Latest KFF Health News Stories
Google Imposes Restrictions On Opioid Treatment Center Ads
“This is a bold move by one of the world’s biggest companies, saying people’s lives are more important than profit,” said Greg Williams, co-founder of Facing Addiction. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump’s opioid commission says there’s no timetable for officially declaring the crisis a national emergency.
Medicare Unveils Design And Publicity Campaign For New Beneficiary Cards
The new cards will be rolled out in April, but federal officials are beginning an outreach campaign now so seniors are not confused when they get theirs.
FDA Chief Stresses Competition As Way To Curb High Drug Prices
Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb said the tactic isn’t new, but he wants to be more transparent with the agency’s efforts going forward.
A new federal rule will require that nursing homes have “alternate sources of energy to maintain temperatures to protect resident health and safety.” But some say it is too vague and wouldn’t have necessarily avoided the deaths of the eight residents in Florida even if it had been in effect. Meanwhile, police have obtained a search warrant in their criminal investigation of the Florida nursing home, and The New York Times offers tips on choosing a reliable facility.
Weeding Out The Rhetoric From The Facts On Sanders’ ‘Medicare For All’ Plan
The New York Times examines various claims — like that the majority of people are in support of a single-payer system — surrounding the proposal advanced by Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). Meanwhile, Sen. John Barrasso (R-Wyo.) asks the Congressional Budget Office to score the bill, which could make it an even tougher sell than it already is.
Repeal-And-Replace Is Still An Extremely Important Priority For Many Republican Voters
Fifty-three percent of Republican respondents in a new poll classify the issue as extremely important while another 26 percent said it should be a “very important priority.” Meanwhile, The Washington Post uses state-level data to examine how the Affordable Care Act has affected uninsured rates.
Premiums To Jump 15 Percent Next Year Due To Trump’s Threats To Subsidies, CBO Projects
This rise is also attributed to the projected increase to growing numbers of people living in regions where only one insurer sells policies.
ACA Navigators Find Out Just How Deep Those Outreach Budget Cuts Go
Funding will be reduced by as much as 92 percent to the organizations designed to help people enroll in coverage through the Affordable Care Act. And many of the places that will be hit the hardest are in deep red territory.
Sen. Cornyn Sussing Out Support For Graham-Cassidy Health Care Bill
The legislation, which is the Republicans’ last-ditch effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, has long odds in the Senate.
Hearings Done, Senate Health Panel Now Seeks Common Ground On Stabilizing Marketplaces
The committee’s chairman, Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), says he hopes to have a bipartisan bill by early next week that would give insurers more confidence about the market environment.
First Edition: September 15, 2017
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Viewpoints: Cancer Drug Revolution; When The Cause Of Death Is ‘Inequality’
A selection of opinions on health care from around the country.
Policy Points: Three GOP Senators ‘Bedside Miracle;’ Immigration As A Public Health Issue
Columnists offer their opinions on a range of health policy topics, including the Obamacare alternative being advanced by Sens. Lindsay Graham (R-S.C.), Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Dean Heller (R-Nev.), the impact of immigration policy and how to make sense of issues during the upcoming open enrollment period.
Single-Payer Perspectives: An Opening Bid Or A Way To Change The Subject
Editorial writers offer their thoughts on the single-payer approach to health care that appears to be gaining traction in the ongoing policy debate.
Longer Looks: Seven Days Of Heroin; Goop; And Medicare-For-All
Each week, KHN’s Shefali Luthra finds interesting reads from around the Web.
Media outlets report on news from Massachusetts, Ohio, Georgia, Louisiana, New Jersey and Tennessee.
As Death Toll Climbs In Hepatitis A Outbreak, San Diego Begins Washing Streets With Bleach
San Diego is also giving free vaccinations and installing hand-washing stations to combat the crisis.
One Ohio County Makes Anti-Overdose Drug Widely Available, While Another Rejects That Approach
Bloomberg profiles Hamilton County, Ohio, where officials think the best way to tackle the opioid epidemic is to get Narcan in as many hands as possible, and Butler County, where the sheriff refuses to allow officers to carry the medication. In today’s other public health news: a $25,000 “life-extension test”; anti-smoking efforts; miscarriage risks from flu shot studied; and more.
To Circumvent Patent Challenges, This Pharma Company Made A Deal With A Native American Tribe
Now that the deal has been made public, other drugmakers are taking interest. In other pharmaceutical news, the struggle to create a Zika vaccine highlights a broader public health problem, the Food and Drug Administration is changing the way it approves orphan drugs, the House has begun work on a bill that would boost the agency’s oversight of over-the-counter drugs, and more.
Advocates Pressing Medicare To Promote Advance Directives Among Beneficiaries
Some lawmakers and organizations want the government to help get the word out about advance directives and to encourage people to create them. Also, a look at some of the experimental programs being run by Medicare to change how doctors are reimbursed.
