Morning Breakouts

Latest KFF Health News Stories

Feds To Collect More Than $53M From Genesis HealthCare To Settle False Medicare Claim Charges

Morning Briefing

The nursing home operator strikes a settlement with the Justice Department to end six federal lawsuits and investigations of allegations that the company submitted false claims to Medicare and Medicaid for medically unnecessary therapy, hospice service and substandard care.

Trump’s Working Group On Drug Prices Catering To Pharma’s Wish List

Morning Briefing

Despite promising action to reel in an industry that he said was “getting away with murder,” President Donald Trump and his administration’s working group on high prescription drug costs is leaning toward policy recommendations backed by pharmaceutical companies.

Where GOP’s Plans For Medicaid Meet Reality: ‘Around Here, There Ain’t No Jobs’

Morning Briefing

Republicans are embracing the idea of work requirements, but many of the places where the rules will go into effect are in deep Trump country. Media outlets report on other Medicaid news out of California, New Mexico, Texas, Kansas and Iowa.

For Democrats, Trump’s ‘Mean’ Comments Could Be A Gift On A Silver Platter

Morning Briefing

The party hopes to use the sentiment as a unifying message against Republicans. Meanwhile, Sen. Bernie Sanders says he supports any tactic the Democrats take to “defeat that horrific piece of legislation.”

Secrecy And ‘Legislative Sleights-Of-Hand’: McConnell’s About-Face On Passing Health Bills

Morning Briefing

The Washington Post fact checks Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell’s positions on the process of passing a health care bill in 2010 versus now. And other media outlets take a look at how Republicans are struggling with the fact that the legislation is being crafted behind closed doors.

First Edition: June 19, 2017

Morning Briefing

SEND IN YOUR QUESTIONS!: KHN is launching our new Facebook group on navigating aging with a live online chat, “Getting Smarter About Getting Older.” You can send in questions ahead of time here. But make sure to mark your calendars for tomorrow at 12 p.m. to join in the conversation on Facebook Live with Judith Graham, our Navigating Aging columnist, and her guest Dr. Lee Ann Lindquist.

Texas Gov. Vetoes Legislation To Create A Public Defender Office For People With Mental Health Disorders

Morning Briefing

Republican Gov. Greg Abbott did sign measures that give a boost for telemedicine and provide for postpartum depression screening for low-income women, among others. Meanwhile, guns and abortion measures have been hot topics in Kansas.

Slight Mutations To Bird Flu Virus Would Make It Easier To Spread Between Humans

Morning Briefing

Right now, it’s not easy for humans to pass the virus to each other. And scientists aren’t bracing themselves for the next pandemic quite yet. “[W]e’ve got to be careful that we separate the elegance of the science and the likelihood” of it happening, said Dr. Anthony Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

In Arms Race Against Superbugs, Returning To Tried-And-True Technique May Be Key To Winning

Morning Briefing

Although it’s been said that soil has been “over-mined” for antibiotics, some think that new technology could rejuvenate the old practice. In other public health news: Lyme disease, wounds to the hip, elder abuse, IVF and sepsis.