HEALTH

CalPERS Urged to Reconsider Bone Marrow Transplant Policy: State Treasurer Kathleen Connell is expected to call today on the California Public Employees’ Retirement System to reconsider its policy of denying medical coverage for bone marrow transplants for breast cancer patients. Connell is a director of the giant state pension fund, which also purchases health coverage on behalf of nearly 1 million government employees and their dependents. Blue Shield of California, the San Francisco-based insurer that administers claims for CalPERS plans, considers bone marrow transplants to be an “investigational” treatment for breast cancer and does not pay for the procedure. Blue Shield, however, will pay for patients who are approved for participation in a clinical research project that is studying the effectiveness of the procedure for breast cancer. Connell said the policy change would affect more than 400,000 women.