Morning Breakouts

Latest KFF Health News Stories

Today Is Deadline For Insurers To Commit To Sell In 2018’s ‘Very Challenged’ Obamacare Market

Morning Briefing

Concerns continue that pockets across the country will lack insurers or competition. But while some titans of the industry debate whether to sell on the health law exchanges next year, one startup — Oscar — is planning to expand its territory.

McConnell’s Political Gamble: Wily Strategist Likely To Hold Vote Despite Uncertainty Over Passage

Morning Briefing

There’s a razor-thin margin of error in the Senate to get to a “yes” next week on the chamber’s version of the health care bill. Not even Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is certain about its chances. Meanwhile, public opposition to the bill continues to rise.

Invention To Stop Blood Loss, Born On The Battlefield, Could Save Lives Of Civilians In Trauma Cases

Morning Briefing

The device “is not the second coming of Jesus Christ,” said David Spencer, the president of the company that makes the device. “But it gives the surgeons a chance where maybe there wasn’t a chance before.” In other public health news: the human genome, Zika, back pain, suicide, election stress and more.

Bristol-Myers’ Supreme Court Victory Could Have Far-Reaching Ramifications In Liability Cases

Morning Briefing

The case centered around whether plaintiffs residing outside of the state who claim they were harmed by the company’s blood thinner could join in a lawsuit brought by California residents. “It will extremely limit the notion that large companies can be sued by anyone, anywhere,” said one lawyer.

Credit Agency Pokes Texas For Failing To Budget Sufficiently For Medicaid Growth

Morning Briefing

S&P Global Ratings did not downgrade the state’s ratings, but criticized the legislature’s decision to cut funds by nearly $2 billion while expecting more people to qualify for the program. Meanwhile, officials in Illinois are still seeking to get beyond an impasse on Medicaid payment formulas for doctors, hospitals and other health care providers.

‘A President Who Simply Does Not Care’ About HIV/AIDS: 6 Angered Experts Quit Trump’s Panel

Morning Briefing

The members of the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS write that the administration “pushes legislation that will harm people living with HIV and halt or reverse important gains made in the fight against this disease.” The White House disputes the former advisers’ characterizations. “Well, I mean, respectfully, the president cares tremendously about that and the impact it has,” Press Secretary Sean Spicer said.

State Officials Scramble To Woo Insurers Back Into ACA Marketplaces

Morning Briefing

In Washington state, an insurer that was going to pull out of the exchanges reversed course after “repeated discussions” with state officials. And in Iowa, a company that had been considering leaving the individual marketplace announced it will stay in it.

Firebrand Ted Cruz Finding Shades Of Gray In Previously Black-And-White Health Debate

Morning Briefing

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) has emerged as a central figure in Republicans’ health law efforts and is cautiously embracing a one-time foreign word: compromise. In other news, conservatives have thrown up some red flags on changes to the American Health Care Act, staff departures uproot the Senate’s ambitious agenda, health care groups that have been shut out of the process take their message directly to the American people, and more.