Latest KFF Health News Stories
Appellate Judges Rule HHS Doesn’t Have Authority To Require Prices In TV Ads For Drugs
Read about the biggest pharmaceutical development and pricing stories from the past week in KHN’s Prescription Drug Watch roundup.
More Businesses Require Workers, Visitors To Sign Away Right To Sue If They Get Sick
At least five states so far have such limits, which are similar to what President Donald Trump’s campaign is requiring of Tulsa rally attendees. News is also on inadequate protection for the essential workforce in the Bronx, as well.
Media outlets report on news from Massachusetts, California, Maine, Nevada, Ohio, Georgia and New Jersey.
The San Francisco LGBT Center’s Naomi Wright says: “Not only could they not afford going to the hospital, but they didn’t have health insurance.” Other public health news stories report on understanding when to visit a physician, the dangers of lost playing time for children and prioritizing cancer trials ahead of COVID, as well.
Global pandemic developments are also reported out of Brazil, Russia, India, Germany, Greece and other nations.
Coronavirus Testing Costs Provide Perfect Example Of Flaws Baked Into America’s Health System
The government doesn’t regulate health care prices, and so they vary wildly. That has rarely been as clear to see as in the prices that labs are charging insurers for coronavirus tests.
Number Of Medicaid Enrollees Jumps; Help May Be On Way For ‘Dual-Eligibles’
State officials say their budgets may not be able to handle the number of people enrolling in Medicaid after losing their jobs and health benefits. Meanwhile, the Medicaid and CHIP Payment and Access Commission urges Congress to loosen enrollment restrictions for people who are eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid.
As Coronavirus Soars In Prisons, Use Of Solitary Confinement Grows
While the national infection rate flattens, the number of inmates who have tested positive for COVID-19 has doubled, and some prisons are increasing their use of solitary confinement to stem the tide. Meanwhile, the federal government announced Monday it will end its nearly two-decade hiatus on executions. In other prison news: accusations of staff brutality against disabled inmates in California; New Orleans stops work on jail expansion; nonprofits helping inmates in Detroit jails; and how one California man’s psychiatric crisis led to his death.
Wear A Mask Or Get Banned From Flying, Airlines Warn
U.S. airlines are threatening to put passengers on the no-fly list if they continue to ignore mask requirements. In other news: How to shop for a cloth face mask and how it can help your respiratory health; and how business travel is changing amid the coronavirus outbreak.
“The administration should release the names of all P.P.P. borrowers — as the S.B.A. routinely does for similar loan programs,” the lawmakers demanded after inspectors general warned Congress that previously unknown Trump administration legal decisions could substantially block their ability to oversee more than $1 trillion in spending related to the coronavirus pandemic.
Working Conditions Have Improved, But Health Workers Struggle With Psychological Toll
In other health care news: Medical schools face backlash over racism and hazing; hospital unions gain strength; hospice nurses step up; and American Girl dolls get a new scrubs outfit.
The FDA approved the use of the smartwatch as a replacement for an in-clinic ECG during the coronavirus pandemic after Apple upgraded the app. In other health IT news: Robotics and AI may help improve safety; digital monitoring; COVID-19 conspiracies spread online; fighting bots and disinformation; and more.
An Ethical Quandary: In Vaccine Trials, Is It Worth The Risk To Infect Healthy People?
Trials using healthy volunteers would speed up the development of a safe vaccine for everyone else. But scientists and ethicists are still debating where that falls on the ethical spectrum of risk and benefits. In other news: how super antibodies could lead to a vaccine; Moderna projects a fall release of efficacy data; and more.
More Than 20 Percent Of People At Risk For Severe COVID Due To Underlying Medical Conditions
About 1.7 billion people fall into that vulnerable category. While the numbers can be startling, it also allows doctors to pinpoint those patients who are at the highest risk for having a negative, or even fatal, outcome once infected. In other scientific news: mutations, demographics and longevity.
Survey: Thousands Of Nursing Homes Went Without ‘Vital’ In-Person Checks On Safety Measures
The failure, Politico reports, prevented states from identifying lapses at a crucial time during the pandemic and blocking family members from visiting their relatives — a policy intended to prevent the virus from entering the facility — removed another source of accountability. News on nursing homes is from New York, Louisiana and Michigan, as well.
FDA Sends Strong Message As Agency Yanks Emergency-Use Approval Of Controversial Malaria Drug
The FDA’s decision to revoke the authorization of hydroxychloroquine sends the message that “hospitals, doctors, patients and families really think twice,” said Jessie Goodman, a former FDA chief scientist. The drug, which President Donald Trump has touted and said he took, can have dangerous side effects and has yet to show any benefits in studies for COVID-19 patients.
Media outlets take a look at where states stand on number of confirmed cases and reopening plans.
Some State Leaders Reject Pulling Emergency Brake On Reopenings As Cases Surge Around Country
Ten states — Alabama, Arkansas, California, Florida, Nevada, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Texas — hit new highs for hospitalized patients on Sunday. A popular forecast model adjusted higher its death toll projection to 200,000 Americans by October. Still, states are pushing forward with reopening plans.
Doctors Have Long Played Observer To Social Movements. But Are The Tides Shifting?
Health care workers have been turning out in droves to protest racial inequalities, saying they see the consequences of such a system every day with their patients. While previously, providers have been hesitant to join social movements, some of the younger professionals say it’s part of their duty to do so. In other news on disparities: the pandemic’s toll, voter registration, a spate of deaths that are being ruled as suicides and more.
In Cities Where Chokehold Bans Already Exist They’re Largely Ineffective
As federal, state and local officials across the country grapple with the best way to curb police violence, many are looking at chokehold bans as an obvious answer. But there are places where such bans are in place, and they don’t appear to work.
