State Highlights: Troubled Manchester VA Center Poised To Undergo Changes, But For Now Will Remain Open 24/7; Contentious Mass. Nursing Ballot Initiative Gets Sen. Warren’s Support
Media outlets report on news from New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Virginia, California, Missouri, Louisiana, Minnesota, Florida, Michigan, Texas, Georgia and Virginia.
Concord (N.H.) Monitor:
VA Urgent Care Facility Will Stay Open 24/7 For At Least The Time Being
Many things are in flux at the Veterans Administration Medical Center in Manchester, but overnight hours at the urgent care facility aren’t among them – at least, not yet. ... The idea that the VA is looking at a number of possible changes, among them whether to close the urgent care facility in Manchester during some late-night hours, came up at a recent regular meeting between VA staff and staffers of U.S. Rep Annie Kuster, who serve on the House Veterans Affairs Subcommittee. That and news of meetings by senior staff at the Medical Center has led to rumors that the urgent care facility might end its long-standing policy of never being closed. (Brooks, 9/25)
Boston Globe:
Warren Backs Nurse-Staffing Ballot Question
The labor union promoting a ballot question to increase nurse staffing at Massachusetts hospitals now has the endorsement of US Senator Elizabeth Warren. ...The Massachusetts Nurses Association is promoting ballot Question 1, which would set limits on the number of patients assigned to hospital nurses at one time. (Dayal McCluskey, 9/25)
The Associated Press:
Board Tasked With Developing Cancer Research Center To Meet
A Virginia state board tasked with developing plans for a cancer research and treatment center is set to convene for the first time. The Henrietta Lacks Commission is named for Henrietta Lacks, a Virginia woman whose cells were taken without her consent and widely used in groundbreaking research. It will meet Wednesday in South Boston. (9/26)
KQED:
State Fines Psychiatric Hospital In Attack On Nurse Amid Renewed Staffing Concerns
Now, dozens of Service Employees International Union Local 1021 members plan to hold an informational picket in Oakland on Tuesday afternoon to draw attention to staffing issues there and two other Alameda County medical facilities. (Goldberg, 9/25)
St. Louis Public Radio:
Mizzou Researchers Find Potential Link Between Insulin, Plastic Additive BPA
Bisphenol A — or BPA — is a plastic additive found in bottles, the resin lining of food cans and thermal receipt paper. An experiment by Mizzou researchers exposed a small group of people to the chemical. After the exposure, the researchers measured subjects’ insulin levels, and found people exposed to the BPA had produced more insulin. (Fentem, 9/25)
New Orleans Times-Picayune:
4 New Orleans Doctors, 2 Others Ordered To Pay Millions In Restitution In Medicare Fraud Case
Four New Orleans area doctors, a biller and an office manager were sentenced to prison time and a collective $30 million in restitution payments this week for their roles in a Medicare fraud scheme that involved more than 20 people and netted millions in fraudulent Medicare reimbursements, according to U.S. Attorney Peter G. Strasser's office. The six people sentenced this week by U.S. District Judge Susie Morgan were convicted in May following a month-long federal trial. (McKnight, 9/25)
MPR:
Minneapolis Community Funds Focus On Lead Poisoning, Asthma
Those two health concerns — asthma and lead poisoning — are at the heart of a city plan to spend more than a half-million dollars to raise awareness and connect at-risk families with resources to help. Trice is helping facilitate a discussion Thursday inviting community members to offer suggestions on how the $600,000 should be allocated over the next three years. (Yuen, 9/25)
Tampa Bay Times:
A Doctor Was Sued For Malpractice. He Tried To Fight It. It Cost Him Nearly Everything.
Even now, his mind flashes to the legal papers, to the accusation that he was responsible for a woman’s death. [Scott] Plantz’s insurer encouraged him to settle the suit for $50,000, which it would have paid, and move on. ...Convinced he had done nothing wrong, Plantz refused on principle. The decision would lead him on a decade-long odyssey that bloomed into an obsession. (Solomon, 9/25)
Detroit Free Press:
Family Wins $130M In Beaumont Hospital Malpractice Case
An Oakland County jury awarded a family more than $130 million in damages in a medical malpractice lawsuit filed against Beaumont Hospital after a child sustained severe brain damage, resulting in cerebral palsy, while receiving care at its Royal Oak facility. The jury award Monday came after a three-week civil trial in Oakland County Circuit Court, and is believed to be the one of the largest jury settlements in Michigan history, according to the law firm that filed the lawsuit. (Hall, 9/25)
Houston Chronicle:
Humana Pledges $15 Million To UH New Medical School
As the health care ground continues to shift, sometimes surprising alliances emerge.In Houston, one such pairing has formed with the announcement Tuesday of a collaboration between the planned University of Houston’s College of Medicine and insurance giant Humana, which has pledged a $15 million gift over 10 years to help defray startup and operational costs. It is the first major gift by a large corporation to the future medical school’s campaign to raise $1 billion, said Dr. Steve Spann, founding dean of the UH College of Medicine. (Deam, 9/25)
Atlanta Journal-Constitution:
Atlanta Court Allows Woman's Racial Harassment Suit To Proceed
The federal appeals court in Atlanta has refused to dismiss a lawsuit filed by an African-American woman who says she endured racist comments from her coworkers on an almost daily basis, including one who allegedly called her “a dumb black (racial slur).” The ruling, issued Monday by the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, allows Brenda Smelter’s lawsuit to go to trial against Southern Home Care Services, which sends caregivers to the homes of clients with medical needs. (Rankin, 9/24)
Richmond Times-Dispatch:
Virginia Regulators Pick Five Companies To Open State's First Medical Cannabis Dispensaries
Virginia regulators gave initial approval Tuesday to five companies planning to open the state’s first medical cannabis dispensaries, selecting a mix of established industry players and Virginia-based entrepreneurs. After private discussions that lasted more than five hours, the Virginia Board of Pharmacy named the five winning applications out of a field of 51. (Moomaw, 9/24)
