Gov. Rick Scott is proposing further deep cuts in Medicaid payments to hospitals, while lawmakers have filed bills that would help shield emergency-room doctors and workers from costly malpractice lawsuits.
health care
As Autopsies Dwindle, Hospitals Bury Their Mistakes Instead of Learning From Them
Autopsies are conducted on just 5 percent of patients who die in hospitals, letting common diagnostic errors go undiscovered, allowing physicians to practice on other patients with a false sense of security, and short-shrifting understanding of the effectiveness of medical treatments and the progression of diseases.
Educators Deride Scott’s “Smiley Face” Budget, Hospitals Call It “Tax on the Sick”
Despite Scott’s proposed boost, the state would still spend about $210 million less on education under Scott’s plan than it did five years ago, with overall education funding down about $1.6 billion. Hospital advocates call proposed cuts to Medicaid a “tax on the sick.”
Doing It Right: How To Avoid Becoming Part of The 44,000 People Hospitals Kill Each Year
A bike accident sent Michael Millenson’s wife to three hospitals. It led him to offer a unique perspective on the health care system and how to reduce hospital errors that kill 44,000 to 98,000 people each year.
Walmart Wants To Be Your Health Care Provider
Walmart wants to become by “the largest provider of primary healthcare services in the nation,” according to a request for information from potential partners sent the same week Walmart–the nation’s largest private employer–scaled back its health coverage for employees.
Running on Faith: Flagler County’s Free Clinic Is a Refuge For Health Care’s Untouchables
The Flagler County Free Clinic in Bunnell has been a commitment of grit and conviction by cancer survivor Faith Coleman and Dr. John Canakaris for the past six years. Now Coleman’s cancer is back, and like all her patients, she has no insurance.
Florida Is No. 1–In Costs and Effects of Hunger
In the past 3 years, costs related to hunger rose 62 percent in Florida. In 2010, the state’s hunger bill was $11.7 billion, or six times more than the $1.75 billion in budget cuts Gov. Rick Scott proposed for public schools.
Florida Hospital Flagler Breaks Ground on $15 Million Satellite Near Palm Coast Parkway
The 34,000 square foot medical plaza in Cobblestone Village near Walmart will give Florida Hospital Flagler an imprint on the northern side of town and add between 15 and 25 jobs by next summer.
Federal COBRA Insurance Subsidies End, Aggravating Strains for the Unemployed
Federal COBRA subsidies for laid-off workers covered 65 percent of premium costs for 15 months, as part of the Obama administration’s 2009 stimulus package. GOP lawmakers blocked an extension.
In a Florida Case, 2nd U.S. Appeals Court To Rule on Health Law Strikes It Down (It’s Now 1-1)
A divided panel of the conservative 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta, in a case from Florida, ruled health reform unconstitutional, saying it is “unprecedented, lacks cognizable limits and imperils our federalist structure.”