Registered nurses set to strike at 13 Sutter Health hospitals in California should be prepared to be out of work longer than the planned two-day walkout, officials from the medical centers said. Most of the hospitals, with the exceptions of at least California Pacific Medical Center and St. Luke's hospital, plan to hire replacement workers for longer than just two days and lock out participating nurses for the remaining time.
As fewer medical students enter family practice and more professionals in it seek early retirement, 36 practices around the country are experimenting with ways to deliver and improve care. Some of the experiemental approaches include providing same-day access to the physician, no phone trees when calls are made to the office, e-mail consultations and electronic records, and group visits.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has approved new rules that allow many hospitals to bypass the extremely costly building reinforcements the state ordered after a 1994 earthquake. Schwarzenegger is permitting some hospitals to keep operating until 2020 even though the state says they are most likely to crumple during a major seismic event.
Although Congress will likely put up enough money to keep Georgia's PeachCare program running through most of next year, plans to dramatically expand the program that provides health insurance to low-income children are dead.
Graceworks Health Clinic has opened its doors to serve residents in Williamson County, TN. The clinic has been created to serve the working uninsured in the county, and payments will be determined on a sliding scale.
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court has ruled that a doctor can be sued over a car accident caused by his patient. The decision greatly expands the potential liability for the medical profession. The decision has upset the medical community in the state, including the Massachusetts Medical Society.
While presidential candidates are beating each other up about their plans for the uninsured, they've failed to notice that access to primary care for millions of people enrolled in Medicare is in peril, says Benjamin Brewer, MD.
Clinical-trial results showing that the blood-cancer drug Velcade increases remission rates in patients could boost its chances of winning regulatory approval for wider use. Velcade currently is approved in the United States to treat multiple myeloma in patients who have received at least one prior therapy.
Treating older patients with chronic conditions requires talking to families, ordering medicine and consulting with other physicians. But much of this additional care is not reimbursed by Medicare, according to a study.
A recent Gallup poll offered a dozen separate ways to expand health insurance coverage. Each suggestion garnered majority support, including tax breaks for small businesses, requiring large companies to offer health coverage or pay into a pool, and federal subsidies for the poor. Despite the variety of answers, the implication was clear: The public wants change.
