Latest KFF Health News Stories
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Viewpoints: Lawmaker’s Obamacare Surprise; Conn.’s Stiff Medicaid Cuts; Fla. Budget Debate
A selection of opinions on health care from around the country.
A selection of health policy stories from Indiana, Connecticut, Texas, Kansas, Iowa and Arizona.
Ohio Lawsuit Seeks To Stop State’s Re-Determination Of Medicaid Eligibility
In other state Medicaid news, the Missouri state senate will consider a proposal to increase eligibility for people with disabilities. Meanwhile, Vermont’s medicaid managed care monitoring is under scrutiny.
Make It Easier For Vets To Get Mental Health Care, Senator Says
New legislation introduced by Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, seeks to expand veterans’ ability to receive mental health services outside of the VA system and reduce wait times. Meanwhile, reports and documents from the Department of Veterans Affairs describe two cases of mismanagement, one by a hospital chief in Puerto Rico and another by a VA office supervisor in Hawaii.
Tapping Technology, Patient Involvement For Healing
The New York Times looks at potential health gains when patients have full and easier access to their medical information, while Reuters reports on using web searches to predict population disease risks. Other stories examine the growing focus on wellness and prevention during physicals and how doctors are altering their practices.
Indictment Charges Patients Lured To New York ‘Medicaid Mill’ By Free Shoes
Twenty-three people, including nine doctors, are accused of bilking Medicare and Medicaid of nearly $7 million in unnecessary medical tests. And in Maine, a nursing facility agrees to pay $1.2 million to settle allegations of inflated Medicare claims.
GOP Leaders Negotiate Budget Differences During Congressional Recess
Top House and Senate Republican budget negotiators are working over this two-week break to iron-out differences between the two chambers’ budget blueprints, including changes to the Medicare program. But wariness remains, according to one Washington Post report, about whether lawmakers will be able to use momentum from the pending Medicare physician pay measure to fashion other compromise legislation.
Reuters reports how states like Wisconsin, New Jersey and Louisiana have experienced infusions of health law funds despite their Republican governors’ staunch opposition to the health law. Meanwhile, a Facebook request by Rep. Cathy McMorris Rogers asking users to share negative stories about the overhaul led to many positive responses.
Fla. Lawmakers’ Medicaid Expansion Plans Draw Attacks From Conservative Group
The Americans for Prosperity, an advocacy group financed by the Koch brothers, is taking aim at Florida Senate President Andy Gardiner, a Republican, and others in the state senate. In response, a coalition of business leaders released a letter thanking them for their work on the issue. In other Medicaid news, California will seek a federal waiver to continue its health reform plans, and Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo., places blame for future shortcomings in geriatric care on Missouri legislators’ failure to pursue an expansion of the state-federal health insurance program for people with low incomes.
High Court Decision Likely To Chill Medi-Cal Lawsuits
Experts say the decision tilts the legal landscape in future disputes between Medi-Cal and health care providers and their patients.
Supreme Court: Medicaid Providers Can’t Sue States To Raise Reimbursement Rates
In a 5-4 decision, the high court ruled Tuesday that hospitals and other health care providers can’t sue a state in an effort to have Medicaid rates increased in keeping with rising medical costs.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
High Court Sides With Idaho In Medicaid Reimbursement Rate Case
The Supreme Court ruled that private health care providers can’t sue states to force them to increase their Medicaid reimbursement rates in keeping with increasing medical costs.
Viewpoints: Don’t Look A Medicare ‘Gift Horse’ In The Mouth; Rising Obamacare Premiums
A selection of opinions on health care from around the country.
A selection of health policy stories from Georgia, Nebraska, Connecticut, Texas, Kansas, Iowa, California and Indiana.
Florida Officials Push To Remove Medicaid 30-Day Waiting Period
In other Medicaid news, West Virginia will switch its enrollees from a monthly enrollment card to an annual one — a step that is expected to lead to $2.5 million in savings. Also, a new study finds that New Jersey ranks last in the nation in terms of the doctors willing to treat Medicaid recipients.
Ariz. Gov. Signs Controversial Abortion Restrictions Bill
The measure requires that providers inform women that they can reverse the effects of drug-induced abortion. It also bars women from buying insurance via the federal health exchange that includes abortion coverage.
Delay Of Care Impacted Vet’s Life, Report Finds
A VA office’s assessment of an Indiana clinic that treated the 70-year old veteran found the man’s cancer should have been diagnosed sooner. The VA is also being urged to address the needs of the growing number of women veterans.
NIH Taps Top Doctors, Researchers And Business Leaders To Update U.S. Medical System
One of the first tasks for this group will be helping to create a 1 million person volunteer study, which is a big piece of the White House’s precision medicine initiative. In other news, the National Institute of Mental Health unveils its five-year strategic plan for research priorities.
