Latest KFF Health News Stories
Viewpoints: The Costs Of Defective Medical Devices; Holding A Teenager Hostage
A selection of opinions on health care from around the country.
Perspectives On Health Law: Sanders’ Plan Could Upend Democrats; New Lies About Obamacare
Opinion writers offer thoughts about the health care debate in the country.
Media outlets report on news from New Hampshire, Missouri, Massachusetts, New York, California, Florida, Kansas, Oregon, Minnesota and New Jersey.
California’s Strict Gun Show Laws Paying Off In Terms Of Public Safety, Study Suggests
When a gun show is held in California, the state sees no measurable increase in injuries and deaths in the following two weeks. However, when one is held in Nevada, which doesn’t have the same regulations as its neighbor, such incidents jump by nearly 70 percent in California region’s within two hours.
Tracking Of Maternal Deaths So Riddled With Flaws, U.S. Doesn’t Even Publish An Official Rate
ProPublica offers a look at the “embarrassing” state of data collection on maternal deaths in the country. In other public health news: fixing birth defects in the womb; discrimination; Uber for birth control; diabetes; firefighters and cancer; germs; and more.
Experts: Saying Medicaid Expansion Worsened Opioid Crisis Is Confusing Association With Causation
“Just because one event [Medicaid expansion] occurred during a period of increasing opioid deaths, many from illicit sources doesn’t mean that it caused the increase in deaths,” says David A. Fiellin, a professor of medicine at Yale School of Medicine.
Hospitals Tapping Into Lucrative Concierge Medicine Trend
While they’re not providing the kind of services patients could get at high-end independent practices, they are offering options such as same-day appointments or access to doctors via text for those who can afford it.
J&J Scores Back-To-Back Victories As Courts Overturn Massive Awards For Consumers In Talcum Cases
The science on the potential link between talcum powder and ovarian cancer is still being fiercely debated.
Hospitals Are Feeling The Pinch From Hurricane’s Devastating Effect On Puerto Rico
Hospital pharmacists across the country are racing to find an alternative to a product called a Mini-Bag, which dilutes intravenous drugs for patients. But that’s just the first of what providers and officials fear will be many shortages of drugs and devices following in the wake of the hurricane.
CHIP Funding Bill Could Get House Vote This Week, But Democrats Object To How It’s Paid For
Democrats say the five-year renewal would cut the Affordable Care Act’s public health prevention fund and raise Medicare rates for wealthy seniors.
Iowa Yanks Far-Reaching ‘Stop Gap’ Proposal That Would Have Eroded ACA’s Protections
With enrollment season only a little more than a week away, state officials made the decision to withdraw their waiver request to opt out of the Affordable Care Act exchanges.
Trump’s Move To Slash Outreach Budget May Have Drastic Effect On Enrollment, Analysts Project
Josh Peck, the author of the analysis, estimates that 1.1 million fewer people will sign up for coverage in 2018. Peck calls the findings a “best case scenario” because he didn’t take into account any of the administration’s other actions.
Senate Republicans On Bipartisan Health Plan: The Ball Is In President’s Court
Conflicting statements from President Donald Trump have made it hard for lawmakers to know exactly where he stands on the measure proposed by Sens. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.) and Patty Murray (D-Wash.) to shore up the Obamacare marketplaces.
Judge In Insurer Subsidies Case Points To Steps States Have Taken In Anticipation Of Payment Cut Off
Attorneys general from 18 states and D.C. asked the court for an immediate order halting President Donald Trump’s decision to cut off federal payments to health insurers. The judge seemed skeptical of their arguments, but aims to issue a ruling Tuesday.
First Edition: October 24, 2017
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Viewpoints: Administration’s ‘Brazen’ Argument On Abortion; Bolster The Fight Against Opioids
A selection of opinions on health care from around the country.
Perspectives On Health Debate: What Changed On Subsidies? The Need For Stability Now
Opinion writers take a look at some of the health law issues that are front and center today.
Media outlets report on news from California, Puerto Rico, California, Florida, Maryland and Kansas.
Raising Taxes On Cigarettes Is Working, Which Is Why Industry Is Swarming On State Capitols
“I’d never seen this amount of money being poured into a session in my 17 years here,” says the American Cancer Society’s Kristin Page-Nei of the failed effort in Montana to increase the state’s cigarette tax. In other public health news: peanut allergies, labor, memory training, ankle replacements, UTIs, and more.
Fertility Industry Is Booming, But With It Comes Tricky Ethical, Legal Questions
It’s an era where people can have a checklist for their perfect baby, and companies can charge high prices to give them just that. But despite the ethical and legal morass the promise of all that brings, the industry remains largely self-regulated.
