Mississippi, Illinois, Indiana, Maine, New Jersey, Texas, Pennsylvania and Alabama.
The Connecticut Mirror:
Hartford HealthCare Cutting 335 Jobs, Citing State, Federal Funding Cuts
Two weeks after legislators passed a budget that hospital officials called devastating, Hartford HealthCare, the parent company of five hospitals, announced plans to eliminate about 335 positions. In a statement announcing the cuts, Jeffrey A. Flaks, Hartford HealthCare’s executive vice president and chief operating officer, cited cuts to federal and state funding for the system, which includes Hartford, Windham and Backus hospitals, MidState Medical Center and The Hospital of Central Connecticut. (Levin Becker, 6/17)
The Boston Globe:
Fallon Health To Leave State Managed Care Pilot
One of the three health insurers participating in a state pilot program to control health care costs for low-income people with disabilities is dropping out of the program for financial reasons. Fallon Health of Worcester said Wednesday that it tried to find a way to stay in the program but ultimately decided participating was “not economically sustainable.” (Dayal McCluskey, 6/17)
Los Angeles Times:
Two Deals Boosting Healthcare To Immigrants Illegally In U.S. Are OKd In Sacramento
As Gov. Jerry Brown struck a budget deal Tuesday that would offer healthcare to children in the country illegally, Sacramento County supervisors — sitting less than a mile away — also agreed to provide medical care for county residents who lack papers. Speaking of a statewide campaign for universal health coverage, Anthony Wright, executive director of the advocacy group Health Access California, said, "It was a big day for Health for All, in Sacramento and in Sacramento," referring to Capitol Hill and the county. (Karlamangla, 6/18)
Kaiser Health News:
California Law Will Allow Pharmacists To Prescribe Birth Control
Pharmacists in California will soon be able to prescribe birth control. That’s under a new state law that grants expanded authority to pharmacists. While some doctors’ groups are skeptical, lawmakers say pharmacists can fill a need for primary care providers, especially in rural areas. (Dembosky, 6/18)
The Associated Press:
Drug Maker Seeks To Overturn $38M Award To Miss.
A drug manufacturer is asking the Mississippi Supreme Court to reverse a $38.2 million judgment for the state in a Medicaid drug-pricing lawsuit. A judge ruled in Rankin County in 2011 that the pharmaceutical company, Sandoz Inc., inflated the average wholesale prices for its generic drugs. Attorney General Jim Hood says the inflated number caused Mississippi Medicaid to lose money by paying pharmacies too much. (6/17)
The Chicago Sun-Times:
State Health Workers Preparing Ad Push To Counter Rauner Blitz
A health care union is launching its own ad push in an attempt to counter Gov. Bruce Rauner’s statewide TV ad launch. The ad, called “Wrong Priorities,” features first-person testimonials from family of the elderly and disabled, who say their quality of life — and actual lifespan — improves if they’re able to stay at home. (Korecki, 6/17)
The Associated Press:
Indiana To Keep HIV Outbreak Response Center Open For 1 Year
With the largest HIV outbreak in Indiana history on the wane, a state-run community outreach center that's been in operation since late March will close next week and reopen at another location, state health officials said Wednesday. State Health Commissioner Dr. Jerome Adams said the three-days-a-week response center in the Scott County city of Austin will close June 25 but HIV testing, a needle exchange and its other services will continue at a to-be-determined site that will remain open for at least one year. (Callahan, 6/18)
The Associated Press:
'Death-With-Dignity' Bill Fails In Maine Legislature
Maine lawmakers have defeated a bill that would have allowed doctors to provide lethal doses of medication to terminally ill patients. Republican Sen. Roger Katz's bill died Tuesday because the Senate and House failed to agree on the bill. (6/17)
The Associated Press:
Lawmakers OK Bill Pardoning Underage Drinkers Who Call 911
Illinois lawmakers have approved legislation that would grant amnesty to underage drinkers who call 911 to get help. The plan would provide legal protection to the person in need of medical help and the person who called on their behalf. The legislation would also grant police officers discretion to determine whether amnesty is appropriate to the situation. (6/17)
NJ Spotlight:
State Funding Cuts Squeeze Program To Help Seniors To Continue To Live At Home
As New Jersey tries to increase the number of seniors covered by Medicaid who live in their own homes rather than nursing homes, state officials might look to a long-established program that’s succeeded in doing just that. Advocates for the Program for All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly, or PACE, see it as a model for a larger statewide effort to improve delivery of healthcare and other services to seniors. But they say the program has been hurt by state funding cuts. They’re now working with state officials to ensure that the program has a stable source of funding in the future, and expect to learn from officials tomorrow what the funding level will be for the year starting on July 1. (Kitchenman, 6/17)
The Associated Press:
Ex-Hospital Chain Exec Imprisoned In Fraud Case
The ex-chief financial officer for a Texas hospital chain has been sentenced to almost two years in federal prison after pleading guilty to lying to federal agents investigating fraud allegations against the chain. A federal judge in Tyler sentenced Joe White to 23 months in prison Wednesday. He could have received up to five years in prison for his Nov. 12 plea. White worked for Dallas-area physician Tariq Mahmood, who was sentenced in April to 11 years in federal prison after a jury found him guilty of conspiracy, identity theft and health care fraud. Mahmood made more than $1 million in fraudulent Medicare and Medicaid claims. (6/17)
The Associated Press:
County's Former Jail Health Service Agrees To $2M Settlement
The insurer for a western Pennsylvania jail’s former health care provider has agreed to a $2 million settlement in a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of an inmate who died in 2012. The parties settled Monday during a mediation session before a U.S magistrate judge in Pittsburgh. Debra and Earl Black sued Allegheny Correctional Health Services and Allegheny County in February 2013 over the death of their son, Derek Black. The lawsuit alleged that 28-year-old Black, who was jailed on drug and theft charges, got into a fight with another inmate and was denied medical treatment until it was too late to treat resulting pulmonary conditions. (6/17)
The Associated Press:
Military Training Exercise Brings Medical Care To 2 Alabama Counties
Routine medical care will be available to residents of southeastern Alabama through a program meant to train military members to provide health care during missions. Alabama Department of Economic and Community Affairs officials say residents of Barbour and Macon counties are being offered free medical, dental and eye screenings through June 25. Officials say the clinics are being hosted by the Delta Regional Authority and the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve. (6/17)
