Latest KFF Health News Stories
Obama Signs Anti-Smoking Measure
President Barack Obama on Monday in the Rose Garden with a number of lawmakers and other guests “signed the strongest anti-smoking measure ever, calling it an extraordinary accomplishment that will help keep children from getting hooked on cigarettes,” the Associated Press reports.
Obama, AARP Announce Agreement To Cut Prescription Drug Costs
President Barack Obama appeared with AARP chief Barry Rand Monday morning to announce an agreement among pharmaceutical companies to cut prescription drug costs for seniors.
Florida-Based Organization Encourages Black Women To Be Tested For HIV
The one-year-old Florida-based organization Sistas Organizing to Survive on Saturday held a rally in Orlando that sought to raise awareness of HIV among black women and encourage them to be tested.
HIV Testing Kits To Be Distributed To Residents In Washington, D.C., This Week
On Wednesday, a national HIV testing campaign called “Don’t?Guess?Test!” is making a “controversial move” by distributing free HIV testing kits that have not been approved by FDA in the lead up to National HIV Testing Day on June 27.
Houston Effort Seeks To Screen 15,000 Young Adults For HIV
The Houston Department of Health and Human Services, along with several community health agencies, over the next three weeks is seeking to test 15,000 young adults for HIV as part of an effort to commemorate National HIV Testing Day on June 27.
New Online Tool Maps HIV, AIDS Prevalence By County, Other Statistics
The National Minority Quality Forum (NMQF) today launched an online tool that maps the prevalence of HIV and AIDS by county, age, gender and ethnicity in all 50 states, Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
U.N. Calls For Increased Commitment To Help Vulnerable Countries Prepare For Natural Disaster
Instead of responding to natural disasters after they happen, aid should be dedicated to helping countries prepare for future disasters, John Holmes, the U.N.’s emergency relief coordinator, said Friday, Reuters reports.
UNHCR Calls For World To Do More To Protect Refugees
To mark World Refugee Day on June 20, the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) urged the “international community to do more to protect and care for refugees around the world,” VOA News reports.
Polls Show Americans Struggling To Pay For Health Care
A new study reports that one-fourth of Americans say they’ve struggled in the last 12 months to pay for health care, and a separate study suggests wide support for a government health plan, Reuters reports.
Research Sheds Light On Eradicating HIV From Body’s Reservoirs
Researchers from Oregon State University’s Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute (VGTI) Florida and the University of Montreal say they have discovered a potential way to eradicate HIV by suppressing viral replication and stopping the division of certain T-cells in the body.
To Stop Spread Of HIV, Prevention Campaigns In China Targeting Sex Workers, MSM
CNN examines China’s efforts to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS by educating sex workers about the disease and prevention strategies.
Various Players Offer Views On Reform
An examination of some of the ideas and roles of various players on health care reform including the new American Medical Association President.
Can Health Coops Do the Job of a Public Plan?
“Perhaps the clearest sign yet of the unpredictable nature of
Ghana Launches Public-Private Partnership To Control Malaria
Ghana’s Ministry of Health recently launched the Nationwide Mosquito Control Programme (NAMCOP) in conjunction with the waste management company Zoomlion Ghana Limited, the Ghanaian Chronicle/allAfrica.com reports.
Senate Confirms Goosby As U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator
The Senate on Friday confirmed President Obama’s U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator nominee Eric Goosby, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.
Sticker Shock Threatens To Stall Health Care Overhaul
“No one can figure out a politically acceptable way to pay for an overhaul of America’s health care system, and until someone does, the effort is stalled. Maybe indefinitely,” McClatchy reports.
At VA Hospital, A Rogue Cancer Unit
The New York Times reports that a “rogue cancer unit” at a veteran’s hospital in Philadelphia “operated with virtually no outside scrutiny and botched 92 of 116 [prostate] cancer treatments over a span of more than six years – and then kept quiet about it, according to interviews with investigators, government officials and public records.”
Insurers Revoke Plans To Avoid Paying For Patients With High Costs
Congress has turned its attention to rescission, a practice where insurers retroactively revoke plans to avoid paying high costs. Rescission happens with individual health insurance policies that include an application and generally a questionnaire about their health.
