Matthew Fleming

Where Have All The Forensic Pathologists Gone?

KFF Health News Original

Television crime dramas may draw big audiences, but they don’t seem to work as a recruiting tool for forensic pathologists. A draft report by a Justice Department Scientific Working Group for Medicolegal Death Investigation, which is open for comment through Aug. 22, spotlights the nation’s shortage of these highly trained professionals who perform autopsies to determine the […]

Survey: Employers Expect 7 Percent Growth In Cost Of Health Benefits

KFF Health News Original

As employers brace to absorb cost increases in employee health benefits, many are also experimenting with new ways to control these expenses, according to a new survey from the National Business Group on Health, a non-profit association of 342 large employers. The survey’s findings, which were released today, are based on the responses of 82 […]

Religious Health Care; ‘The Big Lie’ About Expanding Medicaid

KFF Health News Original

KHN’s Matthew Fleming selected these interesting articles from around the Web for weekend reading options. The Atlantic: A Christian Alternative To Health Insurance The Affordable Care Act has a section that exempts members of health care sharing ministries from purchasing insurance. The Amish, Mennonite, Christian Science and Indian tribe communities also are exempt from the penalty […]

Medicaid Expansion Reduces Mortality, Study Finds

KFF Health News Original

As states decide whether to expand their Medicaid programs to cover low-income childless adults, the impact of their choices became clearer today in a study showing a reduction of mortality in states that have already made that move. The research published in the New England Journal of Medicine found a 6.1 percent reduction in mortality […]

Physicians And Assisted Suicide; Avoid Getting Sick In July

KFF Health News Original

KHN’s Matthew Fleming selected these interesting articles from around the Web for weekend reading options. ABC News: Assisted Dying: Experts Debate Doctor’s Role Peggy Sutherland was ready to die. The morphine oozing from a pump in her spine was no match for the pain of lung cancer, which had evaded treatment and invaded her ribs. … Sutherland, 68, […]

Study: PTSD Treatment For Soldiers Improving, But There’s Still Work To Be Done

KFF Health News Original

When it comes to diagnosing and treating posttraumatic stress disorder among soldiers returning from service in Afghanistan, Iraq and other modern battle theaters, the Veterans Administration and the Department of Defense still have a long way to go to meet the needs of armed service members, according to a new Institute of Medicine study. In […]

Electronic Health Records Could Help Lower Malpractice Claims

KFF Health News Original

A research letter published Monday by Harvard scientists in the Archives of Internal Medicine suggests that doctors who adopt the use of electronic health records have a lower rate of malpractice claims. The researchers examined responses from 275 physicians in Massachusetts who responded to surveys in 2005 and 2007, and examined the physicians’ use of […]

While Awaiting Court’s Decision, HHS Awards Health Center Grants

KFF Health News Original

Even as attention is focused on the much-anticipated Supreme Court decision regarding the health law’s constitutionality, the Obama administration continues to roll out “good news” announcements related to provisions that have already taken effect. Case in point: The Obama administration Wednesday announced $128.6 million in new grants designed to help community health centers across the […]