Latest KFF Health News Stories
Disruptions To Medicaid Coverage When Recipients Are In Jail Creates Vicious Cycle Upon Release
The lag it takes to get back on Medicaid can mean relapses or other serious problems for prisoners struggling with addiction or mental health issues. “On the outside, if they didn’t get their treatment, they’d come right back through the front door again,” New Hampshire Department of Corrections Superintendent David Dionne says.
Cigna Confirms That Deal With Express Scripts Will Undergo Review By Justice Department
The Justice Department’s antitrust chief, Makan Delrahim, has taken a tough stand against similar types of deals in the past.
The New Weapon In Ongoing Battle Between Drug Companies And Pharmacy Benefit Managers
Drugmakers are expecting to take a financial hit from the copay accumulator programs that PBMs have begun marketing. And the Supreme Court may review a whistleblower case that could have implications across the pharmaceutical industry.
HHS Secretary Back In Hospital To Be Treated For Intestinal Issue
HHS Secretary Alex Azar has been dealing with diverticulitis, a condition where pouches form in the colon wall and can become inflamed or infected.
Maternal Health Crisis Being Overlooked As Attention Is Focused On Opioid Epidemic, Advocates Say
Advocates say it’s hard to get lawmakers to focus on the issue of up to 900 maternal deaths annually in the U.S. when their attention is on the opioid crisis. “We think this is an issue that touches enough American families that it ought to get the same attention,” said Dr. Neel Shah, vice president of March for Moms.
Lawmakers Want VA To Consider Marijuana As Alternative To Opioids For Treating Pain, PTSD
The measure would kick off a five-year study on the safety and efficacy of marijuana. “As a physician, I’m keenly aware of the need to look for opioid alternatives to treat patients’ chronic pain,” said Rep. Phil Roe (R-Tenn.), the chairman of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee.
Drugmakers Were Set To Team Up With NIH On Massive Opioid Study But Officials Are Pumping The Brakes
In an abrupt shift, the National Institutes of Health said it won’t take money from the pharmaceutical industry, and will instead fund the study exclusively through taxpayer dollars. In other news on the crisis: a look at the U.S. Public Health Service’s Commissioned Corps, a 6,500-strong group of health experts fighting the epidemic; how the surgeon general’s advice for Americans to carry naloxone will play out; more states are taking the fight against drugmakers to the courts; and more.
No One Should Be ‘Unable To Save A Life Because Of The High Price’ Of Naloxone, Senators Say
Lawmakers are urging HHS to take steps to bring down the price of the antioverdose medication. Meanwhile, in an election year, Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.) can’t find Republicans to back her bill to crack down on suspicious opioid shipments, and other lawmakers seek $100 billion to fight the crisis over the next 10 years.
More Consumers Rolling Dice And Going With Bare Bones Plans As Substitute For ACA Coverage
Most people who are going with the fixed indemnity plans — which aren’t considered true insurance under the health law — are healthy and willing to bet they won’t be hit with high medical bills anytime soon. Meanwhile, Democrats on Capitol Hill have introduced a public option plan that, though it has almost no chance of passing at the moment, reinforces the party’s push toward more universal coverage.
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The liquid formula, extracted from a compound in marijuana that doesn’t cause euphoric effects, would be the first government-approved drug derived from the cannabis plant in the U.S.
Scientists have already seen results in mice, and envision the technology as life-changing for couples who struggle with infertility. But the tech would raise a whole host of ethical conundrums. In other public health news: blood pressure, falling, nuts, face transplants, hypertension, and vaccines.
Mice In New York City Found To Be Carrying Dangerous Drug-Resistant Bacteria
“People focus a lot on rats, but they don’t think that much about mice, and I think that’s unfortunate,” said Dr. Ian Lipkin, the study’s senior author. But he stressed that the researchers haven’t actually linked mice to any large outbreaks of human disease.
Fight Over Dialysis Payments Draws In The Big Guns
Lawmakers in the California Senate health committee are set to vote Wednesday on a measure that would crack down on third-party premium assistance for dialysis patients. The bill has the backing of insurers and powerful labor groups.
Virginia House Sends Budget With Tightened Medicaid Work Requirements To Senate
It remains to be seen if the changes will be enough to appease the upper chamber, which blocked the budget during the regular session because it included Medicaid expansion plans for the state.
The Only Way To Fix Health Care Is To Break The Current Business Model, Advocates Say
Backers of direct primary care, which is an alternative payment model that operates with a flat membership fee, want Amazon’s Jeff Bezos to incorporate the strategy into his new health care venture with JP Morgan and Berkshire Hathaway.
