Latest KFF Health News Stories
What harm, if any, is caused by systemic exposure to the chemicals remains unclear, according to the study. But the FDA is asking sunscreen manufacturers to research the effects.
Beneath The Bright, Tantalizing Promises Of Stem Cell Industry Festers A Dark Underbelly
Alongside legitimate, scientifically proven treatments, an industry has sprung up in which largely unregulated, specialized clinics offer unproven “miracle” remedies from poorly understood stem cell products. In other public health news: strokes, conference room air, heart failure, anesthesia, food safety and more.
“With all honesty, we are in the early stages” of applying artificial intelligence to cancer care and research, said Dr. Bernardo Goulart, lead author of the study. Other news on technology and health looks at future challenges of certifying devices, data breaches, patients rights and social care networks.
CMS wants to make it easier for insurers to sell across state lines, but those companies say it’s not regulations that are stopping them. “These states have each taken a different approach, none of which has, to date, resulted in insurers offering comprehensive health insurance in a state in which it is not licensed,” the National Association of Insurance Commissioners said in a comment letter. “This shows that the impediments to interstate sales are not in federal law but are inherent in the business of health insurance.” In other health law and insurance news: accountable care organizations, preexisting conditions protections, and enrollment.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Meth Vs. Opioids: America Has Two Drug Epidemics, But Focuses On One
In the West and Midwest, 70% of local law enforcement says meth is the bigger threat. It’s also a more difficult addiction to treat.
El largo y sinuoso camino para conseguir atención de salud mental infantil
Los Estados Unidos se enfrentan a una creciente escasez de profesionales de salud mental capacitados para trabajar con jóvenes, en un momento en que la depresión y la ansiedad están en aumento.
Opinion writers weigh in on these health topics and others.
Public health officials are turning toward members of the ultra-Orthodox Jewish community at the heart of the outbreak for help on how to stop it. “Simple education in a respectful, hand-holding manner really is going a lot further than anything else so far,” said Blima Marcus, a 34-year-old oncology nurse practitioner who is also a member of the community. In other news on the outbreaks: doctors are tapping into medical records to help stop the spread of the disease, adults may need to consider getting another shot, and readers talk about how their lives have been effected by the outbreak.
“Our findings provide conclusive evidence for gay men that the risk of HIV transmission with suppressive ART is zero,” said Alison Rodger, a professor at University College London who co-led the research.
Nobody Likes Being Lectured: Why Health Advice That Comes Out As ‘You Should’ Isn’t Paying Off
Physician Perri Klass weighs in with ideas explaining how lecturing patients about complicated attitudes surrounding eating, sleeping and exercising doesn’t usually work and using motivational tools do help. In other public health news: travelers’ illnesses, autism, obesity, cancer care, stress, sex, Ebola and more.
Ovid Therapeutics’ drug for Angelman syndrome–a rare cognitive disease that currently has no treatment–saw a glimmer of success in a very small trial. The drug had beaten the placebo on only one metric and failed on a full 16 others, including measures of quality of life and ability to sleep. To investors, the ostensibly positive data looked cherry-picked. In other news at the convergence of pharma and public health: Alzheimer’s, dengue fever, superbugs, statins and more.
Media outlets report on news from Arizona, Connecticut, Minnesota, New York, New Jersey, Alabama, Florida, Michigan, California, Iowa, Maryland, New Hampshire and Ohio.
Health Care Hiring Dips In April On The Heels Of Unusually Strong March Report
As usual, most healthcare hiring took place in the ambulatory sector, which grew by 17,200 jobs.
Editorial pages focus on the costs of health care and its role in the economy.
Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) is one of several 2020 presidential contenders co-sponsoring the “Medicare for All” bill introduced by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). But he added caveats to that support in an interview over the weekend.
The Justice Department’s draft proposal is based on a similar plan by the Department of Homeland Security to significantly broaden the definition of what it means to be a public charge. According to federal policy, many permanent residents do not qualify for public benefits unless they have had a green card for five years, making it unlikely they could be targeted for deportation on the basis of “public charge” even under the draft rule. But dozens of states have looser rules. Meanwhile, former Chief of Staff John F. Kelly joins the board of a company that runs the Florida facility that’s drawn controversy over the health of and quality of care for its detainees.
The Trump administration has been studying whether it legally can allow states this leeway, and Democratic lawmakers have vowed to fight block grants if CMS approves them. Critics say that shifting to block grants would leave states with little option other than to slash Medicaid enrollment and benefits. News on Medicaid comes out of Kansas and Iowa, as well.
The upcoming trial will be the first in the United States to result from about 2,000 lawsuits seeking to hold painkiller manufacturers responsible for contributing to the opioid epidemic. In the trial that will be televised live, Oklahoma state lawyers will argue that, until 2016, two of the company’s subsidiaries grew, improved and provided the narcotic ingredients for much of the U.S. prescription opioid supply, failing to intervene as the drugs’ damage grew, and that it targeted children with its marketing. In other news on the drug crisis: jails and addiction medication, nurses’ authority, overdose deaths and more.
Although much of the focus of the Title X funding debate has been on Planned Parenthood, the changes are also roiling the antiabortion movement, as well. That’s because under both the current and proposed Trump administration rules, Title X grantees must offer a “broad” range of birth control options, including hormonal contraception. In other news coming out of the administration: NIH reverses its position on blocking doctors from speaking to investigators; the VA suggests drastic cuts to federally funded union time; and the FDA is shutting down a controversial medical device program.