Latest KFF Health News Stories
FDA officials will decide whether the makers have proven that e-cigarettes help traditional smokers quit, and if that is indeed the case whether that outweighs the public health toll vaping takes on young people. Meanwhile, the agency is facing criticism for not acting faster.
Health Industry Scores Big In Spending Bill, But Consumers Were Left In The Cold
Congress’ decision to repeal three health law taxes was a huge win for the industry, but consumer protection issues — like surprise medical bills — were not included. Meanwhile, advocates hope that the data that might come from the gun violence funding included in the spending bill for the first time in decades will make a difference in swaying lawmakers in the future.
For one thing, Canada doesn’t produce enough drugs, nor does it seem to be on board with exporting the ones it does have to America. Beyond that, experts say President Donald Trump’s plan will have little to no impact on what consumers pay for drugs.
The only full-throated supported of “Medicare for All” at Thursday night’s Democratic presidential debate is expected to be Sen. Bernie Sander (I-Vt.) In recent weeks, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), whose fate got tangled up with the plan, has been re-calibrating her message to focus on the transition period to a new system.
In a long-awaited decision, the Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans agreed with Judge Reed O’Connor that the individual mandate can no longer be viewed as a tax, and thus the requirement to buy insurance is unconstitutional. But the judges dodged a hard decision on whether that meant the whole law has to fall, sending it back to the lower courts for a closer look at whether the provision can be severed.
First Edition: December 19, 2019
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
ACA Individual Mandate Ruled Unconstitutional But Appeals Court Does Not Invalidate Health Law
In a closely watched case that could determine the future of the Affordable Care Act, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals declared the law’s individual mandate unconstitutional but in need of further analysis.
The proposed rules would allow states, drug wholesalers, or pharmacies to apply to import certain drugs from Canada. The policy would also let drugmakers import their own products sold in other countries.
Opinion writers weigh in on these health care issues and others.
Fed Up With Poor Health Outcomes, Navajo Nation Aims To Take Medicaid Coverage Into Its Own Hands
The Navajo Nation is seeking to create a one-of-a-kind Medicaid program to address the inequities in care for its members.
Media outlets report on news from New York, Tennessee, California, Massachusetts, Georgia, Virginia, Illinois, Missouri, Ohio, Oregon, Minnesota, North Carolina, Florida and Maryland.
At the Mayo Clinic, Zachi Attia is one of five software engineers and data scientists who make the rounds with physicians and discuss way to use AI to improve heart care. News on technology in heath care is on blood-sugar monitoring devices and problems with hackers and electronic records, as well.
Nationally, since late last year, meth has turned up in more deaths than opioid painkillers. But in some instances, advocates hands are tied in trying to combat it. In other public health news: Alzheimer’s, athletes’ brains, food fetishes, racial health gaps, and more.
Suicide Accounts For Far Fewer Opioid Overdose Deaths Than Previously Thought, Research Finds
Researchers had previously suggested suicide accounted for about 20-30% of all opioid overdose deaths, but a new study suggest that it’s more like 4%. In other news on the crisis: a possible bonus for a Purdue Pharma CEO, another suit against opioid distributors, and more.
Of 12th graders surveyed, 14 percent said they had vaped marijuana in the last month, nearly double the 7.5 percent reported a year ago. The data also echoed earlier statistics about e-cigarettes, with a quarter of high school seniors reporting that they had vaped nicotine within the last month. Meanwhile, the FDA has approved the sales of a low-nicotine cigarette that could help smokers who are trying to quit.
As we near the end of the decade, The Wall Street Journal takes a look back at the way the Affordable Care Act has left a lasting impact on the country.
The Democratic lawmakers say the agency is being difficult about their request for more information about the contracts that were, in part, meant to help raise CMS Administrator Seema Verma’s public profile. Health department officials, meanwhile, insist they are complying with Democrats’ requests.
The girl was born with colon problem and global activists say that she was “at great risk of possible systemic infection.” Border agents can exempt migrants from “vulnerable populations,” which has in practice included people with serious illnesses.
The proposed changes, which would take effect in 2022, could increase organ donation and transplantation from about 36,000 annually to 42,000 by 2024, officials said.
The Department of Justice said CVS Health’s troubled Omnicare business was routinely filling prescriptions that had expired or run out of refills. Omnicare distributes drugs to skilled-nursing and assisted-living facilities across the country, and this isn’t its first brush with legal trouble.
