Latest KFF Health News Stories
Democrat Endorses GOP Plan On Hospital Price Disclosure
Rep. Gene Green, D-Texas, is endorsing two Republican plans to require hospitals disclose their prices while other Democrats are pushing a much broader bill in the House Energy and Commerce Committee, The Hill reports.
Radiologists Discuss Ways To Reduce Patient Exposure, Cancer Risk
Research and discussion at a radiology conference this week is focusing on ways to reduce the amount of radiation exposure patients receive during medical imaging tests.
Kaiser Health News presents a selection of opinions and editorials from around the country.
Study: Hospital Follow Up Can Curb Readmission Rate For Heart Patients
“Hospitals can slow the revolving door that shuttles heart failure patients back into bed within a month of going home by following up promptly to ensure patients get the right outpatient care, a study shows,” USA Today reports.
Early Extension Of Health Insurance For Some Young Adults Faces Legal Roadblocks
The provision in the health reform law that requires insurers to allow dependents to stay on plans up to the age of 26 is being enacted early by many health insurance companies but not all in the same way.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, ranging from additional analysis of specific provisions of the health overhaul bill to Capitol Hill action and developments in the insurance market.
Primary Care Doctors Make $3 Million Less Than Cardiologists Over The Course Of Their Careers
A Health Affairs study released Tuesday reports that the income discrepency is such that policy solutions such as student loan repayment assistance and boosting primary care payments are not likely to make a dent.
High Risk Pools, Medical Loss Ratios And Other Health Law Implementation Issues
News outlets report on state high risk pools and other implementation issues for the new health law.
Polls Show Slowly Shifting Opinion On Health Law
A new Rasmussen poll suggests that Americans are happier with the country’s health care system already since the health care reform law passed.
Today’s OpEds: Sharing The Burden Vs. Hurting The Rich Too Much
Kaiser Health News presents a selection of today’s opinions and editorials.
Most Women Pay For Abortions Out Of Pocket; Okla. And Fla. Abortion Restrictions In The News
A new survey from the Guttmacher Institute found that just 12 percent of women use private insurance coverage for abortion procedures. Meanwhile, in Oklahoma and Florida, laws requiring women to view ultrasounds before having an abortion are being debated.
Biotech Industry Reviews Effects Of The Recession
Tighter funding and changes in health care rules and government regulation crimp in biotech growth.
Bundling Could Save Health Care Dollars If Snags Are Overcome
Modern Healthcare writes, “Bundling payments to hospitals and doctors for episodes of care is gaining momentum in the federal government and in the private sector as a way to increase provider accountability and improve care.”
States Rely On Federal Funds To Buttress Medicaid Programs; Worry About The Future
Meanwhile, various states face administrative and budgeting challenges related to their Medicaid programs.
AU Chair Discusses Proposed Food Security Compact Ahead Of World Economic Forum On Africa
Malawi’s President Bingu wa Mutharika “said he planned to work with other African leaders to devise a programme on food security that was sustainable ‘regardless of who is looking at it,’ and set up what he called an African compact on food security to act as an independent advisory body to the African Union (AU) on agriculture and food issues,” the Guardian’s “Katine” blog reports.
U.N. Development Program Head Begins Four-Country Tour Of Africa To Promote MDGs
Over the weekend, U.N. Development Programme (UNDP) Administrator Helen Clark began a four-country tour of Africa “to highlight progress towards the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) in the run up to a Summit in September,” Tanzania Daily News/allAfrica.com reports. Clark will make stops in Tanzania, Mali, Burkina Faso and South Africa, where she will “meet with Heads of State and Ministers, as well as touch base with women leaders and members of civil society, and visit development projects,” the news service writes.
Vitamin A Does Not Improve Maternal, Infant Health, Study Finds
Giving women vitamin A supplements does not reduce maternal death rates or improve the health of infants, according to a study published Tuesday in the Lancet, the New York Times reports.
