Latest KFF Health News Stories
How A Drug Company Under Pressure For High Prices Ratchets Up Political Activity
Denmark-based drugmaker Novo Nordisk has invested more in lobbying and doubled political donations since 2015.
Tax-Funded Mental Health Programs Not Always Easy To Find
Revenue from California’s Mental Health Services Act has funded billions of dollars in mental health programs across the state, but finding out what’s available — and to whom — could be a challenge for consumers.
Best Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes
Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes, who reads everything on health care to compile our daily Morning Briefing, offers the best and most provocative stories for the weekend.
Editorial writers look at these and other health topics.
Research Roundup: The Opioid Crisis; Short-Term Plans; Systematic Cross-Checking
Each week, KHN compiles a selection of recently released health policy studies and briefs.
Media outlets report on news from West Virginia, Montana, Colorado, Georgia, Florida, Connecticut, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Wisconsin, Ohio, Missouri, Tennessee, Minnesota and California.
ProMedica Scoops Up Nursing Home Provider: ‘When You Look At The Trends … You Fight It Or Go All In’
The move is just the latest in a flurry of acquisitions and mergers that are taking place in the ever evolving health care landscape.
New CDC Chief On Board With Researching Gun Violence, Schumer Says
Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said that he hopes the CDC “will use some of their newly increased resources from the omnibus spending package to get this done.” In other public health news: the E. coli outbreak, cancer, amputations, our ancestors’ brains, and more.
About 1 in 59 U.S. children were identified as having autism in 2014. The report also found that white children are diagnosed with autism more often than black or Hispanic children, but the gap has closed dramatically.
Genealogy Site Helps Police Nab Alleged Golden State Killer, Raising Concerns Among Privacy Experts
Investigators took DNA collected years ago from one of the crime scenes and submitted it in some form to one or more commercial genealogy websites that have built up a vast database of consumer genetic information. The results led law enforcement to the suspected killer’s distant relatives.
Charleston, W.Va. is at the very heart of the opioid crisis, yet the city just shut down its needle exchange, which has been shown to save money and cut the spread of disease while not increasing drug use. Experts look at why such programs, which seem like no-brainers to many, struggle to gain public acceptance.
Executive Order Cutting Planned Parenthood Out Of Title X Family Planning Grants May Come Next Month
If the executive order is signed, federally qualified health centers would have to take on about 2 million extra patients for contraceptive services, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a women’s reproductive health policy think tank. Meanwhile in Texas, more women are getting health and family planning services after a statewide marketing push.
The groups are being accused of driving up the cost of health care by masking the price of drugs and forcing higher costs on the insurance companies that pass them along to consumers and employers. Meanwhile, KHN dissects President Donald Trump’s rhetoric over high drug costs.
Coalition Of 20 Republican-Led States Suing Over Health Law Asks For Temporary Injunction
In its larger lawsuit, states led by Texas and Wisconsin argue that because Congress eliminated the tax penalty the health law is now unconstitutional.
Beyond The Theatrics Of VA Nomination Controversy Lies A Leaderless And Troubled Agency
Dr. Ronny Jackson withdrew his name as nominee to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs, leaving advocates worried about the chaos and risks ahead for the agency that serves 9 million military veterans and employs 350,000 workers. “Veterans are losing six different ways right now, from all directions, and it’s discouragingly unclear why this keeps happening or what might make it stop,” said Joe Chenelly, national executive director for AMVETS.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Dissecting The Rhetoric Vs. Reality Of Trump’s Tough Talk On Drug Prices
President Donald Trump’s upcoming speech on drug prices comes after months of public comments and debate about tackling the issue.
Male OB-GYNs Are Growing Rare. Is That A Problem?
Nationally, women outnumber men as specialists in obstetrics and gynecology — yet women remain underrepresented in leadership roles. Many OB-GYN patients say they prefer female doctors, as residency programs strive for diversity in race, ethnicity and even gender.
Readers Weigh In On Vitamin Use And The Big Pharma-Patient Advocacy Connection
Kaiser Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ What’s Next For The VA?
In this episode of KHN’s “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Sarah Kliff of Vox.com, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News and Alice Ollstein of Talking Points Memo discuss the collapse of the nomination of White House physician Ronny Jackson to head the Department of Veterans Affairs. They also discuss new bipartisan congressional efforts to address the opioid epidemic. Plus, for extra credit, the panelists offer their favorite health policy stories of the week.