Latest Kaiser Health News Stories
App-Based Companies Pushing Prop. 22 Say Drivers Will Get Health Benefits. Will They?
Ride-sharing and delivery services such as Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and Instacart are bankrolling California’s Proposition 22, which would keep their drivers classified as independent contractors, not employees. But health benefits? That’s something of a stretch.
Déjà Vu for California Voters on Dialysis
Californians are again being asked to weigh in on a dialysis ballot measure. This one purports to target patient safety, and dialysis industry giants are once again spending big to defeat it.
Californians Asked to Pony Up for Stem Cell Research — Again
More than a decade of research tied to California’s stem cell agency hasn’t yielded many cures or much revenue. But backers of a ballot initiative that asks voters for billions more in funding say the work is vital for patients and the scientific community.
Montana’s Legislature Could Decide Medicaid Expansion’s Fate
A ballot initiative to fund Medicaid expansion with a tobacco tax failed in Montana on Tuesday. The expansion will expire in the state in June 2019, unless the legislature finds another way to fund it.
Measure To Cap Dialysis Profits Pummeled After Record Spending By Industry
The dialysis industry raised nearly $111 million in a successful bid to defeat the measure, which also was opposed by hospitals and doctors. The union that sponsored the measure collected about one-sixth that amount.
Ad Check: What Happens If California Limits Dialysis Center Profits?
Both sides in the contentious and expensive battle over California’s Proposition 8 are cherry-picking the facts ahead of Tuesday’s vote as dialysis companies spend record amounts to persuade voters through ads.
In California, Novel Initiatives Test Cities’ Power — And Will — To Tame Health Costs
Union-backed initiatives in Palo Alto and Livermore, Calif., aim to cap charges by hospitals and doctors, seeking to build on national furor over rising medical bills. The measures arise in health care markets that are among the most expensive in the nation.
Hospitales infantiles claman de nuevo por la ayuda de los votantes, pero ¿la necesitan?
A pesar de la naturaleza positiva de estos pedidos, algunos expertos en salud y analistas electorales cuestionan que los hospitales le pidan dinero tantas veces a los contribuyentes.
Children’s Hospitals Again Cry For Help From Voters. But Are They Really Hurting?
California’s 13 children’s hospitals are asking voters in November to approve $1.5 billion in bonds to help them pay for construction and equipment, the third such measure in 14 years. Some health care experts and election analysts believe the repeated financial requests aren’t justified.
Patient Advocacy Or Political Ploy? Union, Industry Square Off Over Dialysis Initiative
The measure, which will appear on the November ballot, seeks to cap industry profits. The SEIU-UHW union has raised almost $17 million, but opponents from the industry have invested more than four times that.
Primero fue la marihuana… ¿y ahora los hongos alucinógenos?
Siguiendo los pasos de la marihuana, Oregon y Colorado impulsan la legalización de hongos alucinógenos cuya sustancia activa, la psilocibina, podría ayudar a superar la depresión y la ansiedad.
First, Marijuana. Are Magic Mushrooms Next?
Advocates in Oregon and Denver are pushing ballot measures to allow possession of mushrooms containing the hallucinogenic ingredient psilocybin, as new research shows it may be useful in treating depression and anxiety. Supporters of a measure to decriminalize magic mushrooms in California ended their effort late last month.
California Lends Its Weight To Wider Marijuana Acceptance
The number of states with laws permitting marijuana use underscores a national cultural shift toward wider acceptance of the drug, despite the federal ban and limited evidence on the public health impacts of legalization.
California’s Drug Price Initiative: Will Voters ‘Send A Signal To Washington’?
Despite heavy opposition from the pharmaceutical industry and skepticism from policy experts, many voters see Proposition 61 as a way to protest the nation’s mounting drug prices.
Maverick AIDS Activist To Porn Police? The Man Behind California’s Proposition 60
Michael Weinstein of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation says he is promoting condoms where others have forgotten them.
Colorado Wrestles With Ethics Of Aid-In-Dying As Vote Looms
Proposition 106, on Colorado’s ballot next month, would allow doctors to prescribe a lethal dose of medication to people who have less than six months to live. A recent poll shows strong support for the measure.
Would California’s Proposed Tobacco Tax Hike Reduce Smoking?
When New York increased its cigarette tax, smoking rates declined. California’s proposed increase of $2 a pack may, too, say researchers. The higher the tax, the more likely people are to quit.
Election Buzz: Critics Of Legal Pot Say Addiction Becomes ‘A Disease Of The Family’
As more states consider legalizing recreational marijuana, families consider what messages to present to young people about using pot. Should it be avoidance, moderation or acceptance? Differing views from Arizona and Oregon.
Election Buzz: A Look At Brain Science As 5 States Vote On Legalizing Pot
Recreational marijuana is on the ballot in five states in November. What do we know about pot’s effects on the brain?
Veterans Courted In California’s Ballot Fight Over Curbing Drug Prices
The initiative would prohibit California state agencies from paying more for a prescription drug than what the Department of Veterans Affairs pays. Both sides are deploying veterans’ sympathetic and trusted image to win over voters.
