Latest KFF Health News Stories
As Baby Boomers Age, Non-Emergency Medical Transportation Needs Are Skyrocketing
New companies are trying to fill the demand where taking an Uber or Lyft just won’t cut it. Many patients opt to skip appointments when they can’t find a ride, and those no-shows are costing billions in lost revenue. In other health industry news: Rite Aid has an uncertain future after calling off unpopular merger; the Cigna-Express deal has passions high; and Amazon is considering opening health clinics for its employees.
Number Of Women Who Delivered Babies While Addicted To Opioids Quadrupled In 15-Year Span
The study is the first to examine hospital data about opioid-addicted women delivering babies, and the numbers mirror well-known trends in opioid-exposed newborns.
The letters were sent to doctors of patients who came through the coroner’s office because of a fatal overdose. Though the effects were modest, researchers say it does show that small steps can make a difference in the battle against opioids.
Following Barrage Of Lawsuits, Government Reverses Course On Grants For Preventing Teen Pregnancies
The Trump administration had informed 81 groups last August that their grants would end in 2018 rather than in 2020, but multiple judges ruled the move was unlawful.
The new guidance, which officials say will cut back on the companies’ “abusive behavior,” concerns the rebates that drug makers have to pay back to states when a patient receives one of their medicines. In other pharmaceutical news: the administration is preparing to put action behind its rhetoric on drug pricing; some say Medicare’s new negotiating powers could lead to increased hospitalizations; and more.
Following a recent analysis of the cost of the program, questions arise about how the government would pay for a “Medicare For All” system. But New York congressional candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D) says it’s not an impossibility. The single-payer issue also makes campaign waves in Ohio.
For the party, the issue has become one like same-sex marriage and abortion rights where there’s very little gray area. Democrats have coalesced around a gun-control message, and candidates are falling in line.
Accountable care organizations were set up under the Affordable Care Act with the intention of improving quality and efficiency. But government data shows that they’ve fallen short of the savings that were projected. “After six years of experience, the time has come to put real ‘accountability’ in Accountable Care Organizations,” CMS Administrator Seema Verma said in a statement. “Medicare cannot afford to support programs with weak incentives that do not deliver value.”
First Edition: August 10, 2018
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Trump Administration Sinks Teeth Into Paring Down Drug Prices, On 5 Key Points
Instead of waiting for congressional action, federal regulators are looking at a series of actions to spur competition and drive down the cost of medicines.
Clinicians Who Learn Of A Patient’s Opioid Death Modestly Cut Back On Prescriptions
A study published Thursday shows that doctors, dentists and other medical providers cut overall opioid dosages by nearly 10 percent after receiving notification of a death from a medical examiner and information on safe prescribing.
Medicare To Overhaul ACOs But Critics Fear Less Participation
The moves could lead to a dramatic decrease in hospitals and doctors participating in the program, industry officials said.
Cómo aprender a vivir bien con demencia
Dos expertas ofrecen estrategias y cambios simples para poder transitar esta etapa de la vida del ser querido protegiéndolo y ayudando a todo el entorno familiar.
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ Coming Soon: ‘Long-Term Short-Term’ Plans
In this episode of KHN’s “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner talk about the latest Trump administration efforts to address high drug prices, what’s next for short-term health insurance plans and insider trading charges against a New York GOP congressman.
Sospechas de fraude al Medicare y riesgos por cremas para el dolor preparadas en farmacias
En total, 547 farmacias (casi el 23% de las que envían la mayoría de las facturas a Medicare por hacer estas cremas) recibieron uno o más de las cinco alertas rojas establecidas por los investigadores.
Lax Oversight Leaves Surgery Center Regulators And Patients In The Dark
A Kaiser Health News and USA Today Network investigation finds that a hodgepodge of state rules governing outpatient centers allow some deaths and serious injuries to go unexamined. And no rule stops a doctor exiled by a hospital for misconduct from opening a surgery center down the street.
Viewpoints: Doctors Can Steer Patients Toward Better Value, Lowering High Consumer Costs
Editorial pages focus on this health topic and others.
Longer Looks: Telemedicine Abortions; Short-Term Plans; And Catholic Hospitals
Each week, KHN’s Shefali Luthra finds interesting reads from around the Web.
Media outlets report on news from Minnesota, Michigan, California, Texas, Massachusetts and Florida.
Residents near the leak have complained of nausea, headaches and nosebleeds after a ruptured well began spewing gas as well as benzene and other air toxics in October 2015. It took nearly four months to seal the well, and residents have since filed hundreds of lawsuits against the company.