Latest KFF Health News Stories
First Edition: December 1, 2017
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Texans With HIV Cope With Homes And Medicines Ruined By Hurricane Harvey
The hurricane closed pharmacies and clinics for a week or longer. Floodwaters spoiled drugs. People who fled to other states couldn’t get their prescriptions filled for HIV medicine.
Congress Isn’t Really Done With Health Care — Just Look At What’s In The Tax Bills
Even though congressional Republicans set aside their Obamacare repeal-and-replace efforts this year, here are five major health policy changes that could become law as part of the pending House and Senate proposals.
Whistleblower: Medicaid Managed-Care Firm Improperly Denied Care To Thousands
An explosive report prepared by a SynerMed executive alleges the California firm, which oversaw care for 1.2 million patients, fabricated documents and violated state and federal regulations for years. The state says it left low-income patients on Medicaid managed care in “imminent danger.”
Desperate For Coverage: Are Short-Term Plans Better Than None At All?
As stopgap health plans gain attention as possible alternatives to Obamacare, consumers are advised to read the fine print.
Podcast: ‘What The Health?’ Taxes, Medicare And The Year-End Mess
In this episode of “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Joanne Kenen of Politico and Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post discuss the possible impact of the tax bill on the Medicare program, confirmation hearings for a new secretary of Health and Human Services and the future of the Children’s Health Insurance Program. Plus, for “extra credit,” the panelists recommend their favorite health stories of the week.
Longer Looks: The Tax Bill’s Health Effect, Children’s Health Insurance & Puerto Rico’s Economy
Each week, KHN’s Shefali Luthra finds interesting reads from around the Web.
If Your Insurer Covers Few Therapists, Is That Really Mental Health Parity?
Behavioral care was four times more likely to be out-of-network than medical or surgical care, an analysis by Milliman shows.
Viewpoints: GOP Can Fund Tax Cuts — Why Not Kids’ Health?; Azar May Surprise Pharma
A selection of opinions on health care from around the country.
Opinion writers examine some of the tax bill’s ramifications on health care.
Oregon Medicaid Audit Finds Need To Step Up Efforts To Detect Improper Payouts
The audit, which was released Wednesday by the Oregon Secretary of State’s office, concluded that the program had missed opportunities to recover millions of dollars in overpayments.
States Warn Families Of Impending Cuts As CHIP Funding Nears Depletion
By the end of the year, nearly half of all states will have run out of their 2017 Children’s Health Insurance Program allotment. Unless Congress acts, Colorado, Massachusetts, California and Ohio are bracing for the worst. Texas, on the other hand, got good news.
Media outlets report on news from Kansas, Texas, Colorado, Massachusetts, Arizona, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Missouri and Georgia.
Public Health News: The Effect Of Pollution On Bones; The Growing Promise Of Gene Therapy
Media outlets also report on an effort by a coalition of health advocacy groups to keep Congress focused on the global fight against AIDS. Other reports include the latest advances in battlefield medicine and the Food and Drug Administration’s interest in nicotine-replacement therapies.
More Than Half Of Today’s Generation Of Kids Will Be Obese By Age 35
A New England Journal of Medicine study finds that even those who reach age 20 at a healthy weight still face substantial risk later in life. “I think the assumptions are pretty reasonable and their conclusions are pretty reasonable and, unfortunately, pretty scary,” says Stephen Daniels, chairman of pediatrics at the University of Colorado School of Medicine.
If Australia’s Flu Season Is Any Indication, U.S. Is In For A Long Winter
As flu season kicks off, health officials warn it may be severe this year. Also, Johns Hopkins researchers work to bring back the nasal spray version of the flu vaccine after it was sidelined due to ineffectiveness.
In other news on the national drug crisis: Republican lawmakers propose a bill to limit opioid prescriptions for first-time users; farmers are hit hard by the epidemic; and most Wisconsin counties sue painkiller manufacturers.
Caring Voice Coalition, a nonprofit that takes money from drug companies to help patients pay for medicines, may close since an Office of Inspector General citation finds that the organization improperly allowed donors to influence operations and the use of patient data.
HHS Health Reform Office Winds Down
The Department of Health and Human Services office originally set up to implement the Affordable Care Act has faced an uncertain future under the Trump administration. Meanwhile, a proposed administration rule change could take a toll on rural health.
Status Check: Obamacare Enrollment Slows In Week 4 Of Sign-Up Season
About 2.8 million people have signed up for 2018 Affordable Care Act coverage so far, but the pace slowed during the week ending Nov. 25 with 37 percent fewer people enrolling than the previous week.