Latest KFF Health News Stories
Often the sellers of the strips are insured and paid little out of pocket for them, while the buyers may be underinsured or uninsured, and unable to pay retail prices, which can run well over $100 for a box of 100 strips. Unlike the resale of prescription drugs, which is prohibited by law, it is generally legal to resell unused test strips.
House Oversight and Reform Committee Chairman Elijah Cummings sent letters to drugmakers requesting detailed information about their pricing practices, focusing on drugs that are the costliest to Medicare Part D as well as drugs that have had the largest increases over a five-year period. The move is just the latest in a flurry of legislation and congressional action taken on the topic of high drug prices this year.
The decision came a day after a separate judge blocked the rules for a handful of states and D.C. Pennsylvania and New Jersey had challenged the exemptions by arguing that the burden would fall to the states to provide contraception to women who lost coverage. “The states’ harm is not merely speculative; it is actual and imminent,” U.S. District Judge Wendy Beetlestone wrote.
FDA Brings In Furloughed Workers To Resume Safety Inspections For High-Risk Foods
The inspections, which have been halted because of the government shutdown, will focus on risky items like cheeses, produce and infant formula. The FDA oversees about 80 percent of the nation’s food supply. Meanwhile, the shutdown could derail the timetable for some highly anticipated drugs.
First Edition: January 15, 2019
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Editorial writers weigh in on these and other health care topics.
Media outlets report on news from Florida, Massachusetts, Louisiana, Nebraska, Texas, Ohio, Tennessee, Kansas, California, Virginia and Michigan.
In Face Of Blood Shortages, Red Cross Aims To Recruit More Donors With New App
The agency, responsible for nearly half of the nation’s blood supply, says the app helps people understand where there are shortages and where they can give blood. Public health news also focuses on a 22-minute workout; housing reforms for the mentally ill; science with borders; infections from Mexican surgeries; the importance of humility among researchers; suicides on campus; higher cancer death rates among the poor; 26 trillion steps and counting on Fitbit and more.
Given Expanse Of Opioid Epidemic, ‘Knowing How To Use Narcan Can Save A Life’
More public health campaigns encourage people to learn about the life-saving treatment for opioid overdoses. WBUR interviewed health care experts about the importance of having Narcan available in first-aid kits. News on drug epidemics looks at overdose numbers dropping in Kentucky and meth’s resurgence, also.
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory said it “unequivocally rejects the unsubstantiated and reckless personal opinions Dr. James D. Watson expressed on the subject of ethnicity and genetics” which came to light in a PBS documentary.
Nursing Facility Where Woman In Vegetative State Gave Birth Previously Faced Criminal Investigation
Regulators with Arizona’s social-welfare agency wanted to remove developmentally disabled patients from Hacienda HealthCare in 2016 and terminate contracts that allowed the facility to provide services for the state as they investigated allegations of Medicaid fraud.
Record On Big Pharma Hangs Over Cory Booker As He Readies For A 2020 Presidential Run
Sen. Cory Booker (D-N.J.) drew criticism when he voted against a budget amendment allowing for the importation of drugs. As he preps to enter the 2020 fray, he’s been taking steps to counter that line of attack by joining forces with Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on his legislation aimed at high drug prices.
The Trump administration now requires hospitals to post their chargemasters online in an effort to increase pricing transparency in the industry. But many experts criticize the rules, saying the information is unusable to consumers. In other hospital news: children’s hospitals brace for changes from the administration’s tax reform law, and hospitals push physicians to go in-network.
VA Setting Stage For Biggest Transformation Of The Veterans’ Medical System In A Generation
The proposed guidelines would allow veterans more choice is seeking care outside the troubled VA system. Although, proponents of the switch say that it can help with wait times, critics say it will strain the private sector and increase costs for taxpayers.
Massive Texas Tent City At Center Of Protests Over Migrant Youth Care Closes
“It was chilling to see thousands of children locked up in a tent prison in the desert. It’s great news that those children have finally been moved out of Tornillo,” said Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) And other critics of the Trump administration’s care of young migrants note that there are still thousands of children in U.S. custody in shelters throughout the country.
Flurry Of Health Movement In Blue States May Act As ‘Test Balloons’ For Wider Marketplace
With a divided Congress, there may not be much forward progress on health care issues at a national level, but states led by Democratic lawmakers are already taking steps to fulfill campaign promises for more expanded options.
The scope of CMS’ plan is not yet clear, but the drastic change to the Medicaid program would almost certainly draw challenges both in the court and from Democrats. Sen. Bob Casey (D-Pa.) swore that he would block the plan through “literally every means that a U.S. senator has,” if necessary. Proponents of block grants say they allow more flexibility for the states to be creative with their spending.
Trump’s Rules Easing Health Law’s Contraception Mandate Blocked In 13 States And D.C.
Judge Haywood Gilliam limited the scope of the ruling to the plaintiffs, rejecting their request that he block the rules nationwide. The changes would have allowed more employers to opt out of providing no-cost contraceptive coverage to women by claiming religious objections.
Dwindling Funds Strain Already-Stressed Native American Health System As Shutdown Continues
Native American tribes rely heavily on federal assistance for basic services such as health care, so the shutdown is hitting them harder than others. Tribal members say they can’t get referrals for specialty care from the Indian Health Service if their conditions aren’t life-threatening. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has created a workaround so that food stamp beneficiaries won’t be cut off from aid this month.
After last year’s deadly strain, the CDC is releasing weekly information about the flu in order to help the public better understand the dangers. News on the flu comes out of California, also.
