Latest KFF Health News Stories
‘Simple Solutions’ Available To Improve Family Health
“Although advances in vaccines, nutrition and family health have dramatically reduced the number of child deaths in the past 50 years, nearly eight million children younger than five still die every year,” Melinda Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, writes in this CNN opinion piece. She adds, “To me, this number is unacceptable, because most of these deaths could be avoided” by providing antibiotics, sterile medical supplies, or education on breastfeeding, as well by improving access to nutrient-rich foods and effective contraceptives.
Papua New Guinea Experiencing ‘Crisis In Maternal Health,’ Government Task Force Says
“Decades of neglect, a failing health system and remote mountainous topography have created a ‘crisis in maternal health,’ according to a government taskforce in Papua New Guinea (PNG),” IRIN reports. “While progress has been made since the taskforce released its recommendations in 2009, some 250 women are still dying for every 100,000 live births, according to a 2008 inter-agency estimate,” the news service writes, adding, “Maternal mortality rates in PNG doubled from 1996-2006, states the government’s most recent national health survey.”
Obama Renews U.S. Commitment To Ending AIDS In World AIDS Day Speech
President Barack Obama on Thursday renewed the U.S. commitment to ending HIV/AIDS in a speech marking World AIDS Day, and was joined by former presidents Bill Clinton, who participated by video, and George W. Bush, who spoke from Tanzania with that country’s President, Jakaya Kikwete, the Independent reports (Popham, 12/1). According to the Associated Press, Obama announced U.S. “goal[s] of getting antiretroviral drugs to two million more people around the world by the end of 2013,” bringing the total to six million people, and “to 1.5 million HIV-positive pregnant women to prevent them from passing the virus to their children.” The news agency continues, “Despite Obama’s more ambitious goals,” which build on existing PEPFAR programs, “the plan’s budget is not expected to increase. Instead, officials said the expanded targets would be funded through savings achieved by making the program more efficient and cutting the costs of treatment” (Pace, 12/1).
Financial Times, IPS Report On Male Circumcision As HIV Prevention Strategy
Male circumcision is “a practice that — despite the evidence — has yet to be adopted as much or as fast as experts had hoped,” the Financial Times reports. “International organizations have publicly endorsed the importance of circumcision, and a number of guidelines have been established, but the response so far has been haphazard and funding remains modest,” the newspaper writes, adding, “One reason has been that much government donor and philanthropic support for HIV prevention work was focused instead on more ‘high-tech’ alternatives such as vaccines and microbicides” (Jack, 11/30).
Al Jazeera Examines HIV, Drug Use Among Women In Northeast India
Al Jazeera examines HIV among women in India’s Manipur state, particularly in the district of Churachandpur, where local non-governmental organizations “say more than one-quarter of the women use some kind of drugs and suffer from HIV; many, due to a lack of financial opportunities, will end up turning to” sex work to obtain money to buy drugs, the news agency writes. There are no long-term treatment facilities for people who use drugs or those living with HIV in the area, and there are no official statistics on how many women are living with HIV and using drugs, Al Jazeera reports. “The United Nations says these women can no longer be ignored,” the news agency notes. Charles Gilks of UNAIDS India said the number of affected women must be determined and then organizations need to establish “interventions which those women can easily and reliably reach,” Al Jazeera reports (Suri, 11/30).
Percentage Of Pregnant Women Living With HIV In South Africa Increases, Survey Suggests
The percentage of pregnant women living with HIV in South Africa “has inched up to 30.2 percent from 29.4 percent last year,” according to the annual National Antenatal Sentinel HIV and Syphilis Prevalence survey released by Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi in Pretoria on Tuesday, Agence France-Presse reports (11/29). The survey “sampled over 32,000 pregnant women attending antenatal clinics in October last year,” South Africa’s Times Live notes (11/30).
Life Expectancy Rising In Afghanistan With Infant, Maternal Mortality Declining, Survey Shows
“Afghans are living longer, fewer infants are dying and more women are surviving childbirth because health care has dramatically improved around the country in the past decade, according to a national survey released Wednesday,” the Associated Press/Guardian reports. The survey, conducted by the Afghan Health Ministry in 2010 and “sponsored and funded by international organizations such as UNICEF, the World Health Organization, the U.S. government and the British Department for International Development,” “indicates that increased access to health care in Afghanistan, more hospitals and clinics, and more trained health care workers and doctors have significantly contributed to an overall improvement in the health of most Afghans,” the AP writes (11/30).
GOP: Charge Wealthy More For Medicare To Offset Payroll Tax Break
The proposal would require people who earn more than $1 million to pay the full cost of Medicare. Meanwhile, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., is floating a “trigger bargain” that would delay for one year the automatic spending cuts scheduled to begin in 2013 and also could include a payroll tax extension and a fix for physician’s Medicare payment rate.
Romney, Gingrich Face Attacks For Policy Position Changes
Today’s news reports from the campaign trail focus on candidates’ apparent issue flip flops in regard to the individual mandate and other health policy concerns.
Viewpoints: Bush, Bono And Others Reflect On World AIDS Day; Coburn and Burr On Medicare Savings
A selection of editorials and opinions from around America.
Longer Looks: Life Of A Medicare Demo Project; Broken Hearts; AIDS Funding
Every week, reporter Jessica Marcy selects interesting reads from around the Web.
Hospital Mergers Trigger Disputes
News reports detail developments in Kentucky, Pennsylvania and Michigan.
California’s Mental Health Care Services Continue To Shrink; Iowa Seeks Reform
While Iowa has hopes of reforming its mental health services, a new study notes real problems in California.
The New England Journal of Medicine has perspectives on a variety of health policy topics today.
State Roundup: Fla.’s Growing Medicaid Costs; Md.’s Unspent Disabilities Money
A selection of stories from California, Iowa, Florida, Maryland, Louisiana and Missouri.
The inspectors made their remarks while testifying before the Senate Special Committee on Aging.
GAO: Most Insurers Met Health Law Spending Rules — Even Before They Kicked In
The report examined insurance plans in 2010, before the new rules took effect, and found that at least 64 percent of eligible insurers would be incompliance.
Medicare To Cover Obesity Screening, ‘Intensive Behavioral Therapy’
This coverage decision ensures that an estimated 30 percent of the 42 million people who participate in Medicare will be able to undertake physician-supervised weight-loss programs.
World AIDS Day Marks Progress, But Much Work Remains
News reports detail emerging strategies to prevent infection, but also examine lagging treatments and the populations that continue to have the highest incidence rates.
The Lipitor Story: Drug Companies Brace For Losses As Patent Expires
News outlets analyze the impact that generic Lipitor could have on costs and the “era of ‘blockbuster drugs'” as well as the strategies from Lipitor’s maker to block its generic competitors. Meanwhile, some of these generics are already reaching the marketplace.
