Latest KFF Health News Stories
Maine Voters Set Today To Decide Whether To Expand Medicaid Enrollment
Lawmakers have five times passed bills to expand the state’s Medicaid program under the federal health law, but the governor has vetoed the measures.
Trump Administration Keeping Executive Order To Repeal Individual Mandate In Its Back Pocket
The draft order would broaden the “hardship exemption” that the Obama administration established for those who face extraordinary circumstances.
GOP Lawmakers Don’t See Repeal Of Individual Mandate Getting Added To House Version Of Tax Bill
“It hasn’t ever been in the [House] bill,” said one Republican on the Ways and Means Committee. “I expect that it will be added somewhere down the sausage-making venture.” Meanwhile, lawmakers may be considering changes to taxes on health savings accounts.
Health Law Signups, Traffic To Healthcare.gov Surge In First Few Days Of Open Enrollment
Despite fears that Trump administration’s actions to cut the outreach budget for the health law would undermine sign ups, the numbers spiked over last year according to a source who spoke on the condition of anonymity. However, usually signups this early are consumers renewing coverage, not new customers. Meanwhile, insurers are opening their own wallets to make up for the lack of federal marketing for the health law.
First Edition: November 7, 2017
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Viewpoints: Alzheimer’s Heavy Toll; Missouri Owes Its Blind Citizens
A selection of opinions on health care from around the country.
Parsing Policies: Tax Reform And The Individual Mandate — Republicans Could Have It Wrong
Opinion writers offer thoughts on a range of health issues, including how the Affordable Care Act’s individual mandate is playing into the current debate regarding tax reform, the ongoing efforts by health law opponents to sabotage Obamacare and a dark view of Medicare for all.
Media outlets report on news from Massachusetts, Virginia, Tennessee, the District of Columbia, Missouri, Colorado, Minnesota, Florida, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Ohio.
FDA Chief On Regulations: Some Need To Be Re-Regulated. Others ‘Sort Of Ignored, Not Followed.’
Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb discusses the way his agency can approach old and new rules to achieve its pharmaceutical industry goals. Meanwhile, other news outlets cover the Ohio drug pricing ballot measure and the specter of Amazon’s entrance into the marketplace.
Authorities Release 10-Year-Old Immigrant Girl With Cerebral Palsy
Border Patrol agents had taken the girl into custody following emergency gallbladder surgery and held her at a facility in San Antonio, Texas for unaccompanied immigrant minors.
Koch Group To Launch Massive Campaign To Increase Private Sector’s Role In VA Care
But the debate over privatizing VA care is fraught with tension — from advocates who are concerned civilian hospitals wouldn’t be prepared for veterans’ unique needs to lawmakers who don’t want to see the agency undercut.
Americans Are Often Clueless About Their Own Obesity, Survey Finds
And doctors are too busy, to embarrassed or ill-equipped to help them. In other public health news: arthritis, diabetes, genetic tests, the shingles vaccine, sickle cell, and soda.
On The Hunt For Monkeypox: Tracking A Fatal Virus Before It Spreads Across The Globe
As reports of cases flare across Africa, scientists work hard to understand the deadly virus that has no cure.
Drug Overdoses Now Leading Cause Of Death For Americans Under 50
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, drug overdose rates spiked by 17 percent last year. Meanwhile, China says the U.S. has been too aggressive in pinning blame for the fentanyl flooding into the country.
Texas Shooting Was ‘Mental Health’ Problem Not A ‘Guns Situation,’ Trump Says
“We have a lot of mental health problems in our country, as do other countries,” President Donald Trump said of the mass shooting in Texas that left 26 dead.
Anthem CEO Stepping Down Following Collapse Of Cigna Deal
Chief Executive Joseph R. Swedish will be succeeded by veteran managed-care executive Gail K. Boudreaux, the insurer announces.
N.H. Becomes Latest State To Ask For Federal Approval To Set Work Requirement For Medicaid
Arkansas, Arizona, Indiana, Kentucky, Maine, Utah and Wisconsin are also seeking the new authority for the work mandate for healthy adults. In other Medicaid news, Republican lawmakers in Louisiana blocked managed care contracts, California managed care plans make hefty profits and North Carolina officials begin efforts to revamp the program.
CHIP Bill Passes House, But Partisan Strife Over Funding Likely To Cause Headaches In Senate
To pay for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, the House bill would charge higher premiums to wealthier Medicare beneficiaries and cut money from the Affordable Care Act’s public health fund. Democrats in the Senate are opposed to what they say is just another way to attack the health law.
News outlets offer the latest on how the sign-up period is working this year for health coverage through the Affordable Care Act marketplaces.
Bolstered By Trump’s Support, Conservatives Push To Include Repeal Of Individual Mandate In Tax Bill
However, House Ways and Means Chairman Kevin Brady (R-Texas) warned that mixing health care into an already-complicated tax measure could prompt new opposition and complicate its narrow path in the Senate.
