Latest KFF Health News Stories
Today’s OpEds Include Opinions From Sebelius, DeParle, Issa, Thune
Kaiser Health News presents a sampling of Thursday’s opinions and editorials from around America.
Reid Upset After Republicans Block COBRA Benefits Extension Request
Roll Call reports that Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid criticized Republicans Wednesday for denying a unanimous consent request to extend COBRA health benefits slated to soon expire.
Lawsuit Alleges Medtronic Illegally Marketed Stent Device For Unapproved Use
A complaint filed in federal court last week “alleges Medtronic Inc illegally marketed a relatively obscure medical device called a biliary stent in ways not approved by federal regulators,” The Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune reports.
Poll: Health Bills Remain Unpopular, But Individual Provisions Get High Marks
A new CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll finds that “[a]lthough the overall health care reform bills passed by the House of Representatives and the Senate are unpopular, many of the provisions in the existing bills are extremely popular, even among Republicans, according to a new national poll,” CNN reports.
New York Times examines cool politics between president and Republicans. In other news, Rep. Stupak will not be at summit but renews call for tight abortion language in health bill. Sen. Specter says he could support a move to reconciliation.
Since a major earthquake hit Haiti last month, “power has returned to nearly half” of the neighborhoods around Port-au-Prince, but the rebuilding of the country’s power system “is starting almost from scratch,” the Associated Press/New York Times write in an article examining the prospects for Haiti’s electric utility.
The FDA approved Prevnar 13
One In Three Young Adults Is Uninsured; Obama Health Plan Includes CHIP Extension
News outlets report on the number of uninsured young adults and issues affecting the Children’s Health Insurance Program.
First Edition: February 25, 2010
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including what’s expected for today’s White House health summit.
Concierge Doctors Offer Amenities, But Also Limited Services
Concierge medicine
House Votes To Strip Insurers’ Antitrust Exemption
The House voted Wednesday
Obama, GOP Clash Over Summit Starting Point; Voters Note Partisan Divide
The Obama administration says its health overhaul proposal is a starting point, not a final word. The conciliatory message comes in response to Republican criticism that the administration has sent mixed messages by planning a bipartisan health summit Thursday, only days after announcing its proposal. Meanwhile, two-thirds of Americans blame Republicans for the partisan gulf; a smaller majority blames Obama.
Insurance Execs Defend Rate Hikes Before Congress
Lawmakers said Anthem Blue Cross, the California insurer that proposed raising premium rates for some individual policyholders by as much as 39 percent, sought to boost profits at the expense of its insured.
GOP, Expecting Little From Summit, Strategizes On Policy Alternatives; Democrats Look For Spark
Republican leaders have low expectations for Thursday’s health care summit but are fighting with Democrats over the details and planning to advance policy alternatives.
Democrats Revisit Reconciliation As Means To Pass Health Overhaul
Reconciliation, a parliamentary tactic that could allow Congress to pass health reform with a simple Senate majority, was dismissed weeks ago by centrist Democrats, but some of those lawmakers are now warming to the approach, clearing a possible avenue for passage of the overhaul.
WHO AFRO Delegation Travels To U.S. To Discuss Health Care Collaboration
Luis Gomes Sambo, the WHO’s regional director for Africa, “is in the U.S. this week” for meetings with senior health officials and development agency representatives to discuss collaborating on health, the New Times/allAfrica.com reports.
Today’s Opinions And Editorials
Kaiser Health News presents a sampling of Wednesday’s opinions and editorial from around the United States.
Some Dems Think Obama May Need To Harden His ‘Gentle’ Style In Pushing For Reform
Pushing health care reform through a skittish Democratic caucus while facing stiff Republican opposition is testing the White House’s “power of persuasion,” the New York Times reports. Meanwhile, the sole Republican to vote for the overhaul legislation, Rep. Anh “Joseph” Cao, has seen his fundraising drop 40 percent.
