Latest KFF Health News Stories
Media outlets report on news from Illinois, Minnesota, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Hampshire, Missouri, Texas, Colorado, Georgia, Florida, Connecticut, Wisconsin, Oregon, Pennsylvania and Massachusetts.
As Anxiety Rises Among School-Aged Children, School Nurses Try To Adjust To Meet Their Health Needs
The nurse’s office is often the first place students turn to for help to deal with stress, a trend worrying many school nursing associations that say they’re outnumbered by students. “There’s so much more in the school nursing world today than there ever has been,” Illinois school nurse Cameron Traut said. News on children’s health also reports on how frequent family moves can disrupt children’s mental health, mothers’ depression can throw off a child’s immune system and more.
Dutch Move Away From Medical Approach To Alzheimer’s And More Toward Reducing Stress
Experts in the Netherlands place emphasis on reducing stress, bringing together patients with dementia, and accessing childhood memories and emotions, rather than on drug treatment. Meanwhile, researchers in the U.S. are studying a gene mutation that could unlock some of the mysteries surrounding Alzheimer’s.
Ancient Hybrid Adds Another Layer Of Complexity To Timeline Of Humans’ Evolution
The discovery of bone fragments of a female with a Denisovan dad and a Neanderthal mom is a genetic jackpot for scientists who knew that the hybrids existed but didn’t really expect to find proof.
Health Benefits Of Tiny Amounts Of Ingredient In ‘Magic Mushrooms’ Piques Scientists’ Interest
So far, the majority of the evidence that psilocybin microdosing offers benefits — increased creativity, less anxiety, decreased need for caffeine and reduced depression — has been anecdotal. But researchers are starting to get curious. In other public health news: melanoma, air pollution, gym class, hearing, and concussions.
Unique Aspects Of New Pricey CAR-T Cancer Therapy Flummox Medicare Advisers
How to fit these therapies, that are innovative yet extremely expensive, into Medicare’s payment model leaves advisers more confused than anything. In other pharmaceutical news, a curtain is pulled back on the drug development process and scientists look to create a new class of drugs to treat malaria.
Education Department Considering Plan To Allow School Districts To Arm Teachers Using Federal Funds
The $1 billion student support program, part of the Every Student Succeeds Act, is intended for academic and enrichment opportunities in the country’s poorest schools, but it makes no mention of prohibiting weapon purchases. News on guns and public health comes out of Texas and Las Vegas, as well.
But the judges also used the case to question the Supreme Court’s abortion jurisprudence.
Advocates watching the changes the state has made to its request — such as adding a transition period to deal with the fact that the state’s income maximums are so low any work will likely kick beneficiaries off the program — are worried tens of thousands of people will lose coverage if the government approves the new requirements.
“Today’s announcements are a warning to every trafficker, every crooked doctor or pharmacist, and every drug company, every chairman and foreign national and company that puts greed before the lives and health of the American people,” Attorney General Jeff Sessions says.
Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-N.D.) claims that her re-election opponent, Rep. Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), wants to kill one of the most popular provisions in the health law — protections for people with preexisting conditions. Cramer fired back, saying it’s a myth that Republicans don’t care about that part of the law.
The report from the Government Accountability Office will likely be used by Democrats in the upcoming midterms to support their message that the Trump administration is undermining the health law. But the GAO also credited the government’s efforts to reduce call center wait times and stabilize the ACA website. Meanwhile, HHS approves Maryland’s request to created a reinsurance program in an effort to curb high premiums.
First Edition: August 23, 2018
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Editorial pages focus on these health issues and others.
Perspectives: CVS Plan Lets Pharma Off Easy; What To Do With Prescription-Drug Middlemen
Read recent commentaries about drug-cost issues.
Trump Administration Sends Up Mixed Signals On Drug Pricing, PBM Plans
News outlets report on stories related to pharmaceutical pricing.
Media outlets also report on other news from Texas, Florida, California, Montana, Missouri, Ohio, Georgia, Wisconsin, Tennessee, Kansas and Nevada.
Each day, Karina Garcia has to take her son Jojo, a 19-year-old with severe epilepsy, off school grounds to squirt a dose of cannabis oil into his mouth, then return him to school for his special education classes. In Massachusetts, the state Department of Public Health backs away from settling a fight over medical marijuana quality testing. And in Florida, Wells Fargo closes the account of a medical marijuana-supporting candidate.
Hospital Closures May Accelerate With 8% At Risk, Leaving More Patients Farther From Care
Currently 30 hospitals a year are shutting down across the U.S., Bloomberg reports. That number could increase, according to a Morgan Stanley analysis, with facilities in rural areas are particularly at risk. More hospital news also comes out of Texas, Minnesota and Denver.
Mass. Nurses Point Finger At Hospital Execs In Fight Over Nurse Staffing
The fight is headed to the ballot in November. Massachusetts voters will decide whether to impose limits on the number of patients assigned to hospital nurses, a measure that hospital executives oppose. “Hospital executives are the ones who have ignored nurses’ concerns, claiming a lack of resources for safe patient care, while pocketing seven-figure salaries,” said Donna Kelly-Williams, president of the Massachusetts Nurses Association.
