Latest KFF Health News Stories
U.S. District Judge Mark Wolf said the unnamed venture launched by Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan Chase does not offer products that compete with Optum, and said while it might do so someday, the startup could become a potential Optum customer instead of its rival. The case has been closely watched by an industry hungry for details about the secretive initiative.
The lobbyists are pushing the message that the health law is working for the most part and that Americans like their private insurance plans and want to keep them. The health groups are nervous that the “Medicare for All” movement could upend their industry. Meanwhile, in a crowd of progressives, how do candidates stand out from the pack on health care? And Democrats on Capitol Hill struggle to find common ground on big problems.
Skyrocketing Insulin Prices Prompt Senators To Launch Bipartisan Investigation
“We are concerned that the substantial increases in the price of insulin over the past several years will continue their upward drive and pose increasingly severe hardships not only on patients that require access to the drug in order to stay alive but also on the taxpayer,” Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) and ranking member Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) wrote in three letters sent to the insulin makers. In other pharmaceutical news: capping out-of-pocket costs on prescription drugs; FDA’s habit of bucking the deregulation trend; a reported biotech acquisition; and more.
The Senate Finance Committee has called Big Pharma to Capitol Hill this week to answer questions on high drug prices. Experts are calling the grilling a reckoning similar to what Big Tobacco and Big Banks faced in years passed. But the pharmaceutical execs have no interest in being turned into a soundbite, so they’ve lawyered up and hired communications consultants to prep. They’re expected to shift the blame and tout the life-saving properties of their drugs.
The rule announced Friday is not a wholesale defunding of Planned Parenthood — organizations receiving money through the federal family planning program, called Title X, will still be able to perform abortions. But they will have to do so in a separate facility from their other operations and adhere to the new requirement that they not refer patients to it. Critics say it effectively amounts to a domestic gag rule, and the move is expected to redirect tens of millions of dollars from the women’s health provider to faith-based groups.
First Edition: February 25, 2019
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Opinion writers weigh in on these health topics and others.
Longer Looks: A $27,660 Hospital Bill; Hasan Minhaj On Drug Pricing; And Opioid Deaths
Each week, KHN’s Shefali Luthra finds interesting reads from around the Web.
Media outlets report on news from Pennsylvania, Kentucky, California, Texas, North Dakota, Illinois, Washington, California, Oregon, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Florida and Virginia.
News about state legislation comes out of Oklahoma, Georgia, Arizona, Connecticut, Kansas and Wisconsin.
It might be better to try a more adaptive, counterintuitive approach to the disease, some health experts are now saying. Earlier generations approached the disease with shame and frustration, which is “extremely unhelpful to families and their elders,” says geriatrician Bill Thomas. News on public health focuses on sepsis; sunscreen; black lung disease; food allergies; HIV wellness; health care at the drugstore and dietary supplements, as well.
In Chemical Tour De Force, Scientists Announce They’ve Essentially Doubled The Genetic Alphabet
Natural DNA is spelled out with four different letters known as bases — A, C, G and T. Chemist Steven A. Benner and his colleagues have built DNA with eight bases. The new model opens possibilities that the four-base DNA may not be the only chemistry that could support life. Other news looks at DNA being used to track people and genetic testing.
How Technology Is Playing A Crucial Role In Helping Curb Health Costs As Well As Improving Care
From artificial intelligence that can detect early signs for Alzheimer’s to a storage system that can cut down on wrong diagnoses, the field of health technology is advancing by leaps and bounds and becoming an integral part of patient treatment. Other health technology news focuses on apps for Medicare and mental health services.
The Defense Department admitted that it allowed a firefighting foam to slip into at least 55 drinking water systems at military bases around the globe, sometimes for generations. The military started an expensive cleanup effort that involves shifting entire municipalities to new water sources and assessing toxic plumes that continue to spread for miles, but many former and past military members are not satisfied. In other environmental and health news: uranium exposure at the Grand Canyon and a breakdown of talks over greenhouse gas emissions.
“When there’s an allegation of wrong on this scale, one of the most fundamental obligations of law is to determine the scope of the wrong,” U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw said. “It is important to recognize we are talking about human beings.” ACLU has asked Sabraw to expand the court order, citing an inspector general report that estimated the separations go far beyond the 2,700 already identified.
In Kentucky, PBMs Pocketed $123.5M In Hidden Fees From Plans That Cover The State’s Poor
The tactic the PBMs used are called spread pricing, which refers to the fees these companies pay pharmacies and then bill back to state Medicaid programs. The practice has gained attention among a growing number of states that are struggling to contain the cost of prescription drugs. In other pharmaceutical news, the Chamber of Commerce is launching ads against President Donald Trump’s plan to tie U.S. prices for drugs to what other countries pay.
The Farm Bureau plans wouldn’t be required to cover people with preexisting conditions. While its coverage might work like health insurance, the measure, like the Iowa law enacted last year, declares that the coverage “shall not be considered insurance,” which would effectively exempt it from federal mandates and most state insurance regulations.
House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) and Senate Finance Committee ranking member Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) wrote to the Trump administration, citing the more than 18,000 people who have been kicked off the Medicaid rolls in Arkansas since the state added work requirements. Fifteen states, including Arkansas, have applied for waivers to impose work requirements on Medicaid recipients. Eight of those states have gained approval to move forward. Medicaid news comes out of Idaho and Georgia, as well.
Google says it partnered with agencies and companies including HHS, the Drug Enforcement Administration, CVS and Walgreens to identify drop-off locations across seven states. In a blog post, Google cited research that shows many users get their opioids from family or friends’ medicine cabinets and said the goal was to make sure people could safely remove those drugs from their home.
Secret Court Document Reveals Sackler Agreed With Plan To Downplay Potency Of OxyContin To Doctors
ProPublica and Stat obtained the sealed court deposition of Dr. Richard Sackler taken as part of a lawsuit by the state of Kentucky against Purdue Pharma, the maker of OxyContin. The deposition is believed to be the only time a member of the Sackler family has been questioned under oath about the marketing practices of OxyContin. Purdue has fought a three-year legal battle to keep the deposition and hundreds of other evidence secret, in a case brought by Stat. Through the documents, Sackler’s investment in the success of OxyContin is clear: “It is almost that I dedicated my life to it,” he wrote in an email cited by the court documents.
