Latest KFF Health News Stories
“Companies cannot be NGOs,” Brainstorm CEO Chaim Lebovits said. “We have to have an incentive.” Health insurers don’t typically pay for treatments that haven’t been approved by regulators or proven to work in clinical trials. That means patients would have to pay for the therapies, which could reach into the hundreds of thousands of dollars, out of their own pockets.
Senate Blocks Trump’s Plan To Trim $15 Billion In Government Spending
Among other concerns, lawmakers were worried about the cut to the popular CHIP program.
Stat looks at the measures to address the nation’s drug epidemic that experts say still don’t go far enough. Meanwhile, the crisis is taking its toll on children and taxing foster systems across the country.
Trump Proposes Shaking Up Agencies With Model That Hearkens Back To 1950s
The changes President Donald Trump wants to make to agencies that oversee government aid are unlikely to come to pass, but they signal the White House’s agenda toward social safety-net programs. Right now the focus is on the Education and Labor Departments, but officials are also looking at programs and offices within HHS.
Long History Of Fraud And Shady Operators Linked To Association Health Plans Has Experts Worried
As the Trump administration moves forward with its final rule allowing small businesses and self-employed workers ti get coverage through association health plans, fraud experts are concerned that the “unauthorized or bogus” plans that flooded the marketplace in the early 2000s will crop up again. Meanwhile, New York and Massachusetts will sue the federal government over the rule.
“It’s not like an auto body shop where you fix the dent and everything looks like new. We’re talking about children’s minds,” said Luis H. Zayas, professor of social work and psychiatry at the University of Texas at Austin. “We did the harm; we should be responsible for fixing the damage. But the sad thing for most of these kids is this trauma is likely to go untreated.” Media outlets dive into the mental health toll of President Donald Trump’s family separation policy, as well as the lasting political ramifications it may have in the coming months.
Executives from the companies said the deal won’t negatively affect the marketplace, but outside experts predict that it will chip away at competition to the detriment of patients. California Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones can’t block the merger himself, but his suggestion could have an impact on regulators’ final decision.
The health world has been closely watching to see who Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan Chase would choose to lead their health care initiative geared toward reining in astronomical costs. Atul Gawande, a highly respected doctor and writer on health care policy, is a “well-known luminary” in the field, but the pick was also a surprise to some because he lacks hands-on experience running a large organization.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Viewpoints: Unregulated Crisis Pregnancy Centers Actively Deceive Women
Editorial pages focus on women’s health and other health issues in the news.
Opinion writers weigh in on recent changes to the health law and proposed changes.
Perspectives: Attacks Against The 340B Drug Program Are Unfounded, Unfair And Dangerous
Read recent commentaries about drug-cost issues.
Drugs Can Often Ride A Wave Of Novelty And Marketing Before Reality Crashes Down
News outlets report on stories related to pharmaceutical pricing.
Media outlets report on news from New York, Massachusetts, Maryland, Texas, California, Montana, Kansas and Oregon.
White Americans Are Dying Faster Than They Are Being Born Thanks In Part To Opioid Epidemic
Demographers say the pattern is moving America towards a future where white people are no longer the majority faster than previously predicted. In other public health news: bioterror, anti-aging, survivors of childhood cancer, social media, HPV, and more.
Rural Hospitals Likely To Close In Missouri, Other States That Haven’t Expanded Medicaid
A new report finds 90 percent of recent hospital closures in rural areas were in states that had not expanded its Medicaid program. Also, Medicaid news comes out of Massachusetts, Mississippi and Florida.
Federal Rule Set To Halt Public Disclosure Of Data On Hospital Infections
CMS chief medical officer Kate Goodrich said the agency “is committed to transparency of quality and cost information” and denied that it was proposing to remove the information from Hospital Compare and said any changes are up for public comment.
Veterans are being sent letters that they’ll have to start paying money out of their monthly entitlements for combat-related disabilities because they’re enrolled in a Survivor Benefit Plan.
Facebook Launches Feature Redirecting Users Searching For Opioids Or Treatment To Federal Help Line
Social media companies have been under increasing pressure to step up in the fight against the opioid epidemic. In other news related to the crisis: medication-assisted treatment, a big increase in deaths in rural areas and the dangers of fentanyl.
Jaw-Dropping Results From Experimental Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy Treatment Sparks Hope In Patients
“I have spent my life wanting to make a real change in this disease. Finally, we may be there. I am very hopeful. This is an emotional time for people in the field,” said Dr. Jerry Mendell of Nationwide Children’s Hospital in Columbus, Ohio.
