Latest KFF Health News Stories
In Field Where Patient Care Comes First, Hospitals Try To Take Steps To Protect Doctors From Racism
Some institutions are adopting language into their guidelines that says patient requests for providers based on gender, race, ethnicity or sexual orientation won’t be honored.
Steady Enrollment Numbers In The States Cloak Underlying Turbulence In Marketplace
On the surface it looks like there wasn’t much change surrounding the exchanges, as the numbers come in about the same as last year. But that doesn’t account for the fact that there’s been a lot of shake-up in how people are paying for coverage and who is in the marketplace.
Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine), who worked with Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) on the legislation, says she’s made progress in overcoming the House’s resistance to what conservative lawmakers see as a bailout for Obamacare.
CHIP Extended For Six Years In Senate Deal That Ends Government Shutdown
President Donald Trump signed the measure, which includes funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program and a delay of some health law taxes. Other health issues, like what to do about funding for community health centers, weren’t touched in the deal to keep the government running through Feb. 8.
University Under Fire For Off-The-Grid Herpes Vaccine Experiments
Southern Illinois University’s medical school has halted all herpes research, one of its most high-profile projects, amid growing controversy over a researcher’s unauthorized methods offshore and in the U.S.
First Edition: January 23, 2018
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
States Face Costly Conundrum: How To Treat Inmates With Hepatitis C
Although the potentially fatal disease is common among the incarcerated, treatment with the latest hepatitis drugs isn’t.
Tax Bill Provision Designed To Spur Paid Family Leave To Lower-Wage Workers
But advocates and consultants say the tax credits are unlikely to persuade many employers to offer such benefits.
CHIP Renewed For Six Years As Congress Votes To Reopen Federal Government
Funding for CHIP technically expired Oct. 1. Although both Democrats and Republicans said they wanted to continue the program, they could not agree on how to fund it.
In Trump’s First Year, Anti-Abortion Forces Make Strides Despite Setbacks
As a candidate, the president promised a ban on abortions that take place after 20 weeks and federal funding to Planned Parenthood, but Congress has not obliged. Still, other anti-abortion policy goals have been realized.
Opinion writers from around the country express views on health care issues.
Monday Morning Quarterbacks: Pros And Cons Of Work Requirements; What If A Doctor Won’t Help?
Editorial pages offer a variety of views on the pending debate surrounding this Medicaid policy and a range of other health care issues.
Media outlets report on news from Illinois, Kansas, Texas, Minnesota, Colorado, Florida, California, Wisconsin, Ohio, Tennessee and Connecticut.
California Lawmakers Expected To Introduce Legislation To Fortify State’s Health Exchange
“Everything they are doing at the federal level, we are doing the opposite,” said state Sen. Ed Hernandez. Meanwhile in Wisconsin, Gov. Scott Walker shifts toward the center with proposal to use money to stabilize the state’s health law marketplace.
In Rapidly Evolving Health Care Landscape, Traditional Borders Are Blurring
Hospitals’ recent decisions to start making their own drugs is just one in a long string of actions taken within the industry to break down conventional roles.
Not All Screen Time May Be Harmful To Kids, Some Experts Begin To Consider
The standard these days is to recommend children limit time in front of screens. But there’s a difference between passive exposure and active interaction. In other public health news: transgender children, Tide Pods, gene-editing, contraceptives, cancer patients and marijuana, personalized diets based on genetics, and more.
As Nasty Flu Spreads, California Reports 74 Dead So Far
The epidemic is producing rising death rates and overwhelmed emergency workers and nursing facilities. Media outlets report on news of the flu out of California, Louisiana, Georgia, Minnesota and Texas, as well.
Although the nation has been transfixed by the horrifying statistics about drug overdoses, that’s not the reality most people who are addicted to opioids are experiencing. Instead they’re caught up in a grinding, consuming and debilitating cycle of addiction.
GOP Lawmakers Waver On Governor’s Call For $10M Cut In Iowa Medicaid
Gov. Kim Reynolds says the cuts won’t reduce services, but legislators aren’t sure. In other Medicaid news, a bipartisan group of lawmakers is looking for a way to craft a deal on Medicaid expansion but Republican leaders say there isn’t enough support for such a move, Oregon voters decide tomorrow if they support a tax on hospitals and insurers to fund that state’s expansion, and hospitals in Illinois and Montana are concerned about less funding.
While Gov. Matt Bevin (R) is enthusiastic about his proposal to add work requirements to his state’s Medicaid program, residents relying on it are worried. “People need their Medicaid,” says Lakin Branham, who relies on the program to pay for drug counseling every other week. Outlets report on news about the requirements from Alabama, Ohio and Louisiana, as well.