Latest KFF Health News Stories
Lawmakers Allege Some Drug Companies Inflate Cost Of Scarce Drugs With ‘Fake Pharmacies’
Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., is leading a congressional investigation accusing some drug distributors of opening “fake pharmacies” to drive up the cost of some pharmacueticals that are in short supply.
Va. Voters Divided Over Support For Ultrasound Law; Other Related News
Voters are split over a new Virginia law that mandates women get ultrasounds before an abortion. Abortion and contraception issues are also making news in Iowa, Idaho, Texas, Washington, Kansas and Utah.
Health Policies Continue To Play Role In GOP Presidential Primary
An analysis by The Associated Press points out that the GOP may be gelling around presidential hopeful Mitt Romney despite his role while governor in advancing the Massachusetts health law. Meanwhile, the AP also reports that rival candidate Rick Santorum offered his support for the budget plan announced this week by Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., but said he would be more aggressive in achieving savings. Medicaid would be one of his targets.
Status Checks On The Health Overhaul’s Implementation
News outlets detail various progress reports from administration officials as well as several studies.
Survey: Doctors Violate Professionalism Online
A letter in JAMA found most state medical licensing boards are receiving complaints about some doctors’ online behavior.
As Need For Nurses Increases, More Men Enter The Profession
As the country faces a shortage of doctors, nurses may help fill the void and the government and industry are working to make sure there are enough of these professionals.
Disabled Care In N.Y., Va., Ore. Examined Through Reports, Agreements And Budgets
Care for the disabled, as well as funding for programs that support them, is making news in New York, Virginia and Oregon.
Hospital News: Community Health Systems Victorious Over Tenet Healthcare
A U.S. District court in Dallas dismissed Tenet’s suit against Community.
Anticipating The Health Law’s Day In Court
Coverage of next week’s Supreme Court arguments on the health law includes a variety of takes on the key issues.
Election-Year Politics Swirl Around Health Law Arguments
Democrats, including President Barack Obama and members of Congress, have different strategies for how they will handle the spotlight on the health law next week, when it comes before the Supreme Court. House Democrats plan to celebrate the law’s achievements. President Obama will be in Korea. Republicans, meanwhile, are attempting to turn it into campaign fodder.
A selection of editorials and opinions on health policy from around the country.
The Health Law’s Second Anniversary: Where Do Things Stand?
As the sweeping overhaul turns two and the Supreme Court prepares to review its constitutionality, news outlets report on what provisions have taken effect, what changes are still in the pipeline and how people have been affected so far.
State Roundup: Union Seeks $80M From N.Y. For Health Aides’ Insurance
Health policy news centers around the legislatures in various states.
Ryan Praised For ‘Sticking His Neck Out’; Others Call Budget Plan A ‘Path To Nowhere’
Commentators review the federal budget proposal announced Tuesday by House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan.
U.N.-Backed Campaign Aims To Vaccinate 111M Children In 20 Countries Against Polio Over 4 Days
“Some 111.1 million children below the age of five are to be vaccinated against polio in a synchronized campaign covering 20 countries in West and Central Africa starting on Friday,” the WHO and UNICEF said in a joint statement on Wednesday, PANA reports (3/21). The campaign, which will last for four days, “is intended to serve as a massive boost in efforts to eradicate the disease, and will involve national health ministries and U.N. agencies, as well as tens of thousands of volunteers who will go from door-to-door immunizing children,” the U.N. News Centre writes (3/21).
MCC Fact Sheet Details Efforts To Improve Access To Water, Sanitation And Hygiene
The Millennium Challenge Corporation (MCC) provides a fact sheet (.pdf) detailing its efforts to improve access to water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) in the developing world. According to the fact sheet, the MCC and its partner countries “have prioritized WASH sector development,” and “MCC has invested $793 million in WASH-related projects in nine partner countries” (3/19).
Global Health ‘Nowhere To Be Found’ On G8 Agenda
In this post in the Center for Global Development’s (CGD) “Global Health Policy” blog, Amanda Glassman, director of global health policy and a research fellow at the center, summarizes the history of G8 global health initiatives and examines why global health has been dropped from the G8 and G20 agendas, writing that “as we look to the U.S.-hosted G8 meeting in 2012, global health is still nowhere to be found.” She concludes, “As G8 budgets decline, the meeting is a unique opportunity to discuss cooperation on global health with the G8+5 leaders from emerging economies” (3/21).
Country Ownership Approach Adopted Under GHI ‘Gaining Steam’
In this post in the Ministerial Leadership Initiative for Global Health’s (MLI) “Leading Global Health” blog, MLI Director Rosann Wisman examines how a new, country-led development approach under the Global Health Initiative (GHI) — which focuses on “[funding] the priorities of developing countries rather than solely the priorities of the donors” — is “gaining steam.” She writes, “I believe there are two reasons for this. One is that developing countries, having gained a foothold in funding their own priorities, are showing stronger results when they are in the driver’s seat. Second, the tough economic times have caused several developing countries to internally face up to a key question: What do we do if our traditional donors no longer support our health programs?” (3/20).
MSF Warns MDR-TB Is More Widespread Than Previously Thought
Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) says the spread of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB) — “a form of tuberculosis that does not respond to standard treatment and can kill in a matter of months” — “is much greater than previously thought,” VOA News reports. “‘Wherever we’re looking for drug-resistant TB we’re finding it in very alarming numbers. And that suggests to us that the current statistics that are being published about the prevalence of MDR-TB are really just scratching the surface of the problem,’ said Dr. Leslie Shanks, medical director for the group,” the news service writes (DeCapua, 3/21).
World Water Day Focuses On Role Of Water In Food Security
“This year on World Water Day, Thursday, March 22, the United Nations highlights the critical role water plays in food security, at a time when water supplies are already under severe strain in many parts of the world,” VOA News reports. As the world’s population expands, “the demand for water is growing along with the demand for food,” and agriculture accounts for 70 percent of water use worldwide, the news service notes (Baragona, 3/21). Additional information on World Water Day, which is coordinated by the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), is available online from U.N. Water (3/22).