Latest KFF Health News Stories
Afghan Acting Health Minister Says Country Wants To Boost Immunization Access
Reuters featured an interivew with Afghanistan’s Acting Health Minister Suraya Dalil on the sidelines of the World Health Assembly in Geneva.
People Living With HIV/AIDS In China Face Discrimination When Accessing Health Care, Report Says
HIV-positive people living in China “are routinely being denied medical treatment in mainstream hospitals due to fear and ignorance about the disease,” according to a study based on interviews with 103 people living with HIV/AIDS and 23 health care workers that was conducted by the International Labor Organization and China’s National Center for STD and AIDS Prevention and Control, Reuters reports (Wee, 5/17).
IRIN Examines High Risk Of TB Infection Among Health Workers In Kenya
IRIN examines tuberculosis among health care workers in Kenya, where “[s]afety equipment
Decline In Donations, Weak U.S. Dollar Causing WHO To Cut Budget, Staff, Director-General Chan Says
A decline in contributions from the WHO’s leading 30 “traditional” donor nations and the exchange rate for the weaker U.S. dollar are causing the agency to cut its budget and staff, WHO Director-General Margaret Chan told reporters in a news conference at the World Health Assembly in Geneva on Tuesday, the Associated Press reports.
VOA News, MSNBC Look At Food Security
VOA News looks at the relationship between food security and trade barriers. “The Global Harvest Initiative says improving food and agricultural trade flows in the coming decades will help counter the effects of changing weather patterns, population shifts and limited natural resources,” VOA News writes.
The Clinton Health Access Initiative, UNITAID, and the U.K.’s Department for International Development (DFID) “said on Tuesday [they] had secured price reductions on key AIDS drugs for HIV-positive patients in poorer countries,” Reuters reports.
Government Study Finds 12 Women Died Giving Birth Per Month In 2010 At Hospital In Sierra Leone
A study has shown that during 2010, 12 women died every month while giving birth at the Princess Christian maternity hospital in Freetown, Sierra Leone, “a country with one of the world’s highest maternal mortality rates,” Agence France-Presse reports.
‘Gang Of Six’ Budget Talks Hit Wall As Sen. Coburn Withdraws
Among the key points of contention were his proposed cuts to Medicare.
HHS Offers New Initiatives To Add Momentum To ACOs
The so-called accountable care organizations are designed to encourage physicians and hospitals to better coordinate care. However, the Obama administration regulations regarding their formation have been met with stiff criticism.
Inspector General: Push For EMRs Overlooks Security Issues
The PBS NewsHour reports that the Office of the Inspector General found a lack of security control during prior audits of Medicare contractors, state medicaid agencies and hospitals.
JAMA: Number Of ERs Decline Just As Emergency Visits Rise
A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association reports that the number of emergency departments has been declining for the past two decades.
Latest Development In Gingrich-Ryan Medicare Dust-Up: An Apology
But even as these high-profile Republicans exchange words regarding plans to revamp the Medicare program, NPR reports that in the broader debate, both political parties have a lot at stake and claim an advantage.
On Op-Ed Pages, Controversies Abound: Romney, Gingrich, Abortion, Telemedicine, Cancer Funding Cuts
A selection of viewpoints from around the country.
Health Law Faces Legal Challenges And Political Battles
Senate Republicans target the law’s IPAB and issue a top-10 list of its biggest problems. Meanwhile, CQ HealthBeat reports on the merits of the “imminent injury” argument that is in play in at least one legal challenge to the law.
Maine Law Could Be At Odds With Federal Overhaul
A new law, which Maine’s governor signed Tuesday, allows interstate insurance sales and insurers to set rates based on age, location and occupation.
State Roundup: Med Schools In Texas Face Budget Crunch
New outlets report on state health policy issues.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports about budget developments, the continuing political hijinx surrounding Medicare issues and the Obama administration’s plan to offer a new path for accountable care organizations.
HHS Announces New Accountable Care Initiatives; Provider Backlash To ACO Rule Continues
CMS Administrator Dr. Donald Berwick announced new programs today to ‘encourage’ better care coordination.
OPINION: Study Will Unite HIV Advocates, Add Funding Pressure To Obama Administration
In a post on Foreign Policy’s “Passport” blog, assistant managing editor Elizabeth Dickinson looks at the potential ramifications of a recent study, which found that early antiretroviral treatment in HIV-positive people can prevent transmission by 96 percent.
