Latest KFF Health News Stories
The report from the Government Accountability Office will likely be used by Democrats in the upcoming midterms to support their message that the Trump administration is undermining the health law. But the GAO also credited the government’s efforts to reduce call center wait times and stabilize the ACA website. Meanwhile, HHS approves Maryland’s request to created a reinsurance program in an effort to curb high premiums.
First Edition: August 23, 2018
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
A Late-Life Surprise: Taking Care Of Frail, Aging Parents
More and more older adults, age 60 and older, care for their elderly parents and face physical, emotional and financial stress.
A Black Eye For Blue Shield: Consumers Lash Out Over Coverage Lapses
California’s third-largest insurer faces anger from customers in the individual market who unexpectedly lost their insurance despite paying premiums faithfully. In its recently filed lawsuit, the company blamed a contractor for “egregious” billing problems.
Editorial pages focus on these health issues and others.
Perspectives: CVS Plan Lets Pharma Off Easy; What To Do With Prescription-Drug Middlemen
Read recent commentaries about drug-cost issues.
Trump Administration Sends Up Mixed Signals On Drug Pricing, PBM Plans
News outlets report on stories related to pharmaceutical pricing.
Media outlets also report on other news from Texas, Florida, California, Montana, Missouri, Ohio, Georgia, Wisconsin, Tennessee, Kansas and Nevada.
Each day, Karina Garcia has to take her son Jojo, a 19-year-old with severe epilepsy, off school grounds to squirt a dose of cannabis oil into his mouth, then return him to school for his special education classes. In Massachusetts, the state Department of Public Health backs away from settling a fight over medical marijuana quality testing. And in Florida, Wells Fargo closes the account of a medical marijuana-supporting candidate.
Hospital Closures May Accelerate With 8% At Risk, Leaving More Patients Farther From Care
Currently 30 hospitals a year are shutting down across the U.S., Bloomberg reports. That number could increase, according to a Morgan Stanley analysis, with facilities in rural areas are particularly at risk. More hospital news also comes out of Texas, Minnesota and Denver.
Mass. Nurses Point Finger At Hospital Execs In Fight Over Nurse Staffing
The fight is headed to the ballot in November. Massachusetts voters will decide whether to impose limits on the number of patients assigned to hospital nurses, a measure that hospital executives oppose. “Hospital executives are the ones who have ignored nurses’ concerns, claiming a lack of resources for safe patient care, while pocketing seven-figure salaries,” said Donna Kelly-Williams, president of the Massachusetts Nurses Association.
Ohio Gov. Kasich Touts Medicaid Report Showing Expansion Cut State’s Uninsured Rate By Half
Ohio’s Medicaid expansion is among the outgoing governor’s signature achievements. He is using this report as well as stories from people who have gained coverage to shore up support for it before he leaves office.
Meanwhile, government officials from a collection of more than a dozen states that supported Obama era regulations vow to file court challenges to the administration’s changes. Other reports on environmental news include warnings about the health toxins caused by wildfires in the West and improving air quality in Minnesota.
Health Advisers Include New Options For Life-Saving Cervical Cancer Screening
Because most cervical cancer is caused by the human papillomavirus, the US Preventive Services Task Force says women ages 30-65 now have the choice to get an HPV test every five years, a Pap test every three years or a combination of both tests every five years. Also in women’s health news: a bill is being introduced to address the disparity in maternal health outcomes.
A top Veterans Affairs official says the agency will review all the denied medical claims dating back to late 2016.
FDA Adds 4 Months To Expiration Date On EpiPens In Face Of Shortage
The Food and Drug Administration is working with Pfizer to extend the expiration date on certain lots of Mylan’s EpiPen 0.3 milligram injectors by an additional four months. The move is made because of an ongoing shortage of the lifesaving drug.
Amazon’s New Hire Brings History Of Introducing Health Professionals To Technology
In other market developments, biotech instrument maker Bionano Genomics goes public and more legal action for Herbalife.
Justice Department Asks Court To Order Anthem Testimony In Medicare Billing Case
The request is part of an investigation into Medicare Advantage risk-adjustment payments. Also in the news, a study finds that Medicare could save $925 million if generic drugs were substituted for 29 expensive combination prescriptions.
U.S. Has Lowest Life Expectancy Among High-Income Developed Countries
The report in the British Medical Journal finds 14 industrialized countries have declining life expectancy rates. Much of the problem in the U.S. centers on the opioid epidemic and the resulting deaths among younger adults. In other countries, the declines focused on people over the age of 65.
Hospital Sleuths Unearth Surprise: Knee Surgery Bills Are 5 Times Its Cost.
Officials at Gundersen Health System in Wisconsin decided that they needed better numbers for the cost of a knee replacement, The Wall Street Journal reports. They were billing more than $50,000 and, after a study, found that the real cost was closer to $10,550. In other health industry news, Bloomberg profiles consumers who are priced out of health insurance, Maryland gets federal approval for a plan to help spread costs and risks across insurers, and Delaware approves an increase for the insurer that sells on the federal health law’s marketplace.