Latest KFF Health News Stories
Insurers, employers and labor unions oppose the method, but providers favor it. With so many powerful stakeholders involved, lawmakers are being bombarded with opinions on the matter. Meanwhile, at the state level, Kansas is also taking aim at surprise medical costs.
Gilead Bulks Up Operations In Case Its Promising Drug Proves Effective Against COVID-19
Gilead invented remdesivir several years ago and first developed it to treat Ebola. Although the treatment proved less effective than others in fighting Ebola, company researchers working with academic scientists found that remdesivir was effective in treating mice infected with another coronavirus. Meanwhile, other doctors and researchers are searching for existing drugs in hopes that they’ll land on one that’s effective against COVID-19.
Employers Tip Toe Around Requests From Younger Workers Seeking Help For Mental Health Conditions
Because they might have received treatment or special arrangements in school, a generation with a higher rate of mental health challenges wants the same accommodations at work. Businesses are weighing how to respond, a Wall Street Journal story reports. Public health news also looks at the backstory on the fly emoji, insulin pump recall, car booster seat probe, babies’ sleep schedules, early signs for altruistic behavior, childhood poisonings, easing childbirth pain with virtual reality, and longevity tips from the world’s oldest man.
Health care provided by school nurses falls outside the the privacy protections that protect other health data. That can lead to school officials and others having access to more medical information than parents realize.
Bayer Is Facing Tens Of Thousands Of Roundup Cancer Suits. But It Still Has A Product To Sell, Too.
Past mass-litigation suits often resulted in a company discontinuing their product, changing it, or adding a warning label. None of the options are workable for Bayer, who is still arguing that its weedkiller is safe, and so the company is stuck in a bind. “I don’t know how they can insulate themselves from future liability,” said Carl Tobias, a University of Richmond law professor.
The suit, filed by Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey, presents some of the starkest evidence to date that the company was targeting young, nonsmokers during its launch period.
Nevada’s Culinary Workers Union said that its members have been the subject of attacks “simply because our union has provided facts on what certain health care proposals might do.” Labor unions have spent years negotiating high quality, union-backed health care plans they fear will be snatched from them if a single-payer model is adopted. The state holds its presidential caucuses next week.
CDC Director Robert Redfield says it’s likely the U.S. is going to see human-to-human transmission and thus more cases of the coronavirus. “We’re not going to be able to seal this virus from coming into this country,” Redfield said. Meanwhile, the CDC says that some coronavirus testing kits that have been sent to states are flawed. And a 14th person tests positive for coronavirus.
Critics question WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus deferentially lauding China and calling on other countries not to cut off travel and trade. Some experts say that while praising China’s response so strongly, the WHO is compromising its own epidemic response standards and sending the wrong message to other countries that might face future epidemics. Meanwhile, an infectious disease expert says the outbreak is “just beginning” outside of China.
It wasn’t a sudden spike of cases that led to the increase but rather a change in the diagnostic criteria being used. The eye-popping numbers highlight how hard it has been for Chinese officials to get accurate counts in the outbreak, especially considering more than 80% of the confirmed cases have been mild. Meanwhile, two Communist Party leaders were ousted following the announcement of the new numbers.
First Edition: February 13, 2020
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
No Quick Fix: Missouri Finds Managing Pain Without Opioids Isn’t Fast Or Easy
In the first nine months of an alternative pain management program in Missouri, only a small fraction of the state’s Medicaid recipients have accessed the chiropractic care, acupuncture, physical therapy and cognitive-behavioral therapy meant to combat the overprescription of opioids.
To Fight Chinese Outbreak, Doctors Deploy Drugs Targeting HIV, Malaria And Ebola
Chinese doctors and public health officials are turning to a variety of drugs as they seek an effective treatment for patients sickened by the novel coronavirus. The evidence behind some of these medicines is flimsy, researchers acknowledge, but human trials are the only way to know whether these drugs work.
Opinion writers weigh in on these health care issues and others.
Media outlets report on news from Virginia, Idaho, Colorado, Utah, California, Minnesota, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Illinois, Connecticut, Indiana, North Carolina, Louisiana, Iowa and Missouri.
Being unable to provide themselves with food, follow medication schedules and maintain homes are growing problems for the elderly, according to HHS. Public health news is on epilepsy, breastfeeding, obesity, risks of parabens, sugary drinks, rare childhood cancer, teen depression, skin lightening, miscarriages, longevity and exercise, heart disease symptoms in women, and stroke recovery, as well.
“Folks are desperate to do something,” says Lily Eskelsen García, president of the National Education Association. “And what happens when you’re not sure what that something is, is you just make stuff up.”
Since Roe V. Wade Was Decided, Louisiana Has Passed 89 Anti-Abortion Bills
A new study looks at which states have most aggressively tried to legislate abortion since it was made legal in 1973. Indiana came in second to Louisiana with 63 measures. Meanwhile, in Kansas, a Republican state lawmaker has accused the governor of personally pressuring Democrats to vote “against their own faith” on an abortion amendment.
In November, 75 days before North Carolina was set to abandon its fee-for-service Medicaid model and essentially turn the management of the $14 billion annual program to managed care companies that had been awarded contracts, the state secretary of Health and Human Services put on the brakes. Lawmakers along with the governor are trying to figure out what comes next. Medicaid news comes out of Missouri, as well.
Even When Patients Plan Ahead A Significant Number Can Be Walloped By Surprise Medical Bills
A new survey that examines how Americans are effected by surprise medical bills finds a slight decline in the number of people worrying about the issue, but far less of a dip than there has been in the past. Meanwhile, Congress continues to work on legislation to address the problem, but with so many powerful stakeholders with strong opinions, progress is slow.