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Plumas District Hospital Named a Rural Center of Excellence

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UC Davis Health has named Plumas District Hospital as its newest Rural Center of Excellence, a designation that recognizes the Quincy-based provider as a training site for UC Davis medical students and for its emphasis on quality clinical care – particularly in maternity services, medical training, and performance improvement.

AHA Updates 340B Good Stewardship Resources

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Yesterday, the American Hospital Association (AHA) released updated resources for its 340B Good Stewardship Principles. To date, more than 60 percent of California’s 340B hospitals have signed on to the AHA commitment.

Governor Appoints Pediatrician to Lead Health and Human Services Agency

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Gov. Newsom has appointed Mark Ghaly, practicing pediatrician and director of health and social impact for Los Angeles County, as secretary of the California Health and Human Services Agency. According to the Governor’s announcement, Ghaly will help advance proposals to lower prescription drug costs and provide coverage to young undocumented adults, among other health care agenda items.

CHA Issues Summaries on Interoperability Proposed Rules

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CHA has issued detailed summaries, prepared by Health Policy Alternatives, of the interoperability proposed rules recently published by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC).

Hospitals Should Consult With Counsel on Expanded DMHC Licensure Requirements

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The California Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) has promulgated a new general licensure regulation, effective July 1, that greatly expands the types of health care service plans requiring a license. CHA encourages members to consult with their counsel to determine how the new regulation will impact their organization.

Rich kids like me get great mental health care. With Medicare for All, others can, too.

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I’ve been in therapy since I was 9 years old. You should be so lucky.

Let me explain: For my whole life I’ve struggled with generalized anxiety disorder, a condition that can make even the simplest decisions and actions debilitating. Anxiety, depression and other mental health conditions are not uncommon in children, especially those who come from a family with a history of mental illness, like mine.

Children and teenagers with a psychiatric disorder have six times higher odds of having health, legal, financial and social problems as adults.

Democrats’ promise of Medicare for All is remarkably misguided and unrealistic

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“We have got to figure out how we pay for it. It’s unrealistic in how we pay for it today.” That was how former Virginia governor and potential presidential candidate Terry McAuliffe characterized Medicare for All, even as he was announcing his support for it.

McAuliffe is certainly right about the unrealistic part, although otherworldly would be a more appropriate description.

Put simply, there is nothing like Medicare for All anywhere in the industrialized world.

Legislative Update – Key Bills

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AB 4 (Arambula) / SB 289 (Durazo) — Medi-Cal eligibility 

AB 174 (Wood) / SB 65 (Pan) — Personal income tax credit for specified insurance premiums 

A Change in Tactics

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Those that advocate for change in healthcare most often make their case based on the unsustainable cost or poor quality care that is sadly the norm. A 2018 article in Bloomberg highlights this fact by reporting on global healthcare efficiency, a composite marker of cost and life expectancy. Not remarkably, the United States ranks 54th globally, down four spots from 2017 and sandwiched neatly between Azerbaijan and Bulgaria. Unarguably, the US is a leader in medical education, technology, and research. Sadly, our leadership in these areas only makes our failure to provide cost-effective, quality care that much more shameful. For the well-off, the prospect of excellent accessible care is bright, but, as the Bloomberg article points out, as a nation our rank is rank. Anecdotally, I can report that as a physician I am called upon with some regularity to intervene on the behalf of family and friends to get a timely appointment or explain a test or study that their doctor was too busy to explain, and so even for the relatively well-off, care can be difficult and deficient.