Latest KFF Health News Stories
Shackling Women Prisoners During Childbirth Could Be Outlawed In New Federal Legislation
A criminal justice bill under consideration by Congress would stop the practice of using handcuffs, ankle chains or shackles on incarcerated women giving birth in a federal facility. News on prison health care also comes out of Ohio, California, Maryland and Arizona.
ProPublica, PBS’ Frontline and The New York Times investigate the project and find that for some residents, the sudden shift from an institution to independence has “proved perilous, and even deadly.”
Judge Considers Delaying CVS-Aetna Merger, Citing Potential Anti-Competitive Harms
But antitrust experts say it’s only possible for the Department of Justice to block the merger. DOJ approved the $70 billion deal in October. Meanwhile, CVS and Aetna are moving ahead with integration plans. Other industry news looks at CVS’ new prescription drug-price plans and rising costs of Pitocin and Ketamine.
Debt, ‘Ballooning’ Rents Lead Texas’ Biggest Nursing Home Provider To File For Bankruptcy
Senior Care Centers operates more than 100 facilities in Texas and a handful more in Louisiana. In other news out of Texas, Little River Healthcare closes facilities following apparent lab test billing scheme.
Nearly A Third Of Physicians Working In U.S. Born Abroad, Analysis Of Health Workers Finds
A new study breaks down the number of doctors, nurses, dentists, pharmacists and other health care experts working in the U.S. who are foreign-born or who are not U.S. citizens.
Hospitals Serving The Sickest And Poorest Patients Worry About New Federal Ratings
A new analysis of preliminary data by Modern Healthcare raises concerns.
HHS Says Reporting ‘Inaccurate’ About Potential Changes To Fetal Tissue Research Funding For UCSF
No decision has been made yet about federal funding for a University of California at San Francisco’s research laboratory, the Department of Health and Human Services says about a story yesterday from The Washington Post. The lab in question has been instrumental in testing virtually all HIV therapies subsequently approved by the Food and Drug Administration since the 1990s.
Medicaid Officials Allow N.H. To Implement The Latest Work Requirement For Some Beneficiaries
The federal waiver requires many adults who have joined Medicaid through the health law’s expansion to report at least 100 hours per month of work, job training, education or volunteer activities. The requirement in other states has been 80 hours. In Florida, some advocates are concerned about a change to the look-back period that applies to coverage for new Medicaid members.
Wis. Incoming Governor Says He Will Appeal To Walker To Veto GOP Bills Restricting Power
The measures, which among other things will give the legislature more control of Medicaid and work requirements that the state is implementing, has raised alarm bells from the health industry and Democrats.
Sen. Manchin Presses Trump To Support Senate Compromise To Help Stabilize ACA Markets
Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.) last year reached an agreement aimed at reducing Affordable Care Act premiums, but the deal faltered amid a dispute over restrictions on funding going to abortions. Manchin, a moderate Democrat, wants to revive the deal. Also, officials in Minnesota are concerned that the Trump administration may change a funding formula for a reinsurance program that has helped reduce premiums there.
First Edition: December 6, 2017
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Opinion writers weigh in on these health care topics and others.
Read recent commentaries about drug-cost issues.
Diabetics Are Taking Extreme Measures To Access The Pricey Insulin They Need To Live
News outlets report on stories related to pharmaceutical pricing.
Media outlets report on news from New York, Georgia, Texas, Minnesota, Utah, California and Tennessee.
As foster systems are strained across the country with an influx of children whose guardians have been effected by the opioid crisis, advocates are hopeful that new guidelines will make it easier to find them homes. Meanwhile, doctors are reporting the first successful birth of a baby that was carried via a uterus transplant from a deceased donor. In other public health news: how much sleep is too much sleep?; medical schools, products that trigger puberty, head-shaping baby helmets, and more.
Scientists Claim To Develop Simple, Fast Blood Test That Detects Cancer
While the results of the study need to be confirmed, some scientists are hailing the Australian discovery of the 10-minute test as groundbreaking. Scientists have been working to identify cancer earlier, as early detection increases the success rate of therapeutic treatment and surgery.
5.1 Million Pounds Of Beef Added To Recall Over Salmonella Worries
The CDC is also warning people to thoroughly cook meat because that’s the only way to kill salmonella and to check their freezer for meat products. The products were packaged between July and September. Illnesses have been reported in 25 states.
Ethical criticism of He Jiankui’s work has been coming in fast and furious over the past week. But now scientists are also criticizing the research itself, saying it’s plagued with massive technical shortcomings. His results show that “this was all a terrible idea in basically every way,” said Erik Sontheimer, who studies CRISPR in his lab at the University of Massachusetts Medical School.
Teens’ Wisdom Teeth Removal Surgery Can Often Open The Door To Opioid Addiction
In the year following the surgery, close to 6 percent of patients who left their dentist’s office with a prescription for opioids had a “health care encounter” in which a diagnosis of opioid abuse was documented. That’s well over 10 times the rate at which a comparison group. In other news on the crisis: addiction counselors, life insurance and naloxone, supervised injection sites, and more.
