Latest KFF Health News Stories
What Does Quitting Opioids Actually Look Like Inside The Brain?
Scientists hope that studying the way the brain reacts during and after addiction will help them develop best practices for getting people to quit. In other news on the epidemic: debates about what to do with fentanyl; medication-assisted treatment; a decrease in opioid deaths; and more.
Thousands Of Clients’ Health Reports Exposed By DNA-Testing Service
The genealogy reports that were left accessible to the public included customers’ full names alongside dates of birth and gene-based health information. In other news, Stat helps answer questions on voice recognition technology in health care.
While praising the work, research groups stress the need to receive access to viral samples from the Democratic Republic of the Congo in order to speed up treatments. Public health news is also on uterine transplants, best music for high-intensity workouts, bed bug vigilance, treatment for peanut allergies, harms from vaping and transgender health.
California already covers low-income children regardless of immigration status, but now has become the first state in the country do go further to young adults. Meanwhile, the Democratic debate thrust the issue into the national spotlight after the candidates showed support for expanding health care coverage for everyone in the country. Meanwhile, border arrests are finally dropping, but still remain high.
Republican Governor Chris Sununu’s announcement came on the same day that lawyers in a federal case that could overturn the Affordable Care Act hold oral arguments.
CDC Urges Doctors To Report Early Cases Of ‘Devastating’ Polio-Like Illness In Children
Since 2014 there have been 570 cases of acute flaccid myelitis, or AFM, that leaves otherwise healthy children with weak limbs. The agency is urging doctors to quickly recognize and report the illness to health officials to help unravel the mysteries of AFM. It appears to peak every two years from August through October. 2018 saw the biggest outbreak with more than 200 cases.
An array of proposals were on the agenda, but lawmakers put off dealing with any of them until at least November, with the Republican speaker of the House blasting Gov. Ralph Northam’s move as “just an election year stunt.”
The study also found that two-thirds of the attackers suffered from mental health problems. “We want the community to know prevention is everyone’s responsibility,” said Lina Alathari, the chief of the Secret Service National Threat Assessment Center. “Not just law enforcement.”
Women Who Get An Abortion Today Are Far More Likely To Be Poor Than In Decades Past
The data highlight the fact that it is lower-income women who are affected the most as states continue adding more and more stringent regulations to the procedure. One of the reasons for the change could be that financially secure women might have more access to contraception. But it may also be because there are currently more financial resources for low-income women to pay for abortion.
Major health care players have a large interest in the outcome of any legislation on surprise medical bills, and they’re making their voices heard to lawmakers. The rumbles are creating fault lines for senators, who are all largely in favor of acting in some way to address the issue.
President Donald Trump will sign an executive order with proposals to keep people with kidney disease off dialysis longer and make treatment less expensive; encourage more live donations of kidneys and livers; and force the 58 nonprofit groups that collect transplant organs to improve their performance, according to news reports.
The Trump administration’s openness to the idea serves as the latest evidence that it has become increasingly reliant on Capitol Hill for a victory on drug costs. Top officials are scrambling after a court blocked an administration rule that would have required drugmakers to include prescription prices in its ads.
During closely watched oral arguments over the constitutionality of the health law, a federal appeals court voiced skepticism that a central feature of the Affordable Care Act is constitutional, though it appeared to struggle with whether that meant the legislation should be struck down in its entirety. Media outlets take readers inside the courtroom for the play-by-play. Meanwhile, what will happen if the law is struck down? The potential headaches go beyond the big headlines about loss of coverage to calorie information on menus, lactation rooms, and more.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
‘An Arm And A Leg’: The Full Story Of Insulin And Its Cost ― No Sugarcoating It
Skipping meals. Rationing medicine to make it last. The high cost of insulin has pushed some people with diabetes to make hard choices. Hear about insulin’s backstory and the hacks that might make it affordable.
How To Get A Cheaper Prescription Before Leaving The Doctor’s Office
A pricing tool embedded in their electronic health record and prescribing system lets doctors see how much patients will pay out-of-pocket based on their insurance and the pharmacy. But doctors have been slow to adopt the technology, which has limitations.
Watch: High Cost Of Insulin Sends Americans To Canada To Stock Up
KHN, in collaboration with PBS NewsHour, reports on the skyrocketing cost of insulin — and the trend’s deadly consequences. The price in the U.S. nearly doubled from 2012 to 2016, prompting some patients and activists to travel to Canada, where insulin can be 90% cheaper.
With ACA’s Future In Peril, California Reins In Rising Health Insurance Premiums
Premiums will grow by an average of 0.8% next year on the state health insurance exchange. Officials cite two new policies for the relatively low rate hike: a new state tax penalty on Californians who don’t have health insurance coupled with state-based tax credits to help enrollees afford their premiums, including middle-income people who make too much money to qualify for federal financial aid.
Listen: Black Pharmacists Are Helping Close A Cultural Health Care Divide
KHN Midwest correspondent Cara Anthony is interviewed on Illinois Public Media’s “The 21st” by Niala Boodhoo about how black pharmacists are helping fill a void for African American patients seeking culturally competent care.
Read recent commentaries about drug-cost issues.