Latest KFF Health News Content

Latest KFF Health News Stories

Experts Debunk Trump’s Claims That He Saved Pre-Existing Conditions Coverage

Morning Briefing

President Donald Trump defended his administration’s efforts to protect health coverage for Americans in response to presidential hopeful Michael Bloomberg’s ads, but fact checkers and other experts were quick to point out that Trump has gone to great lengths to weaken the health law and its popular provisions throughout his presidency. “That tweet is so far inconsistent with the direction of their policy push,” said Linda Blumberg, a health policy analyst at the Urban Institute. “It’s just astounding to me.”

Loopholes Limit New California Law To Guard Against Lofty Air Ambulance Bills

KFF Health News Original

A new state law limits what consumers owe if they’re transported by an air ambulance that’s not part of their insurance network to the amount that they’d be charged if they used an in-network provider. But the law won’t protect millions of consumers whose health plans aren’t regulated by the state.

Type Of Virus Behind Illnesses In China Can Be Incredibly Efficient At Multiplying And Very Deadly To Humans

Morning Briefing

The strain of virus is related to SARS, which caused an outbreak years ago that still has public health experts waiting for the next one. Officials announced the first death from the current outbreak of the pneumonia-like disease.

Downward Trend In Cancer Deaths Is Great, Experts Say, But Hold Your Horses On Any Big Celebrations

Morning Briefing

The news is actually more nuanced than it may have seemed last week. And much is riding on how the results are interpreted. In other public health news: “forever chemicals,” race and medicine, genetic sequencing of measles, sickle cell disease, maternal deaths, and more.

Calif. Governor Wants To Make ‘Radical Shift’ In How State Is Addressing Homeless Crisis

Morning Briefing

As part of his proposed budget, Gov. Gavin Newsom wants to give money aimed at curbing the homeless crisis directly to service providers rather than funneling it through cities and counties. “More money is not going to solve this alone,” Newsom said. “We need real accountability and transparency.” Other news from state legislatures comes out of New Jersey, Virginia, Florida and Washington.

CDC Warns Flu Impact Is Severe On Children, Young Adults Because Of Unusual Strain That’s Killed 32 Children So Far

Morning Briefing

The good news, health experts say, is flu activity dipped slightly last week, but monitoring the week ahead with children returning to school from winter holidays is key. News on the flu is from Iowa, Georgia and Oregon, as well.

‘We Want To Be Helpful,’ Google Executives Promise With Push Into Health Data, But Vow Is Met With Skepticism

Morning Briefing

Google has long seen health data as a natural extension of its stated mission to organize information, but many people are wary about the company’s efforts. In other health and technology news: Facebook’s preventive health tool, Apple and the CES show, and a probe into Fitbit.

‘It Was Beautiful’ Once Upon A Time, Now LA Hospital Becomes Latest Casualty In Financially Uncertain Landscape

Morning Briefing

Last week a judge gave Verity Health permission to close the doors of the old St. Vincent Medical Center in Los Angeles. Throughout the decades, the mission of the hospital to serve the most needy remained consistent, and thus it struggled financially. In other hospitals news: out-of-network billing, health care prices, psychiatric care, emergency departments, and more.

Republicans May Be Stuck Between Rock And Hard Place On Voting For Democrats’ Drug Pricing Proposals

Morning Briefing

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has been hesitant to take up votes on House Democrats’ drug pricing legislation, trying to protect his members from going on record against a bill that could help lower costs. But doing nothing is politically fraught with the issue at the front of many voters’ minds.

A National Registry Is Needed To Identify Babies Who Have Been Affected By Opioid Crisis, Lawyers Argue

Morning Briefing

The attorneys also argue that the guardians of these kids need to be grouped together in a class action lawsuit against drugmakers and distributors. “The urgency of this is, the longer we wait, the more difficult it is to help these children,” said Cleveland attorney Marc Dann, who filed the motion along with attorneys from Texas and Louisiana. In other news on the opioid crisis: chronic pain, benzodiazepines and overdose deaths.

Most Women Report Positive Feelings Five-Years Out From An Abortion, And Overall Emotions Tend To Have Faded

Morning Briefing

Within the abortion debate, there’s a lot of talk over whether a person will regret their decision later on. But new research looks at the long-term emotions following that choice and finds that at the five-year mark, 84 percent reported either primarily positive emotions or none at all, while 6 percent had primarily negative feelings.

Supreme Court Agrees To Hear Potentially Monumental Case Over Extent To Which States Can Regulate PBMs

Morning Briefing

Pharmacy benefits managers, the controversial middlemen in the drug pipeline, are a favorite target to blame for higher prescription drug costs. A Supreme Court decision on how much oversight states can place on PMBs could send shock waves through the debate over health care costs. In other pharmaceutical news: genetic testing and proprietary data, lax oversight of the 340B drug program, a startup with the possible answer to high drug costs, and more.

Trump Administration Working On Plan To Tighten Eligibility Requirements For Disability Benefits With Focus On Age

Morning Briefing

The Trump administration says the plan aims at addressing changing social factors, such as the fact that people are living longer in better health and fewer people are engaged in physically draining jobs like coal mining. And new technology allows those with disabilities to work in ways that weren’t available in the past. Other news on the Trump administration’s policies focuses on food stamps and Medicaid eligibility.

Court Reaffirms HIV-Positive Airmen Shouldn’t Be Discharged Over Policy That’s ‘Irrational’ And ‘At Odds With Current Science’

Morning Briefing

The Air Force had determined that the two airmen could no longer perform their duties because their career fields required them to deploy frequently and because their condition prevented them from deploying to the U.S. Central Command’s area of responsibility, where most airmen are expected to go.

Fathers File Lawsuit Calling Trump Administration’s Zero Tolerance Policy ‘Cruel And Unconstitutional’

Morning Briefing

In the lawsuit, the men also say their children, who were separated from them at the border, were abused by other kids while in U.S. custody. In other news, a different suit filed in 2015 over the conditions of detention facilities is getting its day in court.