Latest KFF Health News Stories
Improved Access To Family Planning In Africa Will Lead To Economic Development
Melinda Gates of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation writes in an opinion piece in Nigeria’s Vanguard, “My top priority as a co-chair of the foundation I run with my husband is making sure that all families have access to safe and effective contraception tools that empower them to make a decision about what’s best for them and their family. And that means encouraging aid donors and governments here in Nigeria and across Africa to make family planning a priority.” Improved access to modern methods of contraception and child spacing would save millions of lives, “[b]ut family planning doesn’t just save lives; it also makes life better for families and communities, becoming a key driver of economic development,” Gates continues.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports that President Barack Obama’s expressed confidence that the health law will stand.
Medicare Now Covers Annual Screening For Depression
The coverage change could help focus doctors and patients on mental health issues, which often go undiagnosed in the elderly, especially those who are dealing with multiple chronic physical problems.
Health Insurers Move Ahead, With Or Without Individual Mandate
Cigna’s CEO, David Cordani, says the insurance industry started changing how it does business before health reform became law in 2010 and that it will continue to change, no matter what happens at the Supreme Court.
Today’s Headlines – April 2, 2012
Good morning! Here are your Monday morning headlines … Politico: The Health Reform Ruling: Four Likely Scenarios A victory in the Supreme Court — less than five months before the presidential election — doesn’t guarantee that either party can win over public opinion. And it certainly doesn’t signal the end of the debate over health […]
Supreme Court’s Health Law Ruling: If The Mandate Falls, What’s Next?
News outlets offer analysis about how the high court’s decision could play out — both in terms of policy and politics.
Democrats Offer Optimistic Take On Court’s Health Law Decision
Appearing on the Sunday talk shows, Vice President Joseph Biden and Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., defended the health law and predicted it would be upheld by the high court.
Commentators offer a wide variety of views as they look back on last week’s case at the high court.
April Issue Of WHO Bulletin Available Online
The April issue of the WHO Bulletin features an editorial on the WHO research agenda for influenza; a public health round-up; an article on influenza in Ghana; a research paper on population-based burden of influenza-associated hospitalization in rural western Kenya; and a policy paper on the integration of pneumonia prevention and treatment interventions with immunization services in resource-poor countries (April 2012).
USAID Working To Help Millions Needing Food Aid In Africa’s Sahel Region
“This week, urgently needed food — 33,700 tons of sorghum from American farmers — will depart the United States for West Africa, as a part of the U.S. Government’s response to the drought in the Sahel,” Dina Esposito, director of the Office of Food for Peace, writes in this post in USAID’s “Impact” blog. She says that in addition to food aid, “USAID is also focusing on improving nutrition, increasing agricultural production, linking individuals to local markets through voucher programs, rehabilitating public infrastructure through cash-for-work schemes, and mitigating conflict, among other activities,” with the aim of “alleviat[ing] poverty and build[ing] community resilience to withstand future shocks” (3/30).
Medicaid Long-Term Care Restrictions Tighten
The Wall Street Journal offers tips on how to preserve some assets while attempting to qualify for Medicaid assistance.
New York Times Examines Global Response To Haiti’s Cholera Epidemic
The New York Times examines the global response to Haiti’s cholera epidemic, writing that while “[m]any health officials consider the cholera response ‘pretty remarkable,’ as John Vertefeuille, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s director in Haiti, said … [o]thers … believe the bar for success was set too low and more lives could have been saved.” The newspaper continues, “[A]s the deaths and continuing caseload indicate, the world’s response to this preventable, treatable scourge has proved inadequate.”
Federal Trade Commission OKs $29 Billion Merger By Express Scripts, Medco
By a three-to-one vote, regulators approved Express Scripts’ plan to purchase Medco, ending an eight-month inquiry into whether the deal would stifle competition in the pharmacy benefits industry.
Supreme Court Justices Emerge As Possible Players In Upcoming Presidential Election
Also in the news, President Obama talks about the health law while on the campaign trail, Vice President Joe Biden takes on GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney, and health law supporters begin to embrace the term “Obamacare.”
Medicare: Republicans Face Uphill Battle To Find Like Minds Across The Aisle
House GOP lawmakers are having a hard time making the case that plans to revamp Medicare have broad bipartisan support.
Commentators examine a number of issues related to the federal health law.
State Capitols: Social Issues A Hot Topic; Iowa Short On Time For State Budget
Legislatures in Iowa and Kansas consider bills on health care, while Stateline looks at the social issues debates going on in many state capitols around the nation.
Viewpoints: ‘Outrageously High Fee’ For Emergency Services; Mysterious Rise In Autism Cases
A selection of editorials and opinions on health policy from around the country.
Health Insurers Continue To Rally After High Court Hearings
Certain segments of the health care marketplace appeared to be optimistic about signals from the court’s consideration of the individual mandate and the sweeping health law.
Health Reform Means ER Use Jumps In Colo.; Calif. Insurance Premiums Rise
A selection of state health policy stories from Colorado, California, Oregon, South Carolina, New Hampshire, Minnesota, Connecticut and Massachusetts.