health care

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More Let Me Outta Here Re: Pension Initiative

Byuclafaculty

I want out! Yours truly has been posting about the recently filed public pension (and retiree health care) initiative which covers UC.  UC needs a strategy including first attempting to see if the sponsors will amend it or file a revised version that omits UC.  This is a political battle it would be best to avoid if possible. The initiative has the potential to become a “symbol” of intergenerational conflict as a recent article in calpensions.com points out.  Once things become symbols of something that goes beyond the issue at end – think “ObamaCare” – the pros and cons get…

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Health Plan Change Worries at UC

Byuclafaculty

If he’s worried now, wait ’til he gets his open enrollment package. Chronicle of Higher Ed takes note of UC employee concerns about changes in the UC health plans: The University of California is overhauling its systemwide health-insurance plans to save on costs and better align with the Obama administration’s Affordable Care Act, but some employees are angry over indications that they’ll be paying more just to keep their existing level of service. System officials say that the changes are needed to avoid looming cost increases and that, in most cases, employees who pick the plan that is right for…

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Coming attraction

Byuclafaculty

Apparently, we’re soon to be in the picture business.  From the UCLA Newsroom:   The UCLA Health System and the Motion Picture and Television Fund have signed a letter of intent that would bring MPTF’s six outpatient health centers under the UCLA umbrella. This partnership between two of Los Angeles’ iconic institutions will mean that entertainment industry members and their families can continue to get health care at MPTF facilities, with the added advantage of being able to access UCLA’s world-renowned specialty care and inpatient services… After completing a definitive agreement and securing board approval, the MPTF and UCLA plan to integrate the two operations in…

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UC Health Union Says It Will Take Strike Vote

Byuclafaculty

Union Demonstration against imposed terms, July 26, 2013 First, some legalities and background: Last summer, UC declared an impasse in its negotiations with AFSCME 3299, the union that held a two-day strike in the spring.  Under state law governing collective bargaining (a statute for UC and CSU known as HEERA), once an impasse exists, an employer can unilaterally impose terms and conditions.  Note that the determination of an impasse can be fuzzy.  In this case, the union filed unfair labor practice charges against UC in connection with the dispute and strike. The charges involve interrogation of particular employees about their…

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Everett: Where are you?

Byuclafaculty

Everett Dirksen was the Republican leader in the U.S. Senate back in the day who is often quoted as saying (about the federal budget), “A billion here, a billion there, and pretty soon you are talking about real money.”  [I know; nobody can actually point to a source for where he supposedly said it.] We noted in a post yesterday about a plan for a $50 million football facility.  Today’s Daily Bruin has a story about the groundbreaking for a new $120 million medical center teaching building about which the Regents raised some questions but eventually rubber stamped, as they…

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Retiree Health Changes

Byuclafaculty

Yesterday, this blog noted the upcoming UC open enrollment period and changes in the various health care options. Among them were what appeared to be rather drastic changes for retirees living outside California. One wonders whether the court ruling noted below might have some relevance for the ability of UC to make such changes.  Any legal scholars want to chime in?  Comments welcome. A superior court judge overturned a freeze on retiree health care for Los Angeles city attorneys this month, citing some of the same case law that made public pensions a vested right that can only be cut…

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Health Insurance Open Enrollment

Byuclafaculty

You have undoubtedly been getting emails and other material pointing to open enrollment during October 28-November 26, 2013. There are important changes in various health insurance options. If you are a retiree who lives outside of California, it is really important because there are major changes coming. Essentially, you will be getting a UC contribution towards an exchange. Info at atyourservice.ucop.edu/oe/medical Just a reminder:

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Listen to the First Part of the Regents Meeting of 9-17-2013

Byuclafaculty

But before you listen, note that we have been archiving Regents audios because of regental policy not to archive them for more than one year.  Today, there was a bit of a mishap in the handling of the Regents live stream.  As a result, yours truly sent the email below to an official in the Regents’ office: As you may know, the UCLA Faculty Assn. posts the audios of regents meetings online since it is apparently regents policy not to archive the recordings for more than one year online.  As a result, I turned on my recorder at 1 pm…

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A bad patch of news for UCLA’s patent on the nicotine patch?

Byuclafaculty

From Time:…The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is currently evaluating the safety of e-cigarettes, which are battery-powered versions of cigarettes that can contain varying amounts of nicotine but don’t expose users to the potentially harmful byproducts of tobacco smoke such as tar and carbon monoxide. Instead, they inhale nicotine vapors, which the device’s advocates say is safer than smoking conventional cigarettes, and makes e-cigarettes a viable way to kick the habit as well. And the latest study on e-cigarettes, published in the journal Lancet, supports that claim. In the first clinical trial comparing e-cigarettes and nicotine patches in helping people to…

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Unclear Consequences of Ruling on VA Uses for UCLA Sports & Other Events

Byuclafaculty

There is a news report today that a court has ruled that the VA property that is almost adjacent to UCLA has been improperly used for purposes other than veterans’ health care. UCLA rents space at the VA for sports programs. Over the years, there have been uses for theaters and other events for the general public.Some commercial businesses have also rented space. Recently, there was a Shakespeare theater group at the VA in an open-air venue.  Exactly what the ruling – which is temporarily stayed for 6 months – might mean for such uses, including those by UCLA, is…