Latest KFF Health News Stories
Residents of Harlan, Ky., are vocally Republican, but the county is the nation’s fifth most dependent on federal programs, such as Medicaid. The New York Times investigates this ever-growing contradiction in American politics. Medicaid news comes out of California, Wisconsin and New Hampshire, as well.
There’s a stem cell clinic boom happening across the country, but the businesses and their practices are highly unregulated and can be dangerous. The FDA is planning on ramping up oversight of such facilities.
ProPublica has gathered hundreds of police reports detailing allegations of sexual assaults in immigrant children’s shelters, but those reports show that police were quickly — and with little investigation — closing the cases, often within days, or even hours. In other news, the Justice Department is trying to determine if a nonprofit that runs shelters for migrant children misappropriated government money, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen was questioned about the death of a 7-year-old girl in U.S. custody, and the U.S. is considering scrapping certain guidelines about restraining pregnant women.
Health law sign ups for 2019 dipped only slightly even though Congress zeroed out the penalty for not having insurance. The numbers suggest that people are participating in the ACA exchanges because they value the coverage not because they’re worried about paying fines, experts say. Other health law news focuses on the contraception mandate, as well as short-term plans.
First Edition: December 21, 2018
NOTE TO READERS: KHN’s First Edition will not be published Dec. 24-Jan. 1. Look for it again in your inbox Jan. 2. Here’s today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Opinion pages focus on these health topics and others.
Longer Looks: A Year Of ER Bills; Profiting Off Work Requirements; And The Cost Of Giving Birth
Each week, KHN’s Shefali Luthra finds interesting reads from around the Web.
Media outlets report on news from California, Ohio, Missouri, Connecticut, Texas, Virginia, Colorado, D.C., Illinois, Minnesota, Arizona and Massachusetts.
But just as there is plenty of important research to highlight, science was also being conducted where conflicts of interest were exposed, including an NIH alcohol study that was shutdown. Other news on public health examines the ethics behind gene-editing babies; society’s signals for male teens; holiday weight gain; longevity factors; freak lead poisoning; pets and childhood allergies; caring networks for senior women, and E-coli outbreaks.
Public Health Advocates Say Administration’s New Action Plan Against Childhood Lead Is Faulty
While welcoming the EPA’s attention to lead contamination, critics faulted the plan for lacking deadlines for regulatory or enforcement action. News on unsafe drinking water comes out of Detroit, also.
But the authors did see some good news in the car crash statistics as safety features and drunken driving initiatives helped cut the numbers in the past two decades.
“The aging population is starting to take its toll,” said William Frey, a demographer at the Brookings Institution. However, the population shifts in some battleground states could significantly change future elections.
More Than 180K Virginians Enroll In Newly Expanded Medicaid Program
Virginia lawmakers battled for years over Medicaid expansion, but finally reached an agreement this year. The sign-ups show the program has reached nearly half of the 400,000 Virginians estimated to be eligible for Medicaid because of expansion.
The New York Times investigates what makes the opioid epidemic unique and how the drugs can permanently alter the brain chemistry of anyone who uses them to make it nearly impossible to quit. Meanwhile, the government is encouraging doctors to prescribe anti-overdose medications along with painkillers, and a top lawmaker is looking into the financial ties between opioid makers, advocacy groups and government panels. Other news on the crisis comes out of D.C., New York, Pennsylvania, Kansas and Georgia.
Juul Closes Is On Deal With One Of The World’s Largest Tobacco Companies
The possible deal with Altria comes as e-cigarette maker Juul faces increasing regulatory scrutiny. The union would give Juul access to Altria’s marketing skills and its valuable shelf-space in convenience stores. Advocates said the partnership shows that Juul’s focus is on profits and not public health.
The American Association for Cancer Research said that Dr. José Baselga “did not adhere to the high standards pertaining to conflict of interest disclosures that the AACR expects of its leadership.”
Pharma’s Hiatus On Drug Price Hikes Goes Out The Door In January As Industry Returns To Status Quo
Earlier in the year, while facing increasing public outrage and scrutiny from President Donald Trump, some pharmaceutical companies put the kibosh on planned price increases for their drugs. But starting in the new year, many will be raising prices again, Reuters reports. In other industry news: an administration report recommends against seizing patents as a way to curb costs; providers and insurers ask Congress to place real consequences into any plan that would require drug prices in TV ads; why biologics remain a tough nut for the U.S. to crack; and more.
High Cost Of Health Care On Sen. Lamar Alexander’s Congressional Bucket List
Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), the chairman of the powerful Senate health committee, announced his 2020 retirement this week, but said he doesn’t plan on becoming a lame-duck lawmaker for the next two years. And speaking of the high cost of health care, The Associated Press offers tips about helping a loved one with their medical expenses.
Information about just how many children are being held at the facilities has been spotty, but an Associated Press investigation highlights the true breadth of the problem. “No matter how a person feels about immigration policy, very few people hate children — and yet we are passively allowing bad things to happen to them,” said Dr. Jack Shonkoff, who heads Harvard University’s Center on the Developing Child. Meanwhile, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen will testify about a 7-year-old girl’s death while in U.S. custody.
Fixing the problems that have plagued the VA is one likely area where a divided Congress could find common ground, and Secretary Robert L. Wilkie at a joint House-Senate hearing got a taste of what’s likely to be a less friendly audience than he may be used to. Meanwhile, the department has yet to submit criteria about when a veteran would be sent to a private provider.
