Latest KFF Health News Stories
HHS Hands Out Free HIV Prevention Drugs. Do You Qualify?
Called “Ready, Set, PrEP,” the federal program will provide medication that can reduce the chances of getting AIDS to at-risk patients who don’t have insurance.
An Atlanta Nonprofit Brings Medical Care And Connection To The Homeless
“Street medicine” programs seek out people living in back alleys and under highways. It’s a public health approach designed to build trust and eventually connect homeless patients to other services.
Anthem Blue Cross Gets Flagged And Fined More Than Other Insurers
Anthem Blue Cross has received a disproportionate share of violations and fines from California’s largest health insurance regulator, mostly related to its mishandling of patient grievances.
Candidatos apuestan fuerte por la salud. ¿Es lo que los votantes realmente quieren?
Una nueva encuesta revela que los votantes sí quieren que se hable de salud. Pero la pregunta del millón es: ¿apoyarán en las urnas un “Medicare para Todos”?.
Opinion writers weigh in on these health issues and others.
Opinion writers focus on ways to improve health care.
Media outlets report on news from Idaho, Georgia, New York, Colorado, Illinois, Florida, Wisconsin, Ohio, Minnesota, and Washington.
State fire investigators had previously determined that PG&E equipment started the Camp Fire, which killed 85 people. But the new report goes beyond that, alleging numerous serious violations of state rules for maintaining electric lines and specific problems with upkeep of the transmission line that started the fire.
Too often suicide attempts and deaths by suicide, especially among the young, become family secrets that are not dealt with in ways that might helps others, according to mental health specialists. Public heath news is on rising prediabetes rates among the young, HIV treatment efforts, millennials stepping up as caregivers, and chewing gum coming to the rescue, as well.
Quartz Countertops Can Be Perfectly Safe If Made Following Regulations. But That Can Be A Big If.
The dust that can arise when the countertop is cut wrong can lead to severe lung disease or even death. In other environmental health news: air pollution, climate change and superfund sites.
Glitch With Diabetes Monitors Drives Home Dangers Of Depending On Technology
One of the selling points of these particular diabetes monitors is that they allow people other than the person with diabetes — like the parent of a young child — to receive alerts when blood sugar drops too low. But in recent days, those alerts stopped working.
Rhode Island is the only state in New England, and among a minority nationally, that allows non-paramedics to intubate patients. The practice has led to 12 patient deaths in the past two years, as air is pumped into their stomach instead of their lungs. But first responders say limiting who can intubate patients would result in more deaths.
Following a years-long court battle, Stat obtained documents from the early days of the opioid crisis that reveal what was going on behind the scenes at OxyContin-maker Purdue Pharma. Meanwhile, in other news from the opioid crisis: advocates worry stigma over drug use will stand in the way of compensation for those who have been harmed; pain doctors stay busy during the epidemic; drugs in schools; and meth.
“I’m very disappointed that industry was able to elbow its way into the discussion and hold up the ban,” said Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.) of reports that the vaping industry influenced President Donald Trump’s retreat on the issue. “Our children are not for sale.” In other vaping news: life insurance, a rise in arrests across U.S., and taxes.
Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer, a Democrat, is worried about coverage losses seen in other states. But the Republican-controlled Legislature would have to agree to the pause.
Could Supreme Court’s First Major Gun Case In Nearly A Decade Be Dismissed As Moot?
Although the case is being closely watched, much of the arguments focus on whether the court should even decide the merits of the legal challenge because New York City eliminated the limits that are central to the case.
Lawmakers, Medical Groups, Lawyers Urge Supreme Court To Block Strict Louisiana Abortion Law
The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral arguments in March on the state’s new requirements around abortion providers’ admitting privileges to hospitals. “Laws regulating abortion should be evidence-based and supported by a valid medical justification,” the medical groups wrote to the court. A similar Texas law was ruled unconstitutional, put the political make-up of the high court has shifted since that decision.
State Lawmakers’ Op-Eds Provide Glimpse Inside Lobbying Machine Working Against ‘Medicare For All’
The revelation that lobbyists helped draft or made edits to the lawmakers’ opinion pieces shows that critics of “Medicare for All” are investing time and energy beyond the presidential debate over the policy issue.
The public option, of course, would be less disruptive than getting rid of private insurance all together, but an inexpensive and attractive plan could still shake up the industry landscape. Meanwhile, former Vice President Joe Biden says 2020 rival Pete Buttigieg “stole” his health care plan.
First Edition: December 3, 2019
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.