Latest KFF Health News Stories
Nine Months After Passage, Public Remains Divided On Health Overhaul
A new Kaiser Family Foundation tracking poll finds the public remains divided on the health law.
OpEds: Assessing Judge Hudson’s Decision On Individual Mandate
Today’s opeds come from news outlets including The Washington Post, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and USA Today.
First Edition: December 14, 2010
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports detailing yesterday’s ruling by a federal court judge in Virginia that strikes at a key part of the health law.
Federal Judge Strikes Down Part Of Health Reform Law
A federal court judge in Virginia issued a much-awaited ruling, declaring the “indivdual mandate” provision unconstitutional.
EU, India Talks End With Resolution On Drug Seizures, Little Progress On Free Trade Agreement
“The European Union and India resolved a dispute over generic drugs on Friday which should remove obstacles to Indian drugs manufacturers exporting products to the developing world, officials said,” Reuters reports in an article that describes the customs regulations previously in place that led “to numerous seizures of generic drugs shipments in transit from India to countries in South America via Europe.”
Senator Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), who chairs the Senate Appropriations Committee’s Subcommittee on the State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs, “on Friday urged President Barack Obama’s administration to suspend direct aid to Haiti’s government and visas for its top officials until it ensures a fair and democratic outcome to disputed national elections,” Reuters reports.
GAVI Alliance Launches Pneumonia Vaccine Project In Nicaragua
“A new vaccine against the most deadly forms of pneumonia, one of the world’s biggest killers of children, [was] launched in Nicaragua [on Sunday] as part of an effort to prevent 700,000 deaths in poorer countries by 2015,” Reuters reports (Kelland, 12/10).
Series Of Papers Highlights Challenges With Moving African-Developed Drugs, Technology Forward
“Africa is struggling to turn local discoveries into drugs and other health care inventions,” according to studies published in Science and BMC International Health and Human Rights, Nature News reports (Nordling, 12/12).
1099 Repeal Foiled Again, Politico Reports
News outlets report on a number of Capitol Hill developments, including the latest failed attempt to repeal the 1099 reporting provision in the health overhaul.
States tackle a number of health policy challenges.
OpEds: Ryan On ‘Welfare State;’ Wisconsin Health Care; Facing AIDS; Penn. Safety Net
Today’s opeds come from news outlets including The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal and the Houston Chronicle.
Mass. Confronts High Health Costs
Massachusetts, four years into its own version of health reform, is now taking on the issue of spiraling health costs by attempting to change the health care payment system.
Survey: Health Savings Accounts Pick Up Steam But Remain A Small Part Of Health Insurance Market
A new survey finds that health reimbursements and health savings accounts are picking up steam but still remain a small piece of the national insurance market. Meanwhile, leaders in the Texas health insurance and delivery system agree that paying for value in health care, rather than volume, is key. Finally, maternity insurance continues to be a challenge for some consumers.
Reuters: Supreme Court To Decide Generic Drug Labeling Issue
The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a generic drug labeling case, Reuters reports.
Consumers, Employers And Insurers Work To Incorporate Reform’s New Rules
Big employers and insurers continue to brace for health reform’s changes and new rules. In other news, CalPERS gives the new health law positive early reviews while other reports focus on how reform could impact Medicare coverage.
First Edition: December 13, 2010
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports about today’s expected ruling by a Virginia federal court judge on a challenge to the health law’s constitutionality.
“Detailed genetic tests confirm that the cholera strain that has killed more than 2,000 people in Haiti came from South Asia and most closely resembles a strain circulating in Bangladesh,” according to a study published Thursday in the New England Journal of Medicine, Reuters reports (12/9).
News Outlets Examine Flooding In Pakistan Four Months On
“More than four months after the worst flooding in Pakistan’s history, vast stretches of land are still under water in the province of Sindh, isolating many communities. … The world’s attention has long since moved on from the Pakistani flood story, but there are still more than 1 million people who remain displaced in Sindh alone, said U.N. humanitarian affairs chief Valerie Amos last Friday after touring the flood zone. Jackie Dent, a World Food Program spokesperson, said that although isolated outlying villages are becoming ‘few and far between as waters recede and access improves’ more are still being found,” TIME reports in an article looking at the effects of flooding and the prospects for recovery.
