More than a third of Louisiana residents were uninsured at some point between the start of 2007 and the end of 2008, according to a new national study. Families USA, a Washington, DC, nonprofit organization, found that 36.2% of the state's residents younger than 65 went without insurance for at least a month. A Louisiana Department of Health and Hospitals spokeswoman said 21.2% of the state's adult population lacked insurance in 2008. The state maintains that 95% of dependent minors are covered.
A state report says California hospitals are reducing the already slim risk of death from coronary artery bypass surgery. The report, which was based on more than 32,000 operations performed in 2005 and 2006, also rated all 284 bypass surgeons in California. This is the fourth in a series of state reports that have charted a general decline in bypass surgery mortality rates from 2.9% in 2003, the first year studied, to 2.2% in 2006, the most recent year under review.
An Oregon Senate committee passed four bills aimed at improving healthcare and reducing costs. The committee approved bills to establish a council to help healthcare providers convert to electronic patient records, bring together insurers and healthcare providers to develop and use evidenced-based clinical guidelines and best practices, and establish a database on Oregon's healthcare work force size and needs.
As of February, an estimated 500,000 California residents had lost their health insurance since the start of the economic decline, according to a recent report. Now people are cutting back on routine screenings and examinations designed to protect their health, Southern California doctors and dentists say. Those who have health insurance with high deductibles or expensive co-pays also appear to be cutting back on nonessential medical care, doctors say, possibly to save money.
More than $6.8 million in funding was awarded to community-based health centers in New Jersey as part of the American Reinvestment Recovery Act. The new funding will be used to renovate facilities and offer more primary care to New Jersey families, U.S. Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg said in a statement.
The State Council, China's cabinet, offered details on the $120-billion-plus initial phase of a healthcare revamp, which it outlined in January. Among the plans: a construction surge that by 2011 will give every village a medical clinic and every county at least one hospital. Under the plan, state subsidies for insurance premiums aim to extend at least basic coverage to 90% or more of China's 1.3 billion people within three years.