Latest KFF Health News Stories
Opinion writers weigh in on these pandemic-related health issues and others.
‘An Arm And A Leg’: Superheroes Of ‘Stuff’ Help Health Workers In NYC
“An Arm and a Leg” is back — sooner than we expected — with stories about how COVID-19 intersects with the cost of health care, and how we can all respond. So we’re calling it SEASON-19.
‘When It Starts Getting Into Your Local Hospital, It Becomes Real’
Located about 45 minutes from New Orleans in one of the hardest-hit counties nationally, the 25-bed rural St. James Parish Hospital has hunkered down as staffers became infected, patient intake numbers have doubled, and intubations have skyrocketed. This is what it looks like inside a rural hospital when COVID-19 hits.
Postcard From The Edge: L.A. Street Vendors Who Can’t Stop Working
Foot traffic in L.A. has fallen off a cliff amid the COVID-19 crisis, driving many street vendors away. But some are still on the streets, peddling their wares out of economic necessity. Many are undocumented immigrants who won’t get any help from the recently approved $2 trillion federal assistance package.
Pandemic Delays Federal Probe Into Medicare Advantage Health Plans
Government officials want to focus on fighting COVID-19 instead of recouping overcharges that run into the millions.
Perspectives: Creative Ways To Pay For Pricey Specialty Drugs Could Backfire In The Long Run
Read recent commentaries about drug-cost issues.
Countries Dredging Up Decades-Old Powers To Suspend Patent Rights In Anticipation Of Drug Shortages
Read about the biggest pharmaceutical development and pricing stories from the past week in KHN’s Prescription Drug Watch roundup.
To Curb Coronavirus, What’s Behind The Wearing Of A Mask?
The CDC recommends that Americans wear facial masks when they go to public places, such as the grocery store. But this is only one part of a multipronged effort to stop the virus’s spread.
Advocates across the country are worried that if the coronavirus outbreak spreads to the prisons, it could be a catastrophe for those inside, who are often kept in close quarters with sub-par health and hygiene services. The Wall Street Journal interviews inmates and their families at one Louisiana prison who say that the invisible enemy is well entrenched inside the gates.
Pacientes de cáncer enfrentan retrasos en cirugías mientras COVID-19 paraliza hospitales
Son más vulnerables a la infección por el nuevo coronavirus. Y pueden estar enfrentando desafíos imprevistos para obtener atención, quimioterapia, e incluso cirugías para remover tumores.
Scientists, political leaders and businessmen are trying to adopt ways to cut months off the vaccine development timeline. That includes wasting billions on preparing to develop vaccines that might not work. In the meantime, drugmakers race to find an effective treatment option.
Advocates are calling for the Trump administration to ramp up spending on outreach to make sure Americans who have been laid off during the crisis know there’s an option out there for them. The administration instead seems to be focused on a plan to tap hospital stimulus funds to pay people’s bills if they get coronavirus and need treatment
In the first nationwide assessment for how hospitals are handling the pandemic, the facilities told HHS’ Office of Inspector General that they’re increasingly “turning to new, sometimes un-vetted, and non-traditional sources of supplies and medical equipment.” The report finds that health systems need more help with tests, supplies and equipment; workforce flexibility; bed capacity; financial assistance; and centralized communication and information, including more and better data about the virus. President Donald Trump waved off the findings.
CMS has finalized a bump for Medicare Advantage plans that’s a good deal higher than the agency’s initial proposal that met with fierce industry opposition. Meanwhile, researchers look at a variety of factors when it comes to spending and safety nets.
Less than 2 percent of the confirmed U.S. coronavirus infections are pediatric cases, according to a new CDC report. Three kids under 18 so far have died though, and there is some evidence that babies may be at more risk, though data is incomplete. News reports focus on the health impact to pregnant women, as well.
Government To Buy 167M Masks From 3M For Front-Line Workers Following Contentious Negotiations
The federal government’s decision to use the Defense Production Act was key to shifting the trajectory of negotiations between the two sides, Trump administration officials say. Health care workers are issuing desperate calls for more masks. In one Detroit hospital system alone, 700 employees have tested positive for the virus. Meanwhile, the military steps up its efforts to produce masks, as well. And despite experts’ guidance, President Donald Trump has yet to don a mask in public.
Media outlets looks at news from D.C., Virginia, Maryland, Idaho, California, Oklahoma, Ohio, Massachusetts, Georgia, Louisiana, Texas and Nevada.
Physical And Mental Complications Can Linger For Patients Who Recover From Coronavirus
While a life-saving tool, ventilators can cause long-term physical and emotional side effects. And physicians say they can’t offer recovered patients who aren’t retested any guarantees about whether they can still transmit the virus. Meanwhile, experts warn of a mental health crisis brewing. More public health news related to the outbreak report on a drop in heart attacks and strokes, fears of dying alone, loneliness, how the virus attacks the body, an anticipated surge in foster care placements, uncertainty for cancer patients, and more.
Virus Outbreak Seems To Hit Black Americans At Alarming Rate But Lack Of Data Obstructs Full Picture
Data on race and the impact of COVID-19 is too limited so far to draw conclusions, experts say. But disparate rates of sickness and death is emerging in many African-American and Latino communities. “We cannot have a colorblind policy,” Stephen Thomas, director of the University of Maryland’s Center for Health Equity tells Politico. “With a colorblind policy — ‘Hey, we’re all in this together’ — we’ll be left with an explosion of Covid-19 concentrated in racial and ethnic minority communities.”
So far, at least four grocery store workers have died. And employees at meat plants in several states are sick. Meanwhile, online grocers try to keep up with demand. And meal assistance programs try to reach vulnerable seniors.