Latest KFF Health News Stories
Overturning the Affordable Care Act would eliminate several taxes created to help pay for the law’s expansion, including a 0.9% Medicare tax on single Americans who earn more than $200,000 a year or couples who make $250,000. A court decision is expected soon on the constitutionality of the law.
‘Not Watertight’: Stricter Vaccine Law In California Will Have Limited Impact By 2027, Study Says
Researchers project that under the law — which bars parents from citing personal beliefs as a reason for not vaccinating children — 1.87% of children will remain unvaccinated compared to 2.36% without the law. Meanwhile, across the country there is an increase among parents citing religious objections to vaccinations.
Hospitals, Doctors Relying On Rationing Amid Severe Shortage Of Lifesaving Immune Globulin
Manufacturers say the current shortage is among the worst they have experienced since the popular, wide-ranging treatment came to market. In other pharmaceutical news: Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) touts value-based payments for cutting drug costs; a new approach to gene therapy offers tentative hope; a controversy arises over a pre-term birth medication; and more.
Why Can’t Health Officials Figure Out The Mysterious Vaping Illness?
Despite hundreds of cases, health officials are still stumped. Meanwhile players in the industry have opinions on what to do to curb e-cigarette use and addiction in young people. And issues related to vaping or tobacco are reflected on the 2019 ballots in California and Massachusetts, as well.
Abortion Fight Front And Center On Election Day In Kentucky, Virginia
The gubernatorial and legislative elections in these states could hinge on the debate over abortion as the country’s attention is increasingly focused on the issue. Other news on abortion comes out of New Hampshire, Oklahoma, South Carolina, California and Florida.
The plan from Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) includes work or volunteer requirements despite troubles other states are experiencing with such measures. Supporters of a full Medicaid expansion under the health law estimated it could cover about 500,000 Georgia residents, while the governor’s office envisions this limited expansion will cover around 52,000 people in its fifth year.
Warren’s Numbers Do Add Up, But They Rely On Everything Going Perfectly To Plan
The Washington Post Fact Checker takes a deep dive into the “Medicare for All” cost analysis offered by experts and Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.). Critics continue to focus on the assumptions — such as getting hospitals accepting near-Medicare rates from all patients — that the proposal relies on. If those fall apart, so does the plan.
First Edition: November 5, 2019
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
As Congress Works To Curb Surprise Medical Bills, N.Y.’s Fix Gets Examined
A USC-Brookings analysis finds that the New York plan to resolve disputes between providers and insurers without leaving patients on the hook might actually be driving up costs in the system.
FDA Keeps Brand-Name Drugs On A Fast Path To Market ― Despite Manufacturing Concerns
The agency approved Gilead’s “game changer” hepatitis C cure, bypassing concerns raised by its own federal inspectors.
Record Number Of Legionnaires’ Cases In 2018 Risk Lives, Cause Cleanup Headaches
Legionnaires’ disease cases hit an all-time high in 2018, with eight times more cases than 20 years ago. Even though many facilities in Missouri and elsewhere have water management plans in place to deal with the potentially deadly disease, they are still finding the underlying bacteria that causes it in their water.
Fumar vs vapear. Investigadora dice que no es una comparación correcta
Los productos para vapear exponen a los consumidores a productos químicos de una manera fundamentalmente diferente, dice experta.
Warren’s Plan On ‘Medicare For All’ Could Raise Concerns Among Health Providers
KHN’s Julie Rovner was featured on NPR’s “Weekend Edition” and MSNBC’s “Kasie DC” show over the weekend to talk about Democratic presidential candidate Elizabeth Warren’s plan to fund “Medicare for All.”
As UVA Scales Back Lawsuits, Pain For Past Patients Persists
Patients were thrilled last month when UVA announced it would scale back lawsuits and provide more financial assistance, but the excitement has waned.
Una sola carta sin entregar puede implicar perder Medicaid
Medicaid y otros programas de beneficios públicos han evitado el camino hacia la comunicación digital y continúan operando en gran medida en un mundo basado en papel.
Opinion writers weigh in on these health issues and others.
Editorial pages focus on the plan Elizabeth Warren released on funding “Medicare For All”.
Media outlets report on news from Massachusetts, California, Illinois, Wisconsin, Pennsylvania, Kansas, Louisiana, Idaho, and Iowa.
Ilana Yurkiewicz, a physician and medical journalist at Stanford University, explains why CAR-T is only used in patients with certain cancers and tries to answer why they haven’t yet been shown to work against solid tumors in an UnDark article. Public health news is on breast cancer tests, fecal matter transplants, Zantac recalls, white male life expectancy, skin rashes, growing up with HIV, a retracted HIV study, live-streaming a mammogram, and how to get a good night’s sleep, as well.
The administrators of Lauren Bard’s health plan assured her three days after the early birth of her daughter that the baby was covered. But she didn’t realize she would need to be enrolled through the website within 31 days of the birth.