Latest KFF Health News Content

Latest KFF Health News Stories

Azar Bars FDA, CDC From Issuing Rules, Escalating Fears Of Political Meddling

Morning Briefing

All health agencies that fall under the Department of Health and Human Services umbrella can no longer issue their own regulatory actions related to foods, medicines, medical devices and vaccines, according to a memo from HHS Secretary Alex Azar obtained by The New York Times.

Amy Coney Barrett Considered Leading Contender To Fill Ginsburg’s Seat

Morning Briefing

A former member of the University of Notre Dame’s “Faculty for Life,” Amy Coney Barrett signed a 2015 letter to Catholic bishops that affirmed the “teachings of the Church as truth.” Among those teachings: the “value of human life from conception to natural death.” Liberals have interpreted that as a threat to the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision legalizing abortion nationwide.

Enough Vaccine For All Americans By April? Trump Says Yes, Experts Say Probably Not

Morning Briefing

The latest forecast from President Donald Trump came Friday when he said, “I think distribution will go even quicker than most people think.” Complex logistics challenge that timeline, public health and vaccine experts say.

Get Tested If Exposed, CDC Now Says After Ditching Controversial Guidelines

Morning Briefing

The previous phrasing suggested asymptomatic people did not need a test. That phrasing sparked strong criticism from public health experts and has since been revealed to have been shaped by political appointees, not scientists.

Obamacare In Greater Judicial Jeopardy After Ruth Bader Ginsburg’s Death

Morning Briefing

A new case challenging the constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act is due to be heard at the Supreme Court in November. News outlets look at how a new court composition, following the death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg on Friday, could impact that health law case or future ones.

Without Ginsburg, Supreme Court Likely To Reshape Abortion Rights

Morning Briefing

In the absence of Ruth Bader Ginsburg from the Supreme Court bench, Roe v. Wade is expected to again be contested and as well as other state restrictions on the procedure. The issue is expected to dominate the debate over her replacement.

US Has Lost 200,000 People To COVID. For Perspective, That’s The Size Of Salt Lake City.

Morning Briefing

The unique nature and timing of the coronavirus crisis gripping the world leaves grieving families and communities to mourn in isolation while government officials struggle to contain the pandemic, especially during an election year. And new cases are again on the rise.

Trump-Biden Race Could Hinge on How Florida’s Pinellas County Swings

KFF Health News Original

Few places loom as large in the race for the White House as here in Pinellas County, the largest swing county in the ultimate swing state. And polls show that many people will have the pandemic and its public health and economic consequences on their minds when they cast their votes.

Without Ginsburg, Judicial Threats to the ACA, Reproductive Rights Heighten

KFF Health News Original

With the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, a lawsuit brought by Republican state officials has become the latest existential threat against the federal health law, scheduled for oral arguments at the Supreme Court a week after the general election in November.

California’s Deadliest Spring in 20 Years Suggests COVID Undercount

KFF Health News Original

California’s death count for the first five months of the pandemic was 13% higher than average for the same period during the prior three years. Subtract the deaths officially attributed to COVID-19 and experts say that still leaves scores of “excess” deaths among people of color that likely were mistakenly excluded from the coronavirus death tally.

Longer Looks: Interesting Reads You Might Have Missed

Morning Briefing

Each week, KHN finds longer stories for you to sit back and enjoy over the weekend. This week’s selections include stories on COVID, children’s health, suicide, transgender issues, the blast in Beirut, domestic violence and the children born on Sept. 11, 2001.