Expanded Role for Pharmacists in Many States Even before the coronavirus pandemic, states were expanding pharmacists’ role in providing healthcare. Over a dozen states allow pharmacists to test and treat people for the flu, strep throat, urinary tract infections...
CA Gov Signs Bill Restoring UC Enrollment California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed a measure ( SB 118 ) last week that removes public college enrollment as a separate consideration under the California Environmental Quality Act, known as CEQA. The new law nullifies...
Cybersecurity Big Concern for State Lawmakers in 2021 With high-profile cyberattacks like the one on Colonial Pipeline last May that caused fuel shortages in Eastern states and the targeting of public infrastructure in every state by hackers over the past couple...
MO Weighs Fix for Physician Shortage A bill introduced this year in the Missouri House ( HB 2296 ) would allow assistant physicians - medical school graduates who haven’t completed their residency - to become fully licensed as doctors after practicing for...
Govs Push Russian Sanctions The outrage from world leaders at Russia’s invasion of Ukraine has filtered down to state governors as well. According to Stateline , a publication of the Pew Charitable Trusts, governors in at least 12 states have ordered...
UT On Verge of Passing Consumer Data Privacy Law Utah appears likely to become the fourth state to pass a comprehensive consumer data privacy law. Last month, the state’s Senate unanimously passed the Utah Consumer Privacy Act ( SB 227 ), which is modeled...
States, Purdue Pharma Agree to New Opioid Settlement The attorneys general for all 50 states have reached a new settlement with Purdue Pharma over its role in the opioid crisis. An earlier settlement had been appealed by eight states: California, Connecticut...
IA Gov Makes New Effort for Private School Scholarships Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) is making another push to allow students to use public school funds to pay for private school scholarships. Reynolds first proposed sending the entire state per-pupil allocation...
Major Home Insurer Pulls Out of FL United Property and Casualty Insurance Co. - one of the top 10 homeowners insurers in Florida, with over 180,000 policyholders - has stopped writing new policies in the state this year, joining the other home and property insurers...
Controversy Over Alzheimer’s Drug Deepens The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s decision last June to grant accelerated approval for Aduhelm , Biogen’s new treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, sparked considerable controversy. Many --...
NM Lawmakers Kill Gov’s Clean Hydrogen Bill : The New Mexico House Energy, Environment and Natural Resources Committee voted to table Gov. Michell Lujan Grisham’s (D) proposal to make the state a hub of hydrogen production by offering tax incentives...
FHLB Pushing for Parity with Banks on Insurer Collateral: Officials from the Federal Home Loan Bank have been urging state lawmakers to approve measures putting Home Loan Banks on equal footing with banks when it comes to collateral pledged by insurance companies...
Autonomous Vehicle Companies Not Waiting Around for Federal Lawmakers: Legislation that would establish a federal framework for autonomous vehicles has stalled in Congress. But autonomous vehicle companies like Tesla, Alphabet’s Waymo and General Motors’...
Moody’s Predictions for Healthcare in 2022: Moody’s Investors Service is expecting several trends in healthcare this year, according to a recent report from the credit rating agency. One of Moody’s predictions is that health insurers’...
Let’s be real – nobody actually reads the terms and conditions they agree to when visiting a website. And for good reason. For all of us who are not corporate lawyers – and probably even for many who are – the jargon those terms are couched...