Latest KFF Health News Stories
Media outlets report on news from North Dakota, New Mexico, California, Texas, New York, Georgia, Louisiana, Oregon and Colorado.
Drug Pricing Caught In Political Sniping Between Trump, Pelosi
A weekly round-up of stories related to pharmaceutical development and pricing.
Large Planned Parenthood Clinic Built In Secret Near Illinois-Missouri Border
Planned Parenthood says the new center will provide surgical abortions as well as “medication abortion and a full range of family planning services, including birth control, annual exams, cancer screenings, STI testing, and HIV prevention, including PrEP.” To avoid protests, construction of the 18,000-square-foot facility was carried out quietly in Fairview Heights, Ill. — which is 13 miles away from Missouri’s only abortion clinic. The women’s health organization legally challenged Missouri in court over measures that would have forced that St. Louis facility to close. News outlets also look at what the moves mean for residents in the region. Abortion-related news also comes from Georgia.
N.Y.’s Increase In Medicaid Payments To Hospitals Came After Industry Made Donation To Democrats
The New York Times reports that the hospital association donated more than $1 million to the state Democratic Party last year and shortly afterward the Cuomo administration quietly approved an increase in reimbursement rates for the first time since 2008. In other state Medicaid news, a former Republican official in Oklahoma changes his views on expanding the program, Tennessee residents raise questions about changes planned there and New Hampshire officials seek to avert problems on school Medicaid funding.
The FDA is challenging how the test was conducted that showed unsafe levels of a carcinogen, but in the meantime, Walmart has joined other major drug retailers no longer selling the drug.
BJC HealthCare In St. Louis Area Announces Plans To Raise Minimum Hourly Pay To $15, A 50% Increase
BJC HealthCare has 15 hospitals total, and 11 of them are located in the St. Louis region. About 3,500 employees, largely those in maintenance and patient transport, will see the increase, a spokeswoman said Wednesday. News on the health industry also looks at layoffs at skilled-nursing facilities and pension shortfalls at Catholic hospitals, as well.
Walmart Testing Program To Push Workers Toward Doctors Offering Higher-Quality Care
The giant retailer is contracting with a data analysis firm to come up with lists of physicians to recommend. Workers who go to those doctors will have lower out of pocket costs.
Utah is the most recent to put in place an emergency rule limiting the sale of e-cigarettes and requiring warnings about unregulated THC products. Meanwhile, bans in states such as Michigan, Massachusetts and Arkansas are facing legal challenges.
Vaping-Related Lung Damage Resembles Chemical Burn
Mayo Clinic researchers found this pattern in a study of 17 lung bioposies from patients from across the country who have suffered the mysterious lung injury. Researchers also found that the problems were less likely to be caused by fatty substances such as mineral oils. Other news outlets report on the question of what happens when people who vape or use e-cigarettes can no longer buy them.
A new report released by the National Center for Health Statistics on Thursday shows that the twin birthrate fell 4 percent from 2014 to 2018. The decrease occurred in only white women and women 30 or older, the biggest customers of expensive in vitro fertilization treatments, which are involved in roughly 15 percent of multiple births. A shift in the technology is probably leading to one-baby births, experts say.
Federal Judge Boosts The Position Of Supervised Injection Sites
The judge’s ruling in this case could have far-reaching implications for other jurisdictions interested in setting up such sites. The Justice Department, which filed the initial lawsuit against Philadelphia-based Safehouse, vowed to continue efforts to block other cities from opening injection sites, which its lawyers have argued are illegal.
Purdue, and members of the family that owns it, are pursuing a settlement to end more than 2,600 federal lawsuits and hundreds more in state courts.
Sen. Bernie Sanders Has Stents Inserted To Treat Heart Blockage, Postpones Campaign Events
Aides said the senator, who is a candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination, is in good spirits. The procedure is common and generally requires only a short recovery.
Trump Expected To Unveil Today Initiative To Expand Medicare Advantage Plans
The president reportedly will sign an executive order that the White House hopes will be a potent way to compare Republican views about enhancing health care with the “Medicare for All” proposals endorsed by some Democratic presidential candidates.
First Edition: October 3, 2019
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Tenn. Block Grant Experiment Would Boost Federal Funding, State Medicaid Chief Says
In a Q&A with Kaiser Health News, Tennessee Medicaid Director Gabe Roberts says state officials are requesting a modified block grant from federal officials because it would save money and allow the state to keep some of that savings.
When Masculinity Turns ‘Toxic’: A Gender Profile Of Mass Shootings
Men are far more likely than women to commit deadly mass shootings, both in California and across the nation. We break down the numbers — and ask experts why gender would have a role in indiscriminate violence.
Walmart To Give Workers Financial Incentives To Use Higher-Quality Doctors
The program, which will roll out next year in three parts of the country, seeks to encourage workers on the company’s health plan to choose doctors that have been identified as providing “appropriate, effective and cost-efficient care.”
Cirugías estéticas y el mundo secreto de las “muñecas de Instagram”
Se llaman a sí mismas muñecas. Son pacientes de cirugía estética que documentan sus deseos y resultados en Instagram. Una comunidad cerrada con mensajes médicos, pero también marketing.
Brechas profundas: fronteras estatales resaltan la enorme disparidad en Medicaid
Las fronteras estatales se han convertido en líneas divisorias arbitrarias entre los que tienen Medicaid y los que no, y los pacientes con problemas financieros similares enfrentan destinos de salud muy diferentes.