Latest KFF Health News Stories
Failures Persist In Veteran Care, Even As Reforms Are Trumpeted In Washington
Despite the national outcry to improve the quality of VA care, a USA Today investigation finds veterans on the ground aren’t seeing a difference. “I no longer trust them to fix me when I’m broken,” Stanley Christian Jr., a helicopter pilot who flew in Vietnam, says. “And, you know, a 70-year old man get(s) broken.”
From Free To $100,000-A-Year?: Cost Of Experimental Autoimmune Drug Could Skyrocket
People suffering Lambert-Eaton myasthenic syndrome, a rare autoimmune disorder, have found relief from an experimental drug that one pharmaceutical company distributes free. Now another company is seeking FDA approval, which would give it exclusive rights to distribute — and charge an estimated $37,500 to over $100,000 per patient, per year. Elsewhere, The Washington Post examines the trends in drug spending.
Clinton Reveals $20B Plan To Cure Alzheimer’s By 2025
About 5 million Americans have Alzheimer’s, and by 2050 that number is expected to grow to 15 million, disproportionately affecting women and minorities. By then, if the government’s spending on the disease stays the same, it would cost Americans $1 trillion a year.
States See Boost In Federal Exchange Sign-Ups
Media outlets report on enrollment numbers from Georgia, Ohio, Arizona, Connecticut and Kansas.
HHS Touts Strong Enrollment Numbers In Coveted Young Adult Demographic
More than 8.2 million people have signed up or renewed health coverage on the federal marketplace for 2016. Of those, 2.1 million are under 35, close to double what it was at this point last year.
First Edition: December 23, 2015
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Viewpoints: Cruz’s FDA Plan Falls Short; Fixing U.S. Opioid Abuse; Parents’ Fear Of Concussions
A selection of opinions on health care from around the country.
News outlets report on health care developments in Florida, South Carolina, California, Virginia, Wisconsin, Kansas, Missouri and Connecticut.
An investigation explores how the state’s mental hospitals focus on preparing some alleged offenders with mental health issues for trial rather than treating the underlying mental illness. Meanwhile, advocates say mental health issues will be at a “critical juncture” in the 2016 Kansas legislative session as momentum builds behind movements away from institutionalization and toward community-based care.
Iowa Governor: Medicaid Recipients Can Be Reassigned To Remaining 3 Companies
The Iowa Department of Human Services will enroll the 140,000 that need coverage after the state terminated its contract with a private company. Meanwhile, the delay in the state’s efforts to privatize Medicaid may leave some children without access to care.
Home And Hospital Births Equally Safe In Low-Risk Pregnancies: Study
In other public health news, a growing number of jails are offering exiting inmates a drug that can help aid opioid addiction recovery. Also in the news are stories on a gum disease-breast cancer link, a high-tech thermometer monitored through an app and cardiac warning signs that patients ignore.
FDA Rolls Back Blood-Donor Ban For Gay And Bisexual Men, But There’s A Catch
Before they can donate, the men are required to have been celibate for a year.
Poll Finds That Public Support For Legal Abortion Hits Two-Year High
The Associated Press-GfK poll survey found that 58 percent of Americans think abortion should be legal in most or all cases. In Planned Parenthood news, Ohio lawmakers push new requirements for the disposal of fetal remains by abortion clinics and hospitals. Elsewhere, The Diane Rehm Show discusses the move toward pharmacists prescribing birth control. KHN’s Julie Rovner appeared on show Monday to discuss the issue.
New Medicare Dashboard Allows Users To Analyze Drug Prices
Through the tool, researchers and the public will have access to a trove of prescription drug data, including overall spending, recent cost trends and the number of Americans who rely on it. And The Wall Street Journal points out that the rollout for the dashboard including information on drugs with prices that have increased dramatically for Medicare.
Biotech Company Reports Promising Results In ‘Kick And Kill’ HIV Treatment
The firm says its method has reduced latent HIV in 17 patients by an average of 40 percent. In other news, public health officials want to know why a drug that has proven effective at preventing HIV is not being used.
Report: New Glaxo Asthma Drug Price Should Be 76% Lower
The assessment comes from a nonprofit group that analyzes drugs’ effectiveness. In other pharmaceutical news, the head of Novartis says companies should share the benefits of new drugs with the health care system; and Valeant is buying back its own drugs from Walgreens.
Super PAC To Highlight Rubio’s Efforts To Rout Health Law
Meanwhile, a new poll shows that health care comes second only to national security in terms of what voters care about for 2016. Americans highlighted their concerns with high drug costs, premiums and deductibles.
Demise of Colorado Co-Op Complicates Insurance Sign-Ups
Meanwhile, the Washington state marketplace is facing a barrage of callers and website users as its Wednesday enrollment deadline nears.
Stocks Jump On The News Of Higher Health Insurance Enrollment
After the government announced that 6 million people have signed up on the federal exchanges for coverage next year, shares of the three biggest publicly traded hospitals rose, staving off concerns that the benefits to the industry from the health law are plateauing.
First Edition: December 22, 2015
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
