Morning Breakouts

Latest KFF Health News Stories

Trump Proposes Rule Requiring Pharma To Include Prices In Ads, Setting Up Possible First Amendment Legal Battle

Morning Briefing

The rule, which is part of President Donald Trump’s blueprint to rein in high drug costs, sparked immediate push back from pharmaceutical companies. Beyond the industry, experts are skeptical that the regulation would do anything to bring down prices and may confuse patients because consumers often don’t pay the list price for medications.

First Edition: October 16, 2018

Morning Briefing

DON’T MISS: It’s bad enough that a patient has a health emergency so dire that it requires a helicopter ride to make it to the hospital in time. But then comes the bill. Tune in to the next KHN Facebook Live – on Friday, Oct. 19 at 12:30 p.m. – when KHN senior editor Diane Webber outlines the factors that allow air ambulance costs to be so high.

‘Beautiful Boy’ Movie Explores The Difficulties Of Addiction And The Ways It Impacts Loved Ones

Morning Briefing

The movie tells the story of Nic Sheff and his father David, offering a look into a family touched by addiction. After seeing the movie, David recalled his difficult struggle to view his addicted son with sympathy, to make the mental shift from “how could he do this to me and the family and to himself, to understanding that he was troubled and ill.”

The Unique Challenges Older LGBTQ Americans Face Add Extra Layer Of Complexity To Aging, Experts Say

Morning Briefing

For example, a 63-year-old transgender woman wonders if she would be accepted at a long-term care center. Would she have to hide who she is and go back into the closet “to get the care I deserve to get?” In other news on aging, predicting Alzheimer’s, knee replacement surgery and staying active in the later years.

Emergency Communications Can Often Fail To Take Into Account Disabled Americans

Morning Briefing

Missing closed captioning and other gaps for emergency communications can cut off Americans who are deaf from getting the news on life-threatening situations. Meanwhile, Florida hospitals are still recovering from Hurricane Michael.

Unapproved, Sometimes Dangerous Drugs Found In Dietary Supplements

Morning Briefing

The research most commonly turned up the drug sold as Viagra in the supplements. Despite what consumers may think, the supplements are actually regulated as food and therefore not subject to premarket safety and effectiveness testing imposed on pharmaceuticals.

FDA Solicits Information On E-Cigarette Sales As Part Of Aggressive Crackdown On Products

Morning Briefing

FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb is particularly concerned with the increase of e-cigarette use among teens. As part of his efforts to curb their proliferation, Gottlieb sent letters to companies to see if they complied with a rule that banned the sale of new e-cigarette products after August 2016 without regulatory approval.

Trump Administration Wants Pharma To Put Prices In Ads, But Experts Are Skeptical That Would Rein In Costs

Morning Briefing

Experts say drugmakers’ list prices are typically used as a starting point for negotiations with other health care payers and few patients are asked to pay them, so including may be confusing. HHS Secretary Alex Azar is scheduled to give a speech Monday afternoon that will address the administration’s blueprint for lowering drug costs.

Investigation On Medicare Advantage Plans Finds Widespread, Persistent Problems Related To Denials Of Care

Morning Briefing

The investigation by the HHS inspector general raises some concerns just as Medicare Advantage plans become more and more popular. Analysts predict that one in two seniors will have them in a few years despite predictions that the health law would hobble the marketplace.

‘Somebody Needs To Fix It’: As Each Party Locks In Health Care Rhetoric, Many Voters Just Want A Solution

Morning Briefing

“It’s crippling people. It’s crippling me,” Pennsylvania voter Kaci Rickert says of health care costs. The topic has taken center stage in the weeks before the midterm elections, as Democrats focus on Republicans’ threat to popular health law provisions, such as preexisting conditions protections, while Republicans go after progressives’ “Medicare For All” plan. News on the races comes out of Iowa, Ohio, California and Minnesota.