Latest KFF Health News Stories
’60 Minutes’ On End-Of-Life Health Spending: ‘Is There A Better Way?’
While all Americans will eventually die, CBS’s 60 Minutes reports, it may turn some heads to find out how much the government will spend as they do so: In 2008, $50 billion in the last two months of life.
Guardian Examines Challenge Of Testing, Treating Patients With HIV/AIDS In Kenya
The Guardian examines the challenge of testing and treating some of the estimated 1.4 million people living with HIV/AIDS in Kenya. “Deep-rooted stigma and patchy health education has led many to cower from the disease, which has seen the country’s life expectancy rates shortened by 20 years in the last two decades,” the newspaper writes.
Doctor Shortage Issue Heats Up With Reform Efforts
Will there be enough primary care physicians to handle the new patients if health reform passes and offers insurance for millions of the uninsured?
Los Angeles’ MLK Hospital Cuts Deal To Reopen
A plan to reopen the Martin Luther King Jr. hospital as a private, nonprofit facility in partnership with the University California, is the latest example in a new trend among public hospitals that has lead to greater efficiency, and often quality elsewhere.
Lobbying Is Up As Health Industry Examines Impact Of Reform Proposals
Lobbying is up as business and industry groups – and their leaders – consider what health care reform means to them.
Health Debate Bears Down On Senators
Democrat Blanche Lincoln of Arkansas faces pressure from both sides while others question Senators’ conflicts of interest.
H1N1 Spreading Eastward, WHO Says
The H1N1 (swine flu) virus appears to be spreading eastward across Europe and Asia, after appearing to have leveled off in the U.S. and some western European countries, the WHO said Friday, Reuters reports.
Hatch, Other Conservatives Argue Individual Mandate Is Unconstitutional
Republicans are digging in to resist a Democrat-proposed mandate for all Americans to buy insurance, saying the measure is unconstitutional.
Senate Democratic Leaders Look For Public Option Compromise To Win Moderates
Senate Democratic leaders are seeking a public options compromise to win the votes of fellow Democrats or even some key Republicans.
Administration Seeks To Distance Reform Effort From Cancer Screening Fallout
Controversial breast and cervical cancer recommendations are based on the kind of objective scientific analysis that Obama has promoted.
Public Opinion Has Changed Since Clinton Tried Health Care Reform
USA Today/Gallup poll shows that the percentage of Americans who say Congress should pass comprehensive reform legislation has increased by 10 points.
Senators Prepare For Upcoming Health Reform Battles
The Senate Democratic leadership is preparing for the next round of health reform fights and hoping to hold together their caucus as they begin to take the next steps in their health reform effort.
GOP Strikes Back On Senate Health Vote
Republican senators turned out to criticize the Democratic health overhaul on Sunday talk shows, saying it is “something Bernie Madoff would really envy,” would expand a “medical ghetto,” and may “collapse of its own weight,” The Hill reports.
CDC: ‘Beginning To See Some Declines In Swine Flu’
At a Friday news conference, CDC officials said that swine flu may have peaked in the U.S., though they cautioned that there are still many people getting infected.
Digital Divide Appears Between Hospitals That Treat The Rich And Poor
Hospitals that treat poorer patients are less likely to have adopted electronic health records than their counterparts, according to an October study published in Health Affairs.
First Edition: November 23, 2009
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including analysis of Saturday’s Senate health bill vote and what to expect in its aftermath.
House Members Confront A Range Of Political Pressures As Health Bill Advances
Catholic Bishops are looking for a future in lobbying as they find their voice on health care reform and abortion, Politico reports.
Despite Senate Health Care Victory, Democrats Face Bumpy Road Ahead
Saturday night’s vote in the Senate to proceed with debate on a sweeping health care bill sparked partisan fighting and intra-party divisions, which were aired on Sunday news talk programs.
