Latest KFF Health News Stories
Health Plans Can’t Deny Coverage For Treatments Broadly Geared To Disabled Customers, Judge Says
News about several big hospital companies and also an early look at what hospitals have been charging for COVID care.
Drug Investments Under Fire Over Possible Conflicts Of Interest
HHS says a Trump aide can sidestep ethics disclosures while making decisions about government contracts; management consulting firm McKinsey scoops up COVID-related contracts; lawmakers skeptical of vaccine developers’ “no-profit” pledge.
Monitoring Big Tech’s Moves In Health Care
Big technology companies’ involvement in health care calls for close scrutiny; an outdated technology — the fax — slows down the containment of COVID.
Opioid Deaths Soar Among Black People On Chicago’s West Side
Among the reasons, reports ProPublica, is that fewer people are coming to the emergency room to seek help, in large part out of fear of contracting COVID-19. Also, news on racial disparities from Maine, Pennsylvania and Michigan.
As Coronavirus Spreads, New Orleans Closes The Bars Again
Gov. John Bel Edwards issued the new restrictions, which allow bars to continue to offer takeout service or delivery. In other state coronavirus news, concerns in Indian country, visits to nursing homes ease in Michigan and quarantines among states get tighter.
‘Terrible Decision’: Trump Faults District For Not Reopening Los Angeles Schools
District Superintendent Austin Beutner said he couldn’t protect the students and teachers in the nation’s second largest school district and his efforts to get federal help have gone largely unanswered. School-opening updates come from Virginia, North Dakota, Oregon and other states, as well.
NYC Organ Transplant Programs Suffer At COVID-Overwhelmed Hospitals
Organs were not viable from many potential donors, who had COVID. Public health news is on loneliness, research on the virus, safe gyms, maternal deaths, food banks, and prisons, as well.
More Cities, Businesses Tighten Mask Restrictions
Milwaukee joins the list of places where you must wear a mask in indoor and outdoor public spaces; Michigan has extended its state of emergency; and more.
Justice Ginsburg Admitted To Hospital For ‘Possible Infection’
Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg had a medical procedure to clean out a bile-duct stent, a court statement says.
Unused Free Testing Behind Lethal Outbreak In Montana Care Home
The outbreak in Billings at Canyon Creek Memory Care, where eight residents have died and almost are all infected, illustrates the need to adopt common-sense preventive measures. News on testing is on the slowness of getting results, and comes from California, Maine and Georgia, as well.
VA Nursing Assistant Admits To Murdering Patients
A shocking story of a nursing assistant at a Veterans Administration hospital who intentionally killed seven patients; she pleaded guilty to the crimes.
Critics Say Administration Not Helping Unemployed Find New Health Coverage
As job loss jeopardizes health coverage for millions of people, advocates say the administration should do more to publicize the availability of Medicaid, the Children’s Health Insurance Program or health plans being sold on marketplaces. Meanwhile, the administration filed a brief with the Supreme Court asking that Arkansas’ Medicaid work requirements be reinstated.
Former Top General Signals He Won’t Lead Coronavirus Oversight Panel
Former Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Joseph Dunford has told congressional leaders that he will not take the job of running the bipartisan oversight commission, another hurdle in the effort to monitor the distribution of hundreds of billions of dollars of federal pandemic aid.
White House Infighting: Fauci Defends Record While Navarro Goes On Attack
Intra-Trump administration conflict goes public as one official writes an op-ed criticizing Dr. Anthony Fauci and another posts a mocking cartoon. In response to White House efforts to undermine his credibility, Fauci responds: “I believe, for the most part, you can trust respected medical authorities. I believe I’m one of them, so I think you can trust me.”
Trump Abandons Plan To Kick Out Online-Only Foreign Students
The abrupt reversal came a little more than a week after U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement issued an edict that left educational leaders scrambling and prompted immediate lawsuits.
Trump Administration Orders Hospitals To Bypass CDC With Data On COVID
Instead, the coronavirus patient data will go to HHS. Public health experts voice concern that the change could lead to less transparency and accuracy about the state of the pandemic. The National Guard’s possible role also alarms hospitals.
COVID Vaccine Developed In U.S. Shows Promising Immune System Reaction
The experimental vaccine — made by the biotech company Moderna with assistance from the National Institutes of Health — prompted participants in the study to develop neutralizing antibodies that have been shown to kill the virus. Larger trials are now planned.
CDC Leadership Urges Mask Wearing
The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention strongly urges Americans to wear masks to limit the spread of the coronavirus while President Donald Trump’s reluctance to wear one influences the public more.
Outbreak Escalates In Even More States As US Continues To Break Case Records
While recent attention has focused on hot spots like Texas, Florida and Arizona, cases are starting to soar in other states like Oklahoma and Nevada as well. In total, over 62,000 Americans were reported sick Tuesday — another record. Death rates also continue to climb.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.