Latest KFF Health News Content

Latest KFF Health News Stories

Facebook Live: Inclusive Care at the End of Life: The LGBTQ+ Experience

KFF Health News Original

For a generation of LGBTQ+ people who lived through unprecedented social change, getting older poses new challenges. When it comes to seeking elder care, concerns about lack of services, discrimination, neglect and even abuse threaten to reverse recent progress.

Louisiana Lawmakers Propose Expanding Medicaid Program To Help Families Of Children With Disabilities

Morning Briefing

The expanded coverage would cost an estimated $14 million in the upcoming budget year. The House voted 98-0 for the proposal Monday, sending it to the Senate. Other news on Medicaid comes from New Hampshire and Connecticut, as well.

New Restrictive Opioid Guidelines Led To Serious Withdrawal Symptoms, Suicide For Some Chronic Pain Patients

Morning Briefing

Federal agencies have since issued warnings that the guidance has been taken too far in some cases and that providers should be careful from completely cutting off patients’ medication. Other news on the crisis comes out of Tennessee and Minnesota.

40 Percent Of Rural Americans Financially Struggle With Routine Medical Bills, Housing And Food

Morning Briefing

Access to health care is also an issue a new poll finds. One-quarter of respondents said they have not been able to get medical services when they needed it at some point in recent years. “At a time when we thought we had made major progress in reducing barriers to needed health care, the fact that 1 in 4 still face these barriers is an issue of national concern,” Robert J. Blendon, co-director of the survey and professor of health policy and political analysis at the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, tells NPR.

California Governor, Legislature Headed For Showdown Over Coverage For Undocumented Immigrants

Morning Briefing

California lawmakers want to expand coverage to everyone in the state, regardless of immigration status, but Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-Calif.) says that expanding Medi-Cal to all adults over 25, who typically have higher health care costs than the young, could be financially unsustainable. The disagreement between the governor and Assembly members from his party is a rare one.

‘We Have A Lousy System Of Care’: Access To Treatment Isn’t Keeping Up With Nation’s Skyrocketing Teen Suicide Rate

Morning Briefing

Children and teens are regularly waiting days in emergency rooms before a bed opens up in hospital psychiatric units. Adult and child psychiatrists alike are in short supply because the field is one of the lowest-paying medical specialties. And depression among teens is only getting worse. In other public health news: CBD supplements, incompetence, PTSD, obesity, and more.

Beyond The Anti-Vaccination Movement: Poverty Plays A Role In Kids Not Getting Their Shots

Morning Briefing

Although much of the outbreak conversation has focused around ideological and religious exemptions, doctors say a critical piece of the puzzle is being ignored. “We see large coverage gaps among children who are living below the poverty line compared to those at or above poverty and among children who have no insurance,” says Dr. Holly Hill, a medical officer and epidemiologist at the CDC. “The highest disparity is among the uninsured compared to those with private insurance.” Meanwhile, the number of measles cases continues to rise across the country.

In Big Win For Merck, Supreme Court Tosses Ruling That Would Have Revived Hundreds Of Lawsuits Against Drugmaker

Morning Briefing

The justices want a federal appeals court to reconsider its 2018 ruling that allowed the lawsuits to proceed. The ruling centers around accusations that Merck didn’t properly warn patients about thigh-bone fractures linked to one of its popular drugs. In other news from the Supreme Court, the justices decline to hear a military medical malpractice suit.

5th Migrant Child To Die In U.S. Custody Was Held At Border Detention Facility Twice As Long As Law Permits

Morning Briefing

Advocates have been vocal in their criticism of the Trump administration’s failure to ensure the health and safety of the youth detainees, a point driven home by the fifth death of a child in the past several months. “We should all be outraged and demand that those responsible for his well-being be held accountable,” said Efrén Olivares, a lawyer with the Texas Civil Rights Project.