Latest KFF Health News Stories
Major Medicare Fraud Crackdown In 3 States
Federal agents arrested 26 suspects in three states Tuesday in a major Medicare fraud case. Charges included false reporting for medical equipment, physical therapy and HIV infusions.
On And Off Capitol Hill, Politicians Are Taking Positions On Health Bill
Maine’s Republican Senator Susan Collins praised efforts by Independent Senator Joe Lieberman, Conn., to change the bill but she says she can’t yet support it.
Hospital, Physician Lobbyists Fought Medicare Buy-In Proposal
Hospital and physician lobbyists opposed plan that would have allowed people age 55 to 64 to buy Medicare coverage.
More Details Emerge About UNITAID’s Plan For Patent Pool For HIV/AIDS Drugs
Though UNITAID’s board “voted Monday to create a board to run the new patent pool, and set a target of having five AIDS drugs in the pool by mid-2010,” the group “punted on the thorny issue of which countries outside of Africa to include in the pool,” Forbes reports. Some drug makers have voiced opposition to the inclusion of countries such as Brazil, China and India in the patent pool, viewing “these as lucrative new markets,” the magazine writes.
Lieberman Assures Democrats Of His Support But Ties With Party Are Fraying
Senator Joseph Lieberman told Democrats he would likely support the Senate health bill now that his demands have been met, but his opposition has rattled liberals.
Liberals Agitated By Compromise, But Appear To Back Health Reform
Liberals are accruing a long list of things to be upset about in the health reform legislation.
Tea Party Protestors Rally Against Health Bills At Capitol
A clear message from the event was “kill the bill.”
Judge Dismisses Immigrants Lawsuit Against Atlanta Hospital
The group of immigrants, most of them illegal, had sued Grady Memorial Hospital, which closed its outpatient renal clinic that provided free dialysis treatment to a group of immigrants, most of them illegal.
Amendment To Allow Drug Importation Fails In Senate
A bipartisan plan to allow Americans to buy cheaper prescription drugs from suppliers in other countries, such as Canada, failed Tuesday in the Senate.
First Edition: December 16, 2009
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including details on President Obamas meeting with Senate Democrats and the push to pass the Senate health bill.
Obama To Democratic Senators: ‘We Are On The Precipice’ Of Major Health Reform
The president urges Senate Democrats to make history by passing a sweeping health overhaul bill.
Lieberman Ready To Support Health Bill Without Medicare Buy-In Or Public Option
The Connecticut senator maintains his position has been consistent despite his support for the buy-in when he was a vice presidential candidate in 2000.
New data from the WHO and the Belgian Centre for Research on Epidemiology of Disasters Deaths and released at the U.N. climate conference show the number of people dying in climate-related disasters has decreased, but that economic losses from natural disasters are growing, Reuters AlertNet reports.
Increased Funds Lead To ‘Significant Progress’ In Global Malaria Fight, WHO Report Says
WHO’s World Malaria Report 2009, released on Tuesday, found “increased funding is starting to pay off in the battle against malaria but prevention and treatment must be increased to try to halt the killer disease, Reuters reports. According to the Associated Press, there were more than 240 million cases of malaria and an estimated 863,000 people, mostly in Africa, died of the disease in 2008.
UNITAID To Launch Patent Pool For HIV/AIDS Drugs By Mid-2010
The international drug procurement agency UNITAID on Monday unveiled plans to create a patent pool for HIV/AIDS medications to help increase access to generic versions of newer drugs at lower prices for low- and middle-income countries, Agence France-Presse reports. The patent pool “will create a common space for patent holders to license their technology in exchange for royalties” and is “scheduled to begin operating in mid-2010,” AFP reports (12/14).
White House Report Says Health Reform Will Cut Cost Growth
The New York Times reports that a White House report on health care legislation has found that the Senate reform bill would slow health care spending in America by 1 percent per year.
U.S. Questions California’s CHIP Program; Milwaukee Schools Face Rising Retiree Health Care Costs
News outlets report on California’s children’s health program, health care costs for Milwaukee’s schools and indigent care in Minnesota.
News Outlets Check The Facts And Explain Health Care Reform
News outlets report on health care reform myths and cost-savings particulars.
Wild Poliovirus Reaches More African Countries In 2009, WHO Official Says
Cases of polio have been reported in some African countries that have eradicated the disease, Luis Gomes Sambo, the WHO’s Africa regional director, said Monday at the opening of a child immunisation conference in Zimbabwe, Agence France-Presse reports (12/14).
A Selection Of Opinions And Editorials
A sampling of opinions and editorials from around the country.
