Morning Briefing
Summaries of health policy coverage from major news organizations
State Highlights: NYC Submitted False Lead-Paint Inspections Claims; Fla. Scrubs Its Website Of Information On Troubled Nursing Homes
The Wall Street Journal: New York City Mayor Bill De Blasio Knew Of Lead-Compliance Failure
New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio has known the city’s housing authority wasn’t complying with lead-inspection regulations since last year, his office said Sunday. In a report issued last week, the city’s Department of Investigation said the New York City Housing Authority submitted false claims to the federal government showing it had conducted lead-paint inspections when the required work hadn’t been done for years. (Vilensky and Gay, 11/19)
The New York Times: 2 Housing Authority Officials Resign After False Lead Paint Reports
Amid escalating outcry over false reports filed by the city related to lead paint inspections in public housing, the de Blasio administration on Friday announced that two senior officials at the city’s Housing Authority had resigned and another had been demoted. The administration also said in an emailed statement, sent late in the afternoon, that the Housing Authority would create a department to oversee regulatory compliance and the accuracy of reports. (Goodman, 11/17)
Miami Herald: Florida Wipes Inspections Of Troubled Nursing Homes From Its Website
For many years, AHCA’s website included links to inspections of nursing homes, retirement homes and hospitals. ...The agency then began to heavily redact the reports — eliminating words such as “room” and “CPR” and “bruises” and “pain” — and rendering the inspections difficult to interpret for families trying to gauge whether a facility is suitable for a loved one. (Marbin Miller and Ostroff, 11/17)
CT Mirror: Malloy Dishes Out Legislature’s Big Mandated Cuts
Connecticut got a clearer picture of the painful cuts in the new state budget Friday when Gov. Dannel P. Malloy imposed more than $880 million in spending cuts mandated by the General Assembly. Labor cost-cutting moves, as required under last summer’s concessions deal with unionized state employees, account for the biggest chunk of those savings. (Phaneuf and Rabe Thomas, 11/17)
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Confidential Information Of 9,500 Patients At The Medical College Of Wisconsin Compromised
Confidential medical information or other personal data of 9,500 patients at the Medical College of Wisconsin was compromised by a targeted attack on the school’s email system in July, the Medical College said Friday. ...Social Security numbers of 34 patients and the bank account information of one patient were in the affected email accounts, the Medical College said. (Boulton, 11/17)
Health News Florida: Report: Florida Ranks Low When It Comes To Mental Health Care Access
In a new report, Florida gets a middle of the pack ranking overall for mental health when compared to other states and Washington D.C. But when it comes to access to medical professionals, Florida ranks near the bottom. (Miller, 11/19)
Los Angeles Times: Tijuana Cosmetic Surgery Clinic Under Scrutiny In Downey Woman’s Death
Irma Saenz told family members she was going to Tijuana for the day. But she didn't tell them what for: The 51-year-old Downey resident had scheduled a liposuction procedure at a cosmetic surgery clinic. Four days later, Saenz was in a coma when an ambulance brought her across the border, her relatives said. She died on Nov. 11, nearly two weeks later, at Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center, after her family made the decision to take her off life support. (Dibble, 11/18)
Dallas Morning News: Lawsuit Over Urine Samples Collected In Fast-Food Restrooms Heats Up Between Insurer, Lab Company
An alleged $100 million fraud lawsuit over gift cards given to people to urinate in cups at Whataburger bathrooms is heating up in federal court, with each side accusing the other of going too far. Insurance giant UnitedHealthcare alleges that Next Health, a Dallas lab testing company, paid bribes and kickbacks to doctors and other providers between 2011 and 2016 for ordering overpriced and unnecessary drug and genetic tests under the guise of a wellness study. (Krause, 11/18)
Georgia Health News: DeKalb Medical Again Faces Federal Scrutiny Over Patient Care
For the second time in four months, DeKalb Medical Center faces a federal deadline for approval of a plan of correction after a patient care problem. ...The patient, whose chief complaint was rectal bleeding, was given a dosage of medication that was much higher than the maximum recommended limit for the drug, federal officials said. (Miller, 11/19)
Sacramento Bee: They Reported Sex Harassment In State Jobs And Found ‘Retaliation Is Alive And Well’
As the topic of sexual harassment bubbles to the surface inside California state government, and lawmakers promise reforms, former workers who say they experienced such treatment paint a grim picture of how their cases were handled. Plaintiffs who have sued the state over sexual harassment describe a kind of David-and-Goliath ordeal that, in hindsight, wasn’t altogether worth the lost sleep, strained marriages, health problems, broken work relationships, harrowing interviews and fractured careers. (Lundstrom and Koseff, 11/20)
The San Diego Union-Tribune: Local Nursing Homes Agree To Pay Up To $6.9 Million To Settle Kickback And Fraud Allegations
Four San Diego nursing homes have agreed to pay up to $6.9 million to settle civil allegations that employees paid kickbacks for referrals and submitted fraudulent bills to government healthcare programs, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Thursday. The nursing homes, all owned by Los Angeles-based Brius Management Co., were accused of paying kickbacks to hospital staffers in violation of anti-kickback laws, the U.S. Attorney’s Office said in a news release. (Cook, 11/16)
Chicago Tribune: Rush University Medical Center Owes Federal Government $10.2 Million, Audit Says
The federal government says Rush University Medical Center owes it $10.2 million because of billing errors — a claim the hospital denies. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Inspector General conducted a review of Rush as part of a series of such audits on hospitals. (Schencker, 11/17)
San Jose Mercury News: California’s New Cannabis Rules: No Drone Deliveries Or Pot-Laced Shrimp
The good news was that California voters last year passed Prop. 64, legalizing recreational marijuana and opening up a multibillion-dollar market for folks making their living off of pot. The other news came this week, as state regulators released rules governing this burgeoning industry. (May and Edwards Staggs, 11/17)
