Latest KFF Health News Stories
Obama: ‘Take Time’ On Health Reform, Democrats Haggle On Next Steps
President Obama said Thursday “we should take our time” while “not letting the moment slip away” in finalizing a health care overhaul.
In Jobs Bill, Democrats Push To Include Extension Of COBRA Benefits, Medicare ‘Doc Fix’
Democrats are including some health considerations into a jobs bill and regrouping on their legislative agenda.
Landrieu Defends ‘Louisiana Purchase’ In Senate Remarks
Sen. Mary Landrieu, D-La., won a $300-million Medicaid bonus for her state during health overhaul negotiations, spawning a wave of criticism that Democratic leaders needed to make the so-called “Louisiana purchase” to secure her support for their reform bill.
N.J., Tenn. And Florida Battling Growing Medicaid Costs; Need For Health Care For Parolees In Calif.
Medicaid costs in many states are expanding deficits while lawmakers and the public struggle to keep up with growth in health costs.
Today’s Opinions And Editorials
Kaiser Health News presents a selection of opinions and editorials from around the Web.
DOD To Investigate Mental Health Care At Camp Lejeune, Also Will Stock Morning-After Pill
The Defense Department investigates Marine mental health care in North Carolina and announces that it will begin stocking military health facilities around the world with the morning-after pill.
State legislators are taking health reform matters into their own hands in some states.
Ohio Hospitals Advertise ER Wait Times On Billboards, Internet
Akron hospital’s effort is part of a growing trend, but doctors fear it may send patients in need of emergency care away from the closest hospital.
Illinois High Court Rules Medical Malpractice Caps Are Unconstitutional
The state Supreme Court said the 2005 law violated separation of powers because it allowed the legislature to interfere with a jury’s efforts to set damages.
Radiation Oncologists Push For Safety Standards
“The leading professional organization dedicated to radiation oncology has called for enhanced safety measures in administering medical radiation,” The New York Times reports.
Research Roundup: Medicare Spending, Community Health Centers, Children’s Dental Services
Our health policy research roundup today includes studies on regional variations in Medicare spending, the growth of Community Health Centers, interviews with hospital executives on reducing racial and ethnic disparities and the predicting the likelihood of children going to the dentist.
Health Bill Stall Creates Uncertainty For Drug Makers
The uncertain future of the health care overhaul is leaving drug makers in limbo.
Anthem Blue Cross Of California Raises Rates As Much As 39 Percent
Largest for-profit insurer in the state told its 800,000 customers with individual coverage that prices will go up March 1.
Congressmen, Citing Reports Of Fraud, Seek Accounting For AIDS Funding
Complaints of fraud connected to AIDS funding provoke requests from two Republican members of Congress for further investigation.
First Edition: February 5, 2010
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including the latest on Democrats’ efforts to regroup and move forward with their legislative agenda.
Resources For Americans Who Lose Their Health Insurance
U.S. News & World Report offers an explainer on cutting premiums and other health care costs for people who have lost insurance.
Landrieu Speaks On The Senate Floor To Defend So-Called ‘Louisiana Purchase’
Landrieu termed her effort “bipartisan” and said it was not a trade-off to secure her vote for sweeping health reforms.
COBRA Extension Likely Part Of Senate Democratic Jobs Plan
Majority Leader Harry Reid plans to advance the first part of the package next week.
U.S. Lawmakers Introduce Resolution Condemning Uganda’s Anti-Gay Bill
U.S. lawmakers on Wednesday introduced a congressional resolution condemning an anti-gay bill before Uganda’s parliament, “calling it an attack on human rights and an obstacle to battling HIV/AIDS,” Agence France-Presse reports. “The symbolic measure asserts that ‘all people possess an intrinsic human dignity, regardless of sexual orientation, and share fundamental human rights,’ and warns the Ugandan bill, if enacted, ‘would set a troubling precedent,'” the news service writes.
Early Stage Trial Finds Malaria Vaccine Promotes Immune Response In Young Children, Study Says
An experimental vaccine was found to promote immune responses to malaria in young children in Mali, Reuters reports. According to the news service, “The vaccine, which uses an immune system booster called an adjuvant from British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline, targets the malaria parasite as it is actively infecting red blood cells and causing fever and illness” (Steenhuysen, 2/3).
