Latest KFF Health News Stories
Media outlets report on news from Ohio, California, Colorado, Maryland, Florida, Wisconsin, Wyoming, Connecticut, and Georgia.
The guns are growing in popularity because they don’t require serial numbers and can be assembled by people who think they wouldn’t pass a background check. In other news on gun violence: NRA relaunches efforts against Florida’s age restrictions and a fatal shooting prompts changes at a D.C. hospital.
Each week, KHN finds interesting reads from around the Web.
Houses Of Worship Lead Fight Against Stigma Of HIV In The South Reversing History Of Homophobia
Researchers say the efforts by the churches’ that are predominately made up of black parishioners are important because black Americans have higher levels of homophobia and stigma about HIV than other groups and are less likely to seek medical help. In other news on HIV, New York City sees a dip in new cases. Public health news is on smaller needles for vaccines, lab-grown mosquitoes, early menopause risks, inactive teens, recall of salad products, a safety bill for nurses, treatments for spinal cord injuries, and food shopping in crime-ridden areas.
Democratic Gov. Tom Wolf said the bill’s requirements were “not consistent with the fundamental rights” guaranteed by the Constitution’s 14th Amendment.
Stat hosted a summit for top executives and researchers, policymakers, and patient advocates to discuss the future of medicine and the pharmaceutical landscape.
Even those who have been prioritized with the most need are facing a daunting wait-list for care. “We need to help legislators understand in the long run it’s better to support these individuals now,” said Erin Suelmann, executive director of the Down Syndrome Association of Greater St. Louis. “It’s a moral issue, too. These are our most vulnerable population and we need to be caring for them.” Medicaid news comes out of Ohio, Colorado and Pennsylvania, as well.
Lawyers have determined that the Education Department could not legally move ahead with the automatic loan forgiveness until the agency first rewrote the regulations governing the program. Meanwhile, two marathon enthusiasts run to raise awareness for veteran suicide.
EPA Administrator Andrew Wheeler says the decision to weaken the Obama-era rule has to do with fears that terrorists could use the information required by the stricter rule to create a roadmap of where dangerous chemicals are stored. However, his predecessor suspended the rule in his first month on the job because companies complained it was too much of a burden on them. Meanwhile, prosecution of polluters has fallen to a quarter-century low during the Trump administration.
DOJ To Unveil Plan To Combat Chronic And Underreported Violence Against Native American Women
A report released last year found that there were 5,712 cases of missing and murdered indigenous girls in 2016, but only 116 of those cases were logged in a Justice Department database. The proposal includes a plan to hire coordinators across the country who would be responsible for developing protocols for a more coordinated law enforcement response to missing persons cases.
Here Are 31 Examples Of Times The Trump Administration Has Rolled Back LGBTQ Protections
ProPublica compiles a list of rules and changes made under President Donald Trump that affect the health and safety of LGBTQ Americans.
Ohio counties wrestle with how best to reunite families separated because of drug use following the deaths of at least a dozen children between 2014 and 2018 who were returned to their parents or caregivers. Meanwhile, a deal with drugmaker Insys and groups impacted by the opioid crisis continue to work toward a bankruptcy deal. And other news related to the national drug epidemic comes out of California and Maryland.
The Medicare plan finder’s issue stems from a significant change the agency made for 2020. The plan with the lowest premium now gets automatically placed on top, with the monthly premium displayed in large font. Medicare’s previous plan finder automatically sorted plans by total cost, not just premiums, because they are only one piece of information. Meanwhile, a new study shows that Medicare prescription plans are slower to cover new generics than private plans.
Another Vaping-Related Lung Disease Highlights The Unknown Dangers Of E-Cigarettes
The Canadian teen’s condition is in line with “popcorn lung” — named for factory workers who developed lung disease after breathing in heated flavouring — rather than the sticky lungs that have been seen with the EVALI cases, which are continuing to climb. In other news on the crisis: bans, Juul’s shrinking business, anti-vaping campaigns in the states and more.
The Democrats wrote a letter to the Trump administration pointing to an analysis that found that as many as 100,000 fewer people signed up on the first day of enrollment this year because of the technical glitches. Meanwhile, KHN offers advice on navigating open enrollment season.
First Edition: November 22, 2019
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Drug Deals And Food Gone Bad Plague Corner Stores. How Neighbors Are Fighting Back.
Corner stores that provide groceries for those using the federal food stamp program have become magnets for violence just outside St. Louis. Gunshots ring out under the cover of darkness, windows are postered over, and the quality of food doesn’t make a trip to the corner store worth the risk. Now local residents are putting their feet down.
Listen: Neighbors Take On Corner Stores Plagued By Violence, Spoiled Food
KHN Midwest correspondent Cara Anthony appeared on America’s Heroes Group radio show, Illinois Public Media’s “The 21st” and St. Louis Public Radio’s news magazine “St. Louis on the Air” to discuss how people in low-income neighborhoods are fighting back against crime and spoiled food at their local corner stores.
It’s Obamacare Season. Here’s What You Need To Know.
Despite repeated repeal efforts, the ACA is still intact — and with this year’s open enrollment, consumers can get some meaningful savings on coverage.
KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: The Health Care Campaign
Health care is still a top issue in the Democratic primary debate for president, but the candidates’ complicated plans may be doing more to confuse than to educate voters. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Caitlin Owens of Axios and Julie Appleby of Kaiser Health News join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss this and more health news. Also, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week.