Morning Breakouts

Latest KFF Health News Stories

EPA Report: Formaldehyde Presents Unreasonable Human Health Risk

Morning Briefing

Yet ProPublica reports that the EPA “downplayed the threat the chemical poses to people living near industrial plants.” Separately, the post-holiday sick season is in full swing, as CDC data show that 40 states are reporting high or very high levels of illness. Also: early physical therapy for concussions; hydration; and more.

Biden Signs Into Law A Social Security Payment Boost For Public Employees

Morning Briefing

The AP reports the law affects nearly 3 million people, including those receiving pensions after time spent as teachers, firefighters, and police officers. Also in the news: the “crisis” of potential Medicaid cuts, alcohol labels, digital mental health, and more.

Trump’s FDA Transition Team Staffs Up As Commissioner Pick Awaits Approval

Morning Briefing

Meanwhile, newly installed Senate Majority Leader John Thune signals the president-elect’s Cabinet nominees might not cruise to confirmation when hearings begin. Also, U.S. ethics director David Huitema has begun the standard practice of looking into conflicts of interest for incoming officials.

Storm Quiets DC, But Vote Certification Will Go On; J6 Victims Feel ‘Betrayed’

Morning Briefing

Vice President Kamala Harris will preside over today’s election certification process, which was changed in 2022 to prevent attempts to overturn the results. Even so, those who were severely injured during the attack on the Capitol four years ago say they feel forgotten.

Habitat Health’s PACE Center Is Ready To Receive Participants In Sacramento

Morning Briefing

The Medicare-Medicaid program provides health care services, meals, and social interaction for older adults. Habitat Health also plans to open a facility in Los Angeles in 2026. More news comes from New Hampshire, Florida, North Carolina, and elsewhere.

Certificate-Of-Need Law Hampers Health Care Start-Ups

Morning Briefing

The law is supposed to prevent market saturation by requiring proof of need for the services in a community, but it also allows competitors to challenge newcomers and prevent them from entering the market. A lawsuit in Nebraska is challenging that law.

‘Speckles’ Within Cancerous Tumors Can Determine Best Treatments

Morning Briefing

Meanwhile, increased rates of cancer in the under 50 crowd may be caused by gut issues; certain foods, including licorice, may help covid patients; Neumora Therapeutics depression treatment fails trials; and more.

DNA Or Diet? Maybe Both. Number Of Kids With Kidney Stones Is Up

Morning Briefing

Medical experts have seen a significant increase in the number of children suffering from kidney stones. Some doctors think a diet full of over-processed and sodium-rich foods might be to blame.

Surgeon General Wants Alcohol To Carry Cancer Warning Labels

Morning Briefing

Surgeon General Vivek Murthy issued an advisory Friday that warns that alcohol consumption is the third leading preventable cause of cancer and cancer deaths in the U.S., after tobacco and obesity.

States Enact Laws To Protect Reproductive Health Data

Morning Briefing

Many laws have been put in place to protect individuals’ reproductive health data and to keep it from being used to incriminate patients or target providers. Reuters explores the concern about the use of data obtained through “geofencing.”

Safety Measures Added For Farmers Seeking Bird Flu Reimbursement

Morning Briefing

Farmers will now have to prove that they did everything possible to prevent outbreaks before they can receive governmental indemnity payments. Also in the news: President Joe Biden nearly doubles funds to fend off H5N1; Norovirus cases surge; and more.

Eli Lilly Wants to Join Lawsuit Over Compounded Weight-Loss Drugs

Morning Briefing

The lawsuit was brought against the FDA after the agency declared an end to the shortage that allowed pharmacies to sell compound versions of the popular weight loss drugs, but Eli Lilly said it cannot rely on the FDA to protect its interests. Other news is on the surge of GLP-1 use; insurance coverage of obesity medicine; and more.

UnitedHealth Doctors Got Diagnoses Checklists To Boost Medicare Payouts

Morning Briefing

The Wall Street Journal reports how UnitedHealth provided lists of potential, often obscure diagnoses to its doctors and forced them to weigh in on them for each Medicare Advantage patient, in order to capitalize on the government system that pays private insurers based on how sick doctors say a patient is.