State Highlights: Texas Gov. OKs Proposal To Keep Planned Parenthood Out Of Cancer Program; In Mass., Neighborhood Health Plan Pushes Into New Market

The Texas Tribune: Abbott OKs Ousting Planned Parenthood From Cancer Program
A months-long effort to keep Republicans from pushing Planned Parenthood out of a state cancer screening program for low-income women ended in defeat on Saturday when Republican Gov. Greg Abbott signed off on the proposal. By approving the two-year state budget, Abbott green-lit a provision that will prevent Planned Parenthood from participating in the joint state-federal Breast and Cervical Cancer Services program, which provides cancer screening for poor, uninsured women in Texas. The governor’s endorsement of the provision, which was expected, came as Planned Parenthood leaders vowed to maintain their presence in Texas despite lawmakers’ efforts to cut their funding. (Ura, 6/20)

The Boston Globe: Neighborhood Health Plan Seeking To Gain Business Customers
Neighborhood Health Plan is looking to move into a new neighborhood. The nonprofit insurer, best known for managing the care of low-income people on Medicaid, is accelerating a push into the market for large businesses. The expansion plan is part of an effort by the company, an arm of Partners HealthCare, to rebuild its finances after losing more than $100 million last year. (Dayal McCluskey, 6/21)

Wyoming Public Media: Without Medicaid Expansion Lawmakers Try To Help Hospitals
Earlier this year when the legislature voted down Medicaid expansion, lawmakers realized that some hospitals were struggling to make up for the fact that some people cannot afford to pay their medical bills. So after a lot of discussion, they provided roughly three million dollars to be spread among the smaller rural hospitals. But some thought that was not enough, so two legislative committees are looking into what else can be done to help. (Beck, 6/19)

The Associated Press: Florida's Battle Over Health Care Likely To Return In 2016
A bruising budget battle that divided Republicans in the Florida Legislature is over for now, but the truce is likely only to last a few months. Legislators passed a nearly $79 billion budget Friday with just days to spare. Legislators had until July 1 to pass a budget or state government would have been partially shut down. They didn't pass a budget during their regular session because they were divided over health care spending. That sparked a stalemate — and finger-pointing will remain when legislators return for their 2016 session. (Fineout, 6/20)

Reuters: Florida Lawmakers Pass $78 Billion State Budget
Florida legislators wrapped up a rancorous special session on Friday with passage of a $78 billion state budget, narrowly avoiding a state government shutdown at the end of the month. ... A standoff between the Republican-controlled House and Senate over expanding Medicaid coverage to serve about 800,000 working poor Floridians caused the state's regular 60-day session to end in disarray on April 28. Medicaid is a government health insurance program for the poor. ... Without a budget for the fiscal year starting July 1, lawmakers reconvened on June 1 and worked out compromises to fund a "low-income pool" of local, state and federal money to reimburse hospitals for care of the uninsured poor. The Senate sought again to expand Medicaid eligibility, but the House held firm. (Cotterell, 6/19)

The Washington Post: Another Locality Is Poised To Require Paid Sick Leave, Just As Obama Asked
The Montgomery County Council is poised to pass legislation next week requiring employers to provide workers at least seven days a year of paid sick leave, joining other state and local governments — including the District’s — in approving a benefit that has stalled at the federal level. Nearly 40 percent of the nation’s private-sector employees, many in lower-paid service industries, have no paid sick leave, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Advocates say that means workers risk losing pay to stay home when they are ill or need to care for a sick child or relative. (Turque, 6/19)

The Dallas Morning News: Medical Fraud Is Easy, Texas Case Shows — But Recouping The Cash Isn't
Joe White didn’t use elaborate methods to bilk a federal stimulus program: He simply lied on application forms. But getting back the nearly $18 million in tax money that the feds plowed into the rural Texas hospital chain he managed won’t be so easy. It may be impossible, if his meager bank accounts and the government’s difficulties in collecting criminal debts are any indication. (Moffeit, 6/21)

The San Jose Mercury News: California Bill Gives Terminally Ill Patients Right To Try Experimental Drugs
The so-called Right To Try legislation would allow terminally ill patients who have exhausted all other options the opportunity to try experimental drugs, products or devices that have not been approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. ... Yet some experts warn that providing unregulated treatments for those desperately searching for ways to extend their lives is not only taking advantage of their emotional state but could also harm dying patients. Others call it merely a symbolic gesture, saying drug manufacturers are unlikely to voluntarily participate outside of an existing FDA program that provides expanded access to experimental drugs, and health insurers are unlikely to cover the costs. (Seipel, 6/21)

