Latest KFF Health News Stories
Health IT Firm Athenahealth Plans Expansion
Health information technology firm athenahealth, which offers electronic health records and care coordination products, will expand and create hundreds of new jobs in Georgia and Massachusetts.
Supreme Court Agrees To Hear Challenge To Massachusetts Abortion Law
This challenge is rooted in issues related to free speech.
Study: Despite Struggles With Poverty, More Children Getting Health Insurance
And, another study examines the number of children with mental disorders, by condition.
Health Panel Urges Baby Boomers Be Tested For Hepatitis C
The New York Times reports on this recommendation by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force.
A selection of editorials and opinions on health care from around the country.
State Highlights: Many States Missing Out On Medicaid Money For Prisoners
A selection of health policy stories from New York, Texas, New Mexico, North Carolina, Wisconsin and Oregon.
Where States Opt Against Mediaid Expansion, Working Poor Likely To Lose
News outlets also report the latest developments regarding the Medicaid expansion debate in Michigan and Mississippi.
Lawsuits, Or Threat Of Them, Hover Over Medicare Policy
News outlets report on the government’s position on releasing doctor-specific information and on Medicare patients’ access to physical therapy. And, ProPublica investigates prescribing practices.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organization, including reports about the Obama administraiton’s plans for getting the word about the health law’s online marketplaces.
Sebelius: Administration Is Negotiating Rates In Federal Exchanges
Consumer advocates had wanted the government to bar plans that didn’t have competitive rates, but the Obama administration opted against that after being lobbied by insurers and business groups. Negotiating with insurers is seen as a more subtle approach.
In Effort To Reduce Veterans’ Suicide Rate, Officials Seek To Deal With ‘Moral Injury’
WBUR reports on the growing interest in helping vets heal from events that “transgress deeply held moral beliefs and expectations.”
Transplant Officials To Consider Changes In Organ Donation
NPR reports that the United Network for Organ Sharing will consider new guidelines for donation after cardiac death when patients still have at least some brain activity.
Reimbursement Caps Mean Some Calif. Hospitals Reduce Surgery Prices
A pilot program saved $5.5 million over two years, a study found.
State Highlights: Calif. Eyes Health Care For Immigrants; New Scrutiny For N.Y. Home Health Firms
A selection of health policy stories from California, New York, Missouri, Arizona and Oregon.
More Options For Dental, Vision Coverage For Federal Employees
In the meantime, the nation’s largest public pension fund, the California Public Employees Retirement System, moves to provide equal access to health care for transgender people.
HHS Inspector General Details Prescription-Writing Abuses
The new report finds that health providers such as massage therapists, chiropractors and athletic trainers often wrote prescriptions — and Medicare paid for them.
Mississippi Political Fight Threatens Medicaid Program, Care For 700,000
The state’s Democratic and Republican lawmakers are embroiled in a game of chicken that threatens to blow up the Medicaid program, which serves 700,000 poor Mississipians. Meanwhile, reports from Indiana, Montana and California detail other developments related to state officials’ decisions about whether to expand the program under the health law.
Research Roundup: Examining The Health Of Future Medicaid Patients; Rural Trauma Care Issues
This week’s studies come from JAMA, JAMA Surgery, JAMA Internal Medicine, the Georgetown Health Policy Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Texas House Approves 20-Week Abortion Ban
In Texas, lawmakers cut short debate and approved new abortion regulations that would ban most abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy, among other things. In Wisconsin, a bill would require an abortion doctor to make burial arrangements for a fetus.
Viewpoints: Mich. Gov. Says Medicaid Expansion Would Save Money, Lives
A selection of editorials and opinions on health care from around the country.
