Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 22, 2008. Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell (D) on Thursday signed into law a bill that will prohibit health care facilities from requiring mandatory overtime of staff, the Philadelphia Inquirer reports. The law, set to take effect in July 2009, seeks to protect health care facilities from forcing nurses, technicians, technologists, certified nursing […]

Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 22, 2008. As part of his proposed two-year economic stimulus package of between $675 billion and $775 billion, President-elect Barack Obama seeks to create or save three million jobs, his transition team announced on Saturday, the Los Angeles Times reports (Nicholas, Los Angeles Times, 12/21). According to the New York Times, the […]

HFMA.org – Dec. 22, 2008. The right of federally funded healthcare providers to decline to participate in services to which they object has been affirmed in a final rule issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and published in the Federal Register. The final rule clarifies that non-discrimination protections apply to […]

Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 19, 2008. The Louisiana Joint Health and Welfare Committee on Thursday unanimously approved a plan that would allow the administration of Gov. Bobby Jindal (R) to apply for a federal waiver to overhaul the state’s Medicaid program, the New Orleans Times-Picayune reports (Moller, New Orleans Times-Picayune, 12/19). Under the “Louisiana Health First […]

Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 19, 2008. While mainstream news coverage is still a primary source of information for the latest in policy debates and the health care marketplace, online blogs have become a significant part of the media landscape, often presenting new perspectives on policy issues and drawing attention to under-reported topics. To provide complete coverage […]

Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 19, 2008. Many Medicare beneficiaries who use portable oxygen have expressed concerns that they will lose Medicare coverage of their oxygen supplies when a new CMS rule change takes effect on Jan. 1, 2009, Scripps Howard/Detroit News reports (Rauda, Scripps Howard/Detroit News, 12/19).  Click title to read more… The rule will limit […]

Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 19, 2008. Summaries about recent news involving health care in the state budgets of California, Iowa, Kentucky, Louisiana, New York, South Carolina, Virginia and Washington state appear in this article.  Click title to read more… California: Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) on Thursday said he would veto an $18 billion plan by state […]

Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 19, 2008. The Boston Globe on Friday examined how “[k]ey players in the debate over how to provide health care coverage for the nation’s 47 million uninsured” residents believe that the Massachusetts health insurance law is “an important model for what Washington could do and how to get it done.” The state […]

Kaisernetwork.org – Dec. 19, 2008. Many health policy analysts “disagree over whether health reform will succeed, and whether it should be” President-elect Barack Obama’s “first priority,” particularly “amid a sinking economy,” USA Today reports. According to USA Today, “for significant change to occur, health care must stay a priority for his administration and for Congress,” […]