Latest KFF Health News Stories
Editorial pages examine these health issues and others.
Perspectives: During Opioid Epidemic, Boost Funds, Efforts To Reverse Number Of Overdose Deaths
Opinion writers weigh in on issues surrounding the opioid crisis.
Media outlets report on news from North Carolina, Kansas, California, Connecticut, Wisconsin, Arizona, Maryland, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Colorado, Oregon and Ohio.
Puerto Rico’s Battered Health System Now Even More Vulnerable In The Face Of Future Storms
It’s taken a long time for Puerto Rico’s health system to recover from Hurricane Maria, and even though facilities are coming back on line and emergency plans have been made, there are new weaknesses that could be critically damaging if the island is hit with another storm. Meanwhile, why is it so hard to count casualties after a disaster?
But the development pipeline is slower than it ever used to be. “Donors are cutting back on funding at a time when we should be stepping on the gas,” said Gavin Yamey, the study’s lead author. Meanwhile, the fight against Ebola has advanced in recent years but it’s still facing old hurdles.
A look at California shows a new strategy in place for gun-control advocates and lawmakers: focusing on the bullets.
Nursing Home Residents Were Abandoned By Staff Members As Fires Closed In, California Agency Claims
None of the residents died or were injured in the fire, but the state’s Department of Social Services accused the staff of being unprepared and leaving before everyone was taken to safety. Nursing homes news comes out of North Carolina, Colorado, Wisconsin, New Hampshire and Tennessee, as well.
Dr. José Baselga’s failure to properly disclose his connections to the industry highlight a broader issue within the field over how weakly reporting requirements are enforced by the medical journals and professional societies charged with policing them.
Health Law Rates To Drop 9.3% In New Jersey As Hike Request Fails
In other news on health insurance costs, rate hikes will remain flat for thousands of retired state employees and teachers in Georgia, who were expecting increases.
The Drug Enforcement Administration hasn’t approved any of the applications that have come in during the past two years, and has offered no timeline on when they will be processed.
These Red-State Legislatures Blocked Medicaid Expansion. Now Voters May Give It The Green Light.
A movement to get Medicaid expansion on the ballot in states like Utah, Idaho and Nebraska has been gaining speed in recent years, and supporters are cautiously optimistic about their chances.
Obama Champions ‘Medicare For All’ As He Blasts Republicans For ‘Sabotaging’ Health Law
Former President Barack Obama spoke about Democrats’ ideas like “Medicare For All.” Meanwhile, Republicans are using the plan to attack their opponents, saying it will jeopardize Medicare’s current beneficiaries.
How This Democrat Is Using Health Care To Pull Ahead In A State That Loves Trump
Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) was once thought to be in danger. But his focus on preexisting conditions protections and other benefits from the health law — without naming the Affordable Care Act itself — have helped him pull ahead.
That particular description is mostly used by anti-abortion activists. But the methods of contraception they refer to as “abortion-inducing” actually don’t induce abortions as defined by science. Meanwhile, Democrats are putting up a last-ditch fight against Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh even though they face extremely low odds of derailing a vote.
Drug Patent For Opioid Use Disorder Granted To Member Of Family That Owns Maker Of OxyContin
With more than a thousand lawsuits against Purdue for allegedly misleading the public about the dangerous addictive properties of the painkiller, critics question Richard Sackler’s right to benefit from a drug to treat the disorder. Media outlets also report on safe injection site studies, recovery help for moms and babies; spikes in fentanyl-related deaths; training for dispensing naloxone, treatment in jails, and more.
Although there’s no proof that dirty stethoscopes and blood pressure cuffs make patients sick, experts say its important for medical professionals to get into the habit of cleaning the equipment after each person. In other public health news: organ donations, flu drugs, Alzheimer’s, sepsis, STDs, surrogates and more.
First Edition: September 10, 2018
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Opinion writers express views on these health topics and others.
Editorial pages weigh in on the seriousness of the latest revelations about the fitness of President Trump.
Research Roundup: Physician Burnout; Uninsured In California; And Diversity
Editorial pages express views on reproductive issues.
