Latest KFF Health News Stories
Research Roundup: Calif. Exchange Lessons; High-Volume Hospitals
This week’s studies come from Health Studies Research, The Urban Institute, The Commonwealth Fund, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Kaiser Family Foundation, the New England Journal of Medicine and Health Affairs.
Parties Agree Appeals Court Has Jurisdiction In Va. Health Law Challenge
The Washington Post reports on the general agreement expressed by the Justice Department and both plaintiffs in the two Virginia lawsuits currently pending against the health law.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports that House Democrats are pressing President Barack Obama not to cave on Medicare as budget talks continue.
Health Law Gets Mixed Reception In Ohio Federal Appeals Court
A key issue for the judges to determine is whether the plaintiffs have legal standing to sue after one said she recently purchased coverage from her employer. The case was initially brought by the Michigan-based Thomas More Law Center.
White House Budget Meeting Leads To Medicare Fracas
The dispute emerged between Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis, and President Barack Obama as Ryan urged Obama not to engage in Medicare “demagoguery.” The president responded by listing conservatives’ attack points.
U.N.-Led Joint Report Examines HIV/AIDS Among Young People Ages 10-24
An estimated 2,500 young people are infected with HIV every day worldwide, and young women and adolescent girls are most at risk of contracting the disease because of biological and social factors, according to a report released on Wednesday by a group of U.N. agencies, RTT News reports.
Longer Looks: Is American Medicine Destroying Itself?
Today’s list of longer stories includes articles from The New York Times, Politifact, the Columbia Journalism Review, Mother Jones, National Journal, the New Yorker and The New Republic.
Integrate NTD, HIV, TB And Malaria Programs
In a New England Journal of Medicine opinion piece, Peter Hotez of the Sabin Vaccine Institute and colleagues, including Jeffrey Sachs of the Earth Institute of Columbia University, outline how integrating treatment of neglected tropical diseases (NTD) into HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria control efforts could speed up progress toward attaining the sixth Millennium Development Goal.
A selection of opinions and editorials from around the country.
AHRQ Data Show Quality Improving But Disparities Remain
The latest information from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality shows modest gains in health care quality but persistent racial and income disparities.
Candidate Romney On Differences In ‘Romneycare’ And ‘Obamacare’
Former Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney, who now is seeking the GOP presidential nomination, continues to pledge to repeal the sweeping health measure signed into law by President Barack Obama. Meanwhile, fact-checkers focus on how different the federal health law is from the state reforms Romney signed into law five years ago.
House Republicans Use Ag Spending Bill To Push Back Against Certain Health Measures
The Washington Post reports that in the House, GOP lawmakers are using an agriculture appropriations bill to send messages about certain health proposals, including about food company marketing to children.
Medicaid No Longer Paying For Hospital Mistakes
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services issued a final rule designed to end payments for a list of specific health care-acquired conditions, sometimes called “never events.”
HHS Inspector General: $3.4 Billion Recovered In First Half Of 2011
Of this amount, $3.2 billion was netted by fraud investigations, many of which were carried out in collaboration with the Department of Justice.
UNICEF Appealing For $6M To Continue Water Treatment In Zimbabwe
UNICEF on Wednesday said it needs $6 million to continue treating water in Zimbabwe, which does not have the funds to do it on its own, Deutsche Presse-Agentur/M&C reports.
HHS Says Indiana Cannot Cut Medicaid Payments To Planned Parenthood
Officials say that federal law requires enrollees in Medicaid to be able to seek services from any qualified provider.
Message Is Key In Debate Over Medicaid Block Grant Plans
Some congressional Democrats are concerned that Medicaid will become even more of a target for funding cuts and, as a result, are rallying their troops and preparing their battle cry.
New Survey: State Tax Revenues Up But So Are Medicaid Costs
State officials expect to still have tight budgets in the coming year.
IOM Finds Flaws In Medicare Payments To Hospitals, Doctors
The report released Wednesday concluded that the Medicare program uses inaccurate and unreliable data to determine provider payments.
State Roundup: Texas Special Session Highlights Health Issues
News outlets report on a variety of state health policy issues.
