Latest KFF Health News Stories
President Obama Invites Four African Leaders To G8 Summit To Discuss Food Security
President Barack Obama has invited the leaders of four African nations “to join the G8 leaders’ summit at Camp David later this month for a session on food security, the White House said on Thursday,” Reuters reports. White House spokesperson Jay Carney said in a statement that Obama invited Benin President Yayi Boni, Ethiopia Prime Minister Meles Zenawi, Ghana President John Mills and Tanzania President Jakaya Kikwete, according to the news service (MacInnis, 5/3). They will join other leaders of G8 member nations — which include Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia, the United Kingdom, and the United States — at the summit, scheduled for May 18-19, CNN notes. The leaders are expected to discuss food security “amid fears of famine and drought in some parts of Africa,” the news service writes (Karimi, 5/4).
China Joins Global Alliance For Clean Cookstoves
“Chinese State Councilor Dai Bingguo announced that China has joined the Global Alliance for Clean Cookstoves during a tour of a clean cookstove exhibit with Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton in Beijing today,” a U.S. Department of State press release reports. “By joining the Alliance, China will help meet the Alliance’s goal to ensure 100 million homes adopt clean and efficient stoves and fuels by 2020,” the press release states (5/3).
UNFPA, International Confederation of Midwives Recognize International Day Of The Midwife
In a joint statement (.pdf), UNFPA Executive Director Babatunde Osotimehin and Agneta Bridges, secretary-general of the International Confederation of Midwives (ICM), recognize the International Day of the Midwife on May 5. “The right to health is a basic human right that every woman should enjoy. Yet, every day, almost 1,000 women die in pregnancy and childbirth
U.N. Adopts Resolution On Young People’s Sexual And Reproductive Rights
This RH Reality Check post by the International Planned Parenthood Federation Western Hemisphere Region (IPPFWHR) examines a “resolution in support of young people’s sexual and reproductive health and human rights” adopted recently by member states at the 45th Session of the United Nations Commission on Population and Development (CPD). According to the post, “[k]ey points of the final resolution include: The right of young people to decide on all matters related to their sexuality; Access to sexual and reproductive health services
Dengue Fever Costs Puerto Rico Nearly $38M A Year, Study Shows
“The costs of treating and coping with dengue fever in Puerto Rico total nearly $38 million a year, a new study,” published Wednesday in the American Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, finds, according to U.S. News & World Report. “It also said that every $1 spent on surveillance and prevention of the mosquito-borne disease could save $5 in illness-related costs,” the news service reports (5/2). “A team of researchers from Brandeis University says households in the U.S. territory pay almost half of that cost, with the government and insurance companies splitting the rest,” the Associated Press/Seattle Times notes (5/2).
Reining In Medicare Costs: Lots Of Talk But Little Action
News outlets report on how efforts to control Medicare spending often get lost in campaign posturing.
High Profile Judge Hints That Decision To Strike Health Law ‘Would Be A Mistake’
The Wall Street Journal reports that Judge J. Harvie Wilkinson said the high court should “think twice” about overturning the law. In other health law news, the White House’s under-the-radar effort to build support for the overhaul appears to be working.
For U.S., Preventable Health Conditions A Gathering Storm
Georgia Health News reports that speakers at a recent Atlanta conference had much to say about the burden of obesity and diabetes.
Ore. Gets $1.9B To Launch Medicaid Coordinated Care Organizations
The federal support will help Oregon’s Medicaid Coordinated Care Organizations as they try to cut health costs by 2 percent over two years using preventive care to keep patients healthy.
Survey: First-Year Medical School Enrollment Expected To Increase
According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, the number of students entering medical school will show an increase of nearly 30 percent from its starting point in 2002 to projections for 2016.
HCA’s Profits Up, Cigna’s Down, As Patients Use More Services
News outlets pointed out that “after a long slump,” patients have been seeking more care.
Romney Plan Could Hurt Mass. Medicaid; States Scramble Around Health Law
A plan to cut federal Medicaid spending could hurt Mitt Romney’s Massachusetts health reform law, Meanwhile, residents in Maine consider what the federal health law means for them and 90 women in Washington state are suing their attorney general for what they term a breach of ethical duties by his legal challenge to the health law.
Group Says It Has Kan. Clinic Abortion Records; Iowa Preps For Abortion Battle In Budget
An anti-abortion group says it has patient records of dozens of women and girls who sought treatment at a Kansas abortion clinic last month. In the meantime, Iowa lawmakers prepare to tackle the state’s health spending, including whether victims of rape or incest may get abortions through its Medicaid program.
State Highlights: Fla. Passed Up $200M Because It Comes From Health Law
News outlets report on health care policy news from California, D.C., Florida, Kansas, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Missouri, New York, Texas and Washington.
Poll Shows Obama Leading In Virginia Despite Mixed Views On Health Law
Virginia is viewed as one of the hot states in the presidential campaign. Also, because female voters continue to be considered an important force in the upcoming election, women’s health issues are getting a lot of air time.
State Legislative News: Mass. Legislature Poised To Consider Cost Control Plan
Meanwhile, in Connecticut, the legislature approves a bill giving collective bargaining rights to home health care workers and goes against leadership to gut a bill that would loosen requirements for suing a health care provider.
A selection of editorials and opinions on health care policy from around the country.
Research Roundup: Chronic Disease Interventions Could Save States Money
This week’s selection of studies comes from the Urban Institute, the Journal of Clinical Oncology, George Washington University and Circulation.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including a variety of stories about health policy developments in the states.
Without Funding, Thousands Of Malnourished Somali Children At Risk Of Death, UNICEF Warns
UNICEF on Wednesday “warned that thousands of acutely malnourished children in Somalia are at risk of death because little money is available to help them,” VOA News writes, adding, “UNICEF said it has received only 12 percent of its $289 million emergency appeal for humanitarian operations this year.” “The famine declared in southern Somalia last year is over,” but “Somalia remains the world’s most complex humanitarian situation,” the news service writes, noting that UNICEF “reported that almost one-third of Somalis are unable to meet their essential food and non-food needs.”
