State Highlights: N.Y. To Examine Accounts Of Insurance Denied To Gay Men; Kaiser Workers In Calif. Protest Over Planned Cuts

The New York Times: New York Will Investigate Reports Of Gay Men Denied Insurance
State financial regulators in New York said Wednesday that they would investigate reports that gay men have been denied insurance policies covering life, disability or long-term care because they were taking medication to protect themselves against H.I.V. Such denials would amount to illegal discrimination based on sexual orientation, and the companies doing so could be penalized, said Maria T. Vullo, the state’s superintendent of financial services. (McNeil, 2/14)

Modern Healthcare: Kaiser Employees Launch Weekslong Protest Over Expected Cuts
Thousands of Kaiser Permanente employees across California are expected to protest over the next few weeks in response to worries that there will be layoffs and wage cuts in the near future. The protests, which began Wednesday at four Kaiser facilities, are organized by the SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West, which represents more than 55,000 Kaiser workers. The protests are expected to occur at 32 Kaiser Permanente hospitals across the state through March 9. Wednesday's protest was expected to draw hundreds of picketers. (Castellucci, 2/14)

The Baltimore Sun: New President Appointed To Lead Baltimore Hospital Where Woman Was Put Outside In Gown
The University of Maryland Medical Center is moving to tighten control of its Midtown Campus, a month after a patient there was found outside the emergency room in frigid temperatures wearing just a gown. Video of hospital staff putting the 22-year-old woman out went viral, stoking national outrage and sparking discussion of the practice known as patient dumping. (McDaniels, 2/12)

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Lawmakers Vote To Make It Harder For State Workers To Get Abortions
Assembly Bill 128 would prevent the state from providing insurance plans that cover abortion, except in cases of rape, incest or to preserve the life of the mother. The provision would also apply to local governments that get their insurance through the state Group Insurance Board. (Stein, 2/14)

Reuters: Illinois Governor Takes Aim At Pensions, Healthcare Costs In Budget
Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner proposed a $75 billion fiscal 2019 budget on Wednesday that would be balanced if lawmakers agree to push some big-ticket costs onto local school districts and universities. The budget for the fiscal year starting July 1, which includes $37.6 billion in general fund spending, would save money by phasing out state funding for certain pension costs. (Pierog, 2/14)

Sacramento Bee: New Bill Seeks To Put An End To 'Patient Dumping' In California
Hospitals would be required to get written confirmation from homeless shelters before discharging patients to those facilities under a bill introduced Wednesday in the California State Senate. The bill, carried by Sen. Ed Hernandez, D-Azusa, is designed to curb the practice known as hospital patient “dumping,” or discharging poor people to the streets, shelters or other agencies incapable of caring for them. (Hubert, 2/15)

Boston Globe: State Formally Signs Off On Merger Between Mass. Eye And Ear, Partners HealthCare
State public health officials Wednesday formally approved Partners HealthCare’s acquisition of Massachusetts Eye and Ear, capping a monthslong public debate about whether the deal would significantly raise costs for consumers. The unanimous vote from the Public Health Council, which is chaired by the Baker administration’s public health commissioner, Dr. Monica Bharel, means Partners and Mass. Eye and Ear now can finalize the deal they proposed more than a year ago. (Dayal McCluskey, 2/14)

The Oregonian: Cancer Risk Doubles In Industry-Backed Toxic Air Plan For Oregon
For nearly the last two years, state regulators, scientists, advocates and businesses interests have met in public to come up with a plan to cut toxic air pollution statewide. But before it can be adopted, the state Legislature is stepping in with its own plan, crafted in secret and backed by industry. (Davis, 2/14)

North Carolina Health News: NC’s Older Population Burgeons, While Services Lag, Legislators Hear At Panel
That’s the average break that a North Carolinian looking after someone with dementia gets under Project CARE, a state-funded respite program found in 94 counties. Using a Project CARE voucher for a fill-in by another person, an adult day care, a home care agency or other program, the caregiver can get out of the house for shopping, errands, banking or even a little alone time. More than 80 percent of people using the service receive one $500 voucher annually, paying for professional services at about $20 an hour, or a friend or family member at $10 or so. (Goldsmith, 2/14)

Boston Globe: Suspended Head Of Health Care Workers Union Reportedly Engaged In Lewd Behavior
As a top executive at an organization that fights for workers’ rights, Tyrék D. Lee Sr. allegedly made unwanted advances to women in the office and sometimes engaged in lewd behavior in front of colleagues, according to several people with knowledge of his behavior. Lee was suspended from his job at the state’s largest health care workers union in December amid allegations of inappropriate conduct, the Globe previously reported. (Dayal McCluskey, 2/14)

Austin American-Statesman: Audit Praises Central Health But Leaves Dell Question Unresolved
Central Health commissioned the two-part, $350,000 review last spring amid calls from critics for an independent assessment of whether its contribution of $35 million a year to the University of Texas’ Dell Medical School is an appropriate use of tax dollars. The public debate over that subject has been a thorn in the agency’s side since 2012, when voters approved a proposition to raise taxes to support the school. (Goldenstein, 2/14)

North Carolina Health News: Transport For Older People Tied To Health
Residents of the Wood Spring Apartments in Fuquay-Varina have cut a walking path across a field to a shopping center with a Food Lion, a pharmacy and a couple of restaurants. Now the people who live at the building serving people 55-and-older would like to see a bus stop at the center for the trips they regularly need to take to the wider world. That’s the word from Sharon Peterson, who works in the Wake County Planning Office, based on conversations with residents about their need for transportation, a concern that often shows up as a top priority for seniors. (Goldsmith, 2/13)

Texas Tribune: Texas Prison System Stalls Release Of Public Information On Executions
After death penalty defense lawyers claimed the state’s first two executions of the year were botched because of old lethal injection drugs, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice has stalled the release of public information regarding the state’s supply of lethal doses. Without providing a reason, the department told a Texas Tribune reporter last week that it would take an estimated 20 business days — until the day before the state’s next scheduled execution — to provide information on how many lethal doses the state has and when they expire. (McCullough, 2/15)

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Meriter Hospital Employee Suspended After Injuries To Newborns
An employee at Meriter hospital in Madison has been suspended amid a police investigation into unexplained injuries to infants in the hospital's Newborn Intensive Care Unit, a hospital official confirmed Wednesday. Officials at the hospital reported the injuries last week, according to Madison police, who added that the case is being investigated by their Special Victims Unit. (Garza, 2/14)

New Orleans Times-Picayune: 75-Year-Old 'Kingpin Granny' Arrested In Drug Investigation: Report
A 75-year-old woman dubbed "Kingpin Granny" by authorities was arrested after more than 1,000 illegally-obtained prescription pills and cash were seized at her Parsons, Tenn., home, according to WVNS-TV. Betty Jordan was taken into custody Feb. 9 by the Decatur County Sheriff's Office following a "lengthy investigation" into illegal prescription drug sales, the department said. Investigators accused Jordan of distributing morphine, oxycodone and Xanex. (Hunter, 2/14)