Latest KFF Health News Content

Latest KFF Health News Stories

A Grandchild’s Death, Road Wrecks: Human Peril Tied To Those Super-Fast Amazon Deliveries

Morning Briefing

A ProPublica-New York Times investigation looks at the dangers created by the next-day deliveries. In other public health news: rear-seat alerts in cars; urban heat climates; food stamp losses; cyberbullying safeguards; skin picking; and genital mutilation.

Amid Climbing Cases, Deaths Of Vaping-Related Lung Illness, Sen. Wyden Reveals Plan To Tax E-Cigarettes

Morning Briefing

“A new generation of nicotine users has essentially been created almost overnight,’’ said Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Oregon). Wyden who is the ranking member of the Senate Finance Committee, said he would introduce legislation next week to help combat the problem. Across the country, more states confirm cases of the mysterious lung illness that seems to be linked to vaping.

Unheeded Warnings And Aggressive Marketing: In Australia’s Ballooning Opioid Epidemic Advocates See Echoes Of America’s Crisis

Morning Briefing

Like in the United States, many health experts’ warnings fell on deaf ears in the Australian government. Now the country is facing a similar epidemic to America’s. “I was screaming from the mountaintops after Jon died and I’d started doing my research. And it was like I’m screaming and nobody wants to hear me,” says Jasmin Raggam, whose brother Jon died in 2014, a sentiment that sounds all too familiar to many caught in the U.S. crisis. In other news on the epidemic: fentanyl, fraud, DEA’s footprints, and more.

Insurers Face $15.5B Bill If Health Law Tax Resumes As Planned In 2020

Morning Briefing

The annual fee on insurers was suspended by Congress in 2019 out of concern for consumers’ out-of-pocket costs. Insurance premiums are likely to rise by more than 2% in 2020 if the IRS implements the tax as planned, the new report warned. Health law and state insurance news comes out of Texas, Connecticut, Minnesota, California, Ohio and Tennessee, as well.

Advocates Want Missouri Voters To Weigh In On Whether State Should Expand Medicaid

Morning Briefing

Backers of Medicaid expansion in other states have seen success in previous elections when the issue goes in front of voters. The campaign, which is backed by nurses, doctors, hospitals, business executives and health care advocates, needs more than 172,000 signatures to qualify their measure for the 2020 ballot. Other Medicaid news comes out of Florida.

With New App, Planned Parenthood Hopes To Reach Patients In Rural Areas Effected By Politics Of Abortion Wars

Morning Briefing

Republican efforts to chip away at the organization have gained ground under the Trump administration, and so Planned Parenthood has launched a telemedicine push to try to keep reaching rural patients, who are often the most effected by new restrictions. The app, called Planned Parenthood Direct, lets patients use a smartphone to request birth control delivered to their door, obtain prescription treatment for urinary-tract infections or make an appointment at a Planned Parenthood clinic.

$2B In Federal Grants To Fight Opioid Epidemic Doled Out To ‘Communities Where Help Is Most Needed’

Morning Briefing

President Donald Trump said the funds will go to state and local governments to be used to increase medication-assisted treatment as well as mental health services. Regional news coverage reports on how much certain states will receive.

Judge Who Slowed Down CVS-Aetna Merger Now OKs Deal, Dismissing Concerns That It Will Hurt Competitiveness

Morning Briefing

U.S. District Judge Richard Leon’s decision not to just rubber-stamp the merger had thrown a dark cloud over the deal in recent months. But he ruled that the opponents’ arguments were unpersuasive, saying that the health care markets at issue in the case “are not only very competitive today, but are likely to remain so post-merger.”

‘Every Heartbeat Hurts’: Inspector General Report Details Amplified Trauma For Immigrant Kids Separated From Families

Morning Briefing

The report from HHS’ internal watchdog found that children separated from their families under the Trump administration’s “zero tolerance” policy did not receive adequate mental health care while in U.S. custody. Some children refused to eat or participate in shelter activities. Some cried inconsolably. Many believed their parents abandoned them or were killed, the report states. The report made six recommendations to improve conditions, including limiting the amount of time children are held.

Judge Blasts Mississippi’s Mental Health System Saying State Violated Federal Civil Rights Laws

Morning Briefing

“Despite the state’s episodic improvement, it operates a system that unlawfully discriminates against persons with serious mental illness,” said U.S. District Judge Carlton W. Reeves in his 61-page report. Reeves ordered both the U.S. Department of Justice, which brought the lawsuit in 2016, and the state of Mississippi to submit names of potential special masters to oversee improvements within 30 days.

Obesity Rate Among Navy Sailors Climbs Despite Efforts By Military To Reduce Bad Foods, Support Exercise Habits

Morning Briefing

A decade ago, when the military began to see weight as a growing problem throughout the armed forces, it deployed countermeasures. Gym hours at bases were expanded. More unit-wide workouts were scheduled. French fries were curtailed in the mess halls. But the problem has only worsened, especially for the Navy. In other military health news, The Washington Post fact checks former Vice President Joe Biden’s statistics on veteran suicide.

This Dark Corner Of The Internet Celebrates Mass Shootings, Creating A Hateful Culture That Breeds Gunmen

Morning Briefing

These online forums, like 8chan, that extol shooters, mass violence, and other toxic ideals are becoming a battleground for law enforcement to find the next possible threats to public safety. But the anonymity in which they thrive can make the process difficult. Meanwhile, in other gun violence news: San Francisco designates the NRA a “domestic terrorist organization”; President Donald Trump hints at a coming proposal; active shooting drills becoming a frightening norm for school kids; politicians in red states walk a careful regulation line; and more.

Jockeying For Top Spot At FDA Intensifies With Acting Commissioner, Texas Oncologist Emerging As Contenders

Morning Briefing

Supporters say there’s no better man for the job than the one currently filling it — acting FDA Chief Norman “Ned” Sharpless. But people familiar with the process say Stephen Hahn of the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston may have caught the Trump administration’s eye.

Back To School 2019: Backpack, Lunchbox And A Drug Test

KFF Health News Original

As schools begin a new year, more districts will test students as young as 11 for illicit drug use even as other drug prevention efforts are scaled back. More than 1 in 3 school districts nationwide give students drug tests.