Latest KFF Health News Stories
“Every year, hospitals in America throw away thousands of tons of usable medical supplies and equipment
USDA Scientists Develop New Food Aid Product
Scientists from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Agricultural Research Service (ARS) “have developed a fully cooked food-aid product called Instant Corn Soy Blend [ICSB] that supplements meals, particularly for young children,” a USDA news story reports (Bliss, 8/4).
USAID GeoCenter To Use Satellite Imagery, On-The-Ground Reports To Inform Aid Disbursement
USAID officials are in the early stages of planning a Geospatial Intelligence Center, or GeoCenter, that will combine information from “satellite imagery and on-the-ground surveys and reports to cut down on field-based work and give the agency a better sense of where development dollars can do the most good,” Nextgov reports.
A selection of opinions and editorials, mostly from California.
Mass. Hospitals Get Medicare Funding Lift, Lots Of Criticism
The state’s hospitals will get $275 million more a year in Medicare payments because of a special provision inserted in the health law. Critical reactions are coming from both inside and outside of Massachusetts.
Congressional Heavy-Hitters Back Michigan’s MLR Waiver Request
Michigan Republican lawmakers Dave Camp and Fred Upton endorsed their home state’s request for a temporary waiver from the health law’s medical-loss ratio requirement. Meanwhile, The Miami Herald asks if ACOs will be the next health care revolution.
Patient Perceptions Don’t Match Medicare Hospital Data
USA Today reports that this gap is evident in an analysis of new Medicare data.
Medicaid Changes Rile Advocacy Groups In Calif., N.C. And Fla.
As states seek to find ways to curb costs in their Medicaid programs, many are getting opposition from patients and providers.
Roundup: State Workers In Conn. Get Lock On Retirement Health Funds
News outlets report on a variety of state health policy issues.
Dems Launch Medicare Attack On GOP
The campaign, which will be staged during Congress’ August recess and is being advanced by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, will focus on 44 House Republicans and charge them with wanting to cut Medicare. Democrats hope this effort will be aided by the lines drawn during the debt-ceiling negotiations.
Providers, Patients Worry About Debt Deal
Though the initial phase of the debt deal doesn’t include immediate provider cuts, analysts say the next phase – the work of the’super committee’ – could make significant reductions in spending for entitlements like Medicare and Medicaid. Even some elements of the health law and scientific research could be on the chopping block.
Research Roundup: Hospitalists & Health Costs; Treating Substance Abuse
This week’s studies come from Health Affairs, The Journal Of General Internal Medicine, The Journal Of Cancer Survivorship and The Annals Of Internal Medicine.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports that the cost of premiums for Medicare’s prescription drug program won’t rise in 2012.
Famine Declared In Three More Regions Of Somalia
“The famine gripping parts of southern Somalia has spread to three new areas of the country, with the entire south likely to be declared a famine zone within the next six weeks, the United Nations said on Wednesday,” Reuters reports (Mohamed, 8/3).
Low Fertility Causes ‘Very Real Problems’ For Developed Nations’ Economies
“In recent years, nearly every demographic study has painted a dire picture of the world’s changing demographics. Yet when the U.N. issued its latest report this past May, it seemed almost sunny,” Jonathan Last, senior writer at the Weekly Standard, writes in a Wall Street Journal opinion piece. He says that “[t]he catch is that it may not be true” because “the U.N. has had to make one very big assumption: Starting tomorrow, every country in the world with fertility below the replacement rate of 2.10 will increase its fertility. And this rise will continue unabated, year after year, until every First World country has a Total Fertility Rate (TFR) near replacement.”
Deficit Deal: Next Steps And New Developments
News outlets are reporting on how the next phase called for in the deficit plan will likely follow a rocky road, which could include broken promises on entitlements, danger for the health law and leave the health sector hoping for the lesser evil.
