Latest KFF Health News Stories
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
New Mexico Alleges Kids On Facebook, Instagram Are Often Sexually Harassed
Newly unredacted material about Meta’s child-safe policies is showing up during a lawsuit filed by New Mexico that alleges failures to protect young users of the social media platforms. Separately, Iowa is suing video social media platform TikTok over inappropriate content shown to children.
Viewpoints: How Does The Public Health Sector Regain Public Trust?; The Danger Of Weight Loss-Drugs
Editorial writers tackle public health, weight-loss drugs, ACA and more.
Research Roundup: Transplants; Fungal Diseases; C. Diff; Covid
Each week, KFF Health News offers a selection of health policy studies and briefs.
US Cancer Data Has A Dichotomy: Deaths Are Falling, But Cases Are Up
Though cancer remains the second leading cause of death in the U.S., new data from the American Cancer Society show that deaths from cancer are falling. ABC News notes that colon and breast cancer cases in younger people are showing a troubling uptick.
If You’re A Minority Child In The US, Your Health Care Is Worse: Report
Surprising no one, a meta-analysis of studies into health care quality for minority children in the U.S. found that quality is universally worse than it is for white kids. Reports also show that women and minorities in the U.S. experience more medical misdiagnoses.
Researchers Mapped Covid Virus 2 Weeks Before China Disclosed To World
The Wall Street Journal reports that a Chinese lab sequenced the coronavirus in December 2019. The Chinese government did not reveal details for another 2 weeks, raising further questions about information transparency in the early days of the pandemic.
Insurance Claims Study: Kentucky Is Top State For Ozempic Prescriptions
Claims data analyzed by PurpleLab show that in Kentucky, about 2 in 100 people were prescribed an obesity drug like Ozempic in 2023. Meanwhile, an interesting development in the sometimes controversial field of male birth control is in the news, with a contraceptive called “Plan A.”
San Francisco’s Overdose Deaths Reached Record Highs Last Year
Fatalities in the first 11 months of 2023 surpassed the previous peak of 726 deaths in all of 2020, new data from the medical examiner’s office show. In South Dakota an effort to make xylazine (the animal sedative showing up in illegal fentanyl doses) a controlled substance advanced.
CMS Approves Texas’ Plan For A Year Of Medicaid Coverage For New Mothers
Texas mothers will now be able to stay on Medicaid for a year after childbirth, in a move aimed at helping those on low-incomes. Meanwhile, also in Texas parents in Uvalde are said to be bracing themselves for a long-awaited report into police response failures in the mass shooting in the town.
Biden Admin Rule Forces Insurers To Not Dilly-Dally On Prior Authorization
A new rule now applies to health insurance companies that offer Medicare, Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program, and Obamacare plans. It forces insurers to explain specifically why they denied coverage, and to speed up the pre-approval process.
Copay Coupons Will Count Toward Deductibles
The Biden administration on Tuesday withdrew its appeal of a September ruling, meaning insurers must count drug copay coupons when calculating deductibles and patient spending caps, in most cases. Meanwhile, a report in The New York Times digs into the thorny issue of why drug prices are so astronomically high in the U.S.
Doc Pay Fix, Health Centers Fail To Make Spending Deal Cut In Talks
Stat reports that, for the moment, efforts have stalled to add health policy measures—including the Medicare doctor pay rates and more funding for community health centers—to the federal spending measures under negotiation.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Editorial writers discuss private health information, IVF, a measles outbreak, and more.
Read recent commentaries about pharmaceutical issues.
Ahead Of Roe Decision Anniversary, House GOP Turns To Pregnancy Laws
House Republicans are said to be focusing efforts on laws relating to pregnancies, including banning the Department of Health and Human Services from limiting federal funds for so-called pregnancy centers. Other news relating to abortion is from Texas, Oklahoma, Minnesota, and elsewhere.
RSV Shots Are Driving Demand For Care Among Older Americans
Axios reports on a “side effect of the new RSV shots,” which is that older patients are coming in for checkups. In covid news: hospitalization rates, vaccines and long covid, California’s covid guidance, and more.
Report Delves Into Poorer Patient Outcomes At Private Equity-Owned Hospitals
A new report aims to hold private equity buyers of hospital systems accountable, in light of data showing patient health outcomes are poorer in such facilities. Meanwhile, in New Jersey, a long-term-care hospital and its investors settle over Medicare overbilling claims.
ResMed Respiratory Masks With Magnets Stay On Sale Despite Recall
The mask recall had been classified as “most serious” by the FDA because of the risk of injury or death. But ResMed argued the issue centers on a labeling matter and is not a product removal. Separately, a CRISPR gene therapy for sickle cell can be used on a different disorder, the FDA said.