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Mari Velar, who has lupus and osteoporosis, has bones as fragile as butterfly wings. To keep them from breaking, she depends on an IV drip of a bone-strengthening fluid, which costs a lot more than pills. Whenever she has a new plan or new doctor, she has to switch to the cheaper therapy until she begins to itch. “In order to appease the doctor, I have to try the drug and show them the hives and prove to them that I cannot take the drug,” says the 54-year-old Tampa woman. Florida Sen. Don Gaetz says that what happens to patients like Velar is an abuse of managed care. Gaetz, a Republican from the Panhandle town of Niceville, is sponsoring the “Right Medicine, Right Time Act” to fight it. (Gentry, 3/20)

The number of medical malpractice claims fell to a record low in Wisconsin last year as the state-managed insurance fund for the doctors grew to more than $1.2 billion, newly released records show. (Spivak, 3/22)

It could have happened anywhere, but it was on the high plains of Guthrie, Texas — 90 miles east of Lubbock — where Dannie Tiffin suddenly collapsed of a heart attack last spring. No one knows for certain, but doctors and hospital staff in this rural area say they’re pretty sure the 62-year-old electrician could have made it, had he gotten care in time. (Walters, 3/20)

Less than two weeks after Prime Healthcare Services abandoned its $843 million bid for the nearly bankrupt Daughters of Charity Health System, several potential buyers are expressing interest in one or all six of the hospitals, according to the nonprofit Catholic chain. (Seipel, 3/22)

Nonprofit insurer Blue Shield of California, already under scrutiny for its huge cash reserves and lack of disclosure, is refusing to say how much it's spending to acquire a Monterey Park insurance company and is seeking confidentiality from state regulators. The California Department of Managed Health Care said Friday it was still weighing Blue Shield's request for confidentiality after receiving a public-records request from The Times and being asked to hold a public hearing on the deal by a former company official. (Terhune, 3/20)

As the recession decimated Sacramento County’s revenue in 2009, supervisors voted to end health care for undocumented immigrants. For some it was a painful decision. For others it was overdue. Today the county’s finances are in better shape, and supervisors are cautiously looking at restoring some level of health care services to thousands of low-income residents who are not here legally. State lawmakers also are considering policy changes that would broaden health care assistance for undocumented residents. (Sangree, 3/20)

Nearly three months after the launch of new rules banning the warehousing of mentally ill patients in Washington state and after millions in new spending to boost care, experts in psychiatric evaluation and those on the front lines say the revamped system is off to an uncertain start. The state Supreme Court ruled last August that it is unconstitutional to detain and hold psychiatric patients in settings such as emergency rooms without providing appropriate treatment. In the wake of that decision, critics charge that some detained patients are receiving only “Band-Aid” mental-health care — while others who should be held are being turned away, even when they might pose a danger to themselves or others. (Aleccia, 3/21)

In response to a scathing report released Thursday by the Minnesota Office of the Legislative Auditor, the University of Minnesota has announced that it is suspending enrollment into interventional drug studies being overseen by its psychiatry department until independent reviewers can determine that the studies fully protect all patients. The new report is a stunning rebuke of the university’s handling of the tragic and troubling case of Dan Markingson, a mentally ill young man from St. Paul who committed suicide in 2004 while enrolled in a U of M industry-sponsored clinical trial of the antipsychotic drug quetiapine (Seroquel). (Perry, 3/20)

The Arizona House has again scheduled debate on a bill barring women from buying any health care plan through the federal marketplace that includes abortion coverage after two previous delays. Debate on the proposal backed by the Center for Arizona Policy is now set for Monday. (3/23)

A federal judge on Friday struck down a Wisconsin law requiring doctors performing abortions to get hospital admitting privileges, ruling that any benefits to women's health from the requirement are "substantially outweighed" by restricting women's access to abortion. U.S. District Judge William Conley, who earlier had put the law on hold, ruled that the 2013 law is unconstitutional. He issued a permanent injunction blocking its enforcement. (3/20)

Like most mothers, Julie Krashin was preparing for her twin babies to be delivered on their due date. But the twins came eight-and-a-half weeks early and had to be rushed to the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) at Saint Luke’s Hospital in Kansas City. Three days into their stay, Julie and her husband Jeremy lost their daughter Ilana. (Booker, 3/20)

A rural Western North Carolina clinic offers care to those who’ve ‘fallen through the cracks in the system.’ (Sisk, 3/23)

Federal experts are being brought in to try to contain a southern Indiana HIV outbreak that has grown to 55 confirmed cases and 13 other preliminary positive cases, the Indiana State Department of Health said Friday. A medical team from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will arrive in Scott County on Monday to help state staff with follow-up contacts of HIV-positive individuals and data analysis, the agency said. (3/20)