Latest KFF Health News Stories
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including more speculation about the ‘super committee’ and how difficult it will be for the panel to reach it’s savings target without cutting into Medicare and Medicaid.
Capsules: Newly Insured In Mass. Still Use Community Health Centers
The number of patients treated at community health centers in the Bay State rose 31 percent from 2005 to 2009. Also on the blog today: Double chest CT scans persist, new data show.
S&P Downgrade Could Press ‘Super Committee’ Focus On Entitlements
Speculation continues about whether the yet-to-be named panel, created by the debt deal, will be able to find the necessary budget cuts to reach the goal of $1.2 trillion in savings over the next 10 years. House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., is among those who have low expectations.
At Home In August, Health Law Still A Hot Topic At Town Hall Meetings
The sweeping overhaul measure is still on voters’ minds. Some Republican House members are trading on the existing opposition to the law as cover for their positions on the debt-ceiling vote.
U.S. Should Continue Funding Maternal Health Programs In Afghanistan As Troop Drawdown Begins
The success of the Afghan Safe Birth Project, funded by HHS, and the Community Midwife Education program, supported by USAID, in helping reduce maternal mortality in Afghanistan “is in jeopardy
Seattle Times Examines Gates Foundation’s Efforts To Enhance Vitamins In Crops For Africans
The Seattle Times on Sunday examined efforts by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation “to boost the levels of vitamins and minerals in crops many Africans rely on for the bulk of their diets.”
Foreign Aid Should Enhance, Not Replace, Domestic Health Spending In Developing Countries
A case in Uganda of a woman bleeding to death while giving birth “underscores an unintended consequence of global health aid,” a Globe and Mail editorial writes, adding that “in some parts of sub-Saharan Africa, a reverse trend is under way; for every $1 of development assistance for health, governments have reduced their spending,” according to a study from the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington.
Jill Biden Leads U.S. Delegation To Kenya To Assess Conditions In Horn Of Africa
Jill Biden, the wife of Vice President Joe Biden, USAID Administrator Rajiv Shah, Assistant Secretary of State Eric Schwartz and Special Assistant to the President Gayle Smith arrived in Kenya on Monday to assess and raise awareness of the famine conditions in the Horn of Africa, Capital FM News reports (Kaberia, 8/8). “Biden’s trip is the highest-profile U.S. visit to drought-stricken East Africa since the numbers of refugees began dramatically increasing in June,” according to the Associated Press (Straziuso, 8/8).
Leprosy Spreading in India, WHO Official Warns
“Six years after leprosy was declared officially eliminated in India, officials and doctors are warning that the disfiguring disease is spreading in poverty-stricken pockets of the country,” Agence France-Presse reports. According to Nata Menabde, head of the WHO in India, the number of new cases of leprosy exceeds the agency’s target of less than 10 new cases per 100,000 in about 209 out of 640 districts in the country, the news agency notes.
Viewpoints: Emanuel On Cancer Care; George Bush – ‘Health Reformer?’; Hiassen On Fla. ‘Trolls’
A selection of opinions and editorials from around the country.
State Roundup: Calif. Adult Day Care Plan?; R.I. Shift To Medicare
News outlets examine a variety of state health policy issues.
Former OMB Health Policy Adviser To Lead Penn Medical Ethics Dept.
Ezekiel J. Emanuel, a bioethicist, will join the University of Pennsylvania faculty Sept. 1.
House Call Program Improves Quality Of Care For Vets In Philadelphia
iWatch News reports on this novel initiative, called the Independence at Home program.
Pawlenty Campaigns Hard On Health Care But His Record Is Complicated
The former Minnesota governor is an ardent foe of Obama’s health plan and dismisses health reform efforts by Mitt Romney in Massachusetts. The Minnesota Star Tribune and Kaiser Health News explore how Pawlenty handled the issue.
Health Care Sector Shows Muscle In Job Report
The health care industry added 31,300 jobs last month, higher than its average monthly increase since 2007.
Number Of Cancer Survivors To Increase Exponentially
The field of providing care to these survivors is relatively new, but is gaining attention.
CMS Unveils Updated Website To Help Consumers Compare Quality Data
Officials from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services said Friday that site includes updated data to help consumers compare hospitals, physicians, nursing homes, home care or dialysis providers.
USA Today: Medicare’s Hospice Costs Show Dramatic Increase
This rate of growth is more than that of any other health care sector.
Health Law Tests Include Controlling Premium Costs
Meanwhile, Texas and Michigan are seeking waivers from the law’s medical-loss ratio rule and the Department of Health and Human Services posts information about patients’ appeals rights.