North Carolina Health News: Yadkin County Hospital Operator Found In Contempt Of Court
A federal judge for the Eastern District of North Carolina ruled on Tuesday that HMC/CAH Consolidated Inc., which formerly operated the Yadkin Valley Community Hospital, was in contempt for closing the 22-bed hospital when a temporary restraining order to keep it open was in effect. The judge ordered HMC/CAH to pay damages to Yadkin County for expenses the county has incurred that include the cost of additional emergency services from the day the hospital closed until it reopens. The county must submit to Judge Terrance Boyle a plan to reopen the hospital and an assessment of the damages. (Sisk, 6/22)

Kaiser Health News: Getting A Medi-Cal Card Doesn’t Always Guarantee Health Care
In an effort to control costs in its rapidly expanding Medi-Cal program, California has relied heavily on managed care insurance companies to treat patients like Anderson. The state pays insurers a fixed amount per enrollee and expects the companies to provide access to doctors and comprehensive care. But a scathing state audit released last Tuesday shows that California is failing to make sure those plans deliver. Like Anderson, many enrollees have insurance cards but often have trouble getting in to see doctors. (Gorman, 6/22)

The Dallas Morning News: What Dallas Pays For Health Care
List prices at hospitals and physician’s offices are usually not good indicators of what insurers and consumers actually pay. The Health Care Cost Institute, using anonymous data from over 40 million patients provided by large private insurance companies, has compiled the average total cost for 78 types of care at Guroo.com. (Landers, 6/19)

The Associated Press: Court Declines To Overturn Government's Use Of Tobacco Funds
Pennsylvania's highest court ruled Friday that a lawsuit over the use of tobacco settlement money to balance the state budget was brought by people who did not have standing. The Supreme Court ruled unanimously for the governor and legislative leaders and against those who wanted the tobacco money used for two health care related programs, reversing a lower court. The decision involves whether the state's revenues from a landmark 1998 settlement with tobacco companies had to go to adultBasic and Medicaid for disabled workers. The court said a provision in the state's 2001 Tobacco Settlement Act gave state policymakers flexibility in how the funds are used. (Scolforo, 6/19)

The Associated Press: Hawaii Governor Signs First-Of-Kind State Smoking Age Bill
Hawaii's governor has signed a bill to make his state the first to raise the legal smoking age to 21. The measure aims to prevent adolescents from smoking, buying or possessing both traditional and electronic cigarettes. Gov. David Ige signed it into law Friday. Dozens of local governments have similar bans, including Hawaii County and New York City. (Bussewitz, 6/21)

The Miami Herlad: Planned Expansion At Miami Jewish Health Systems Will Cater To Needs Of Dementia Patients
In a tiny village in the Netherlands, all 152 of its residents are living with forms of dementia including Alzheimer’s disease. The town, called Hogeway, is actually an experiment in end-of-life care largely funded by the Dutch government, with a secure entrance, cameras and caretakers to provide safety without the feel of a traditional nursing home. Hogeway is also the model for a planned expansion of Miami Jewish Health Systems that will add a similar village to its campus in the next two to three years. (Adams, 6/20)

The Associated Press: Florida Surgeon Pays $4M To Resolve False Medicare Billings
A Florida surgeon and a plastic surgery clinic will pay $4 million to resolve allegations that Medicare was billed for procedures that were unnecessary or never occurred. Dr. Donald C. Proctor Jr. also agreed under the False Claims Act settlement not to participate in the Medicare or Medicaid programs for at least five years. Proctor runs the Grove Place Surgery Center in Vero Beach. (Ferry, 6/22)

The Associated Press: Medical Marijuana Cash Is Problem For Illinois Tax Collection
The state of Illinois is having trouble finding a bank or financial services company to process the large amounts of cash it anticipates receiving for taxes and fees from the new medical marijuana industry. The state treasurer’s office received no response to an official solicitation published last fall, so Illinois State Treasurer Michael Frerichs has started a formal process to find out why. (6/19)

The Baltimore Sun: As States Loosen Marijuana Laws, Veterans Still Face Obstacles To Therapeutic Treatment
As Maryland and other states move to make medical marijuana available to patients, former service members are still barred from getting the drug from the Veterans Administration. Marijuana remains in a legally precarious position, even as public support for its legalization and use to treat illnesses grows. Washington, Colorado and the District of Columbia have legalized the drug for all purposes — Maryland has decriminalized the possession of small amounts — and almost two dozen states, including Maryland, have authorized medical marijuana programs. (Duncan, 6/19)

The Baltimore Sun: Program Helps Caregivers Under Stress After Errors
A tired physician prescribes the wrong medication. A surgeon misreads a patient's chart. A nurse inserts the wrong IV or administers too great a dose of a drug. Even the best health care professionals may make mistakes, and some lapses can lead to illness, injury or death. But a growing body of research suggests it's not just the patients who are affected in such cases. (Pitts, 6/21)