Latest KFF Health News Stories
Expert Advice For The Corporate Titans Taking On Health Care
Amazon, Berkshire Hathaway and JPMorgan Chase & Co. are partnering up to address employee health care costs and improve satisfaction. Can they deliver? And would repackaging health insurance involve drones?
Facebook Live: It’s 2018, Can Big Pharma Hold The Line Against Pricing Controls?
In this chat, KHN senior correspondent Jay Hancock discusses how drug-pricing battles could play out this year in D.C., state legislatures and beyond. What do we know about the drug industry’s agenda to quiet the drumbeat of cost control and transparency proposals? How will they officials target their efforts? Will the battles take place at the state level? Senior editor Stephanie Stapleton moderates.
HHS Nominee Vows To Tackle High Drug Costs, Despite His Ties To Industry
Alex M. Azar II, the former president of the U.S. division of Eli Lilly, says the U.S. drug system encourages price increases — but he intends to work on that problem.
Drug Overdose Deaths Soar Nationally But Plateau In Some Western States
Fatalities are climbing in states that have been flooded by the deadly opioid fentanyl, but are remaining flat — or even falling — in many Western states, where the drug has not yet been as common as other parts of the country.
Arthritis Drugs Show How U.S. Drug Prices Defy Economics
Drugs that treat rheumatoid arthritis started out costing about $10,000 a year. Ten years later, they list for more than $40,000.
Biosimilars, Biologics And New Legal Challenges For RA Treatments
As biosimilar products reach the market and rival more established RA treatments, the players are exploring legal challenges involving antitrust and anti-competitive behavior.
Drug Industry Spent Millions To Squelch Talk About High Drug Prices
Last year, the pharma industry’ biggest trade group raised millions to change the conversation about drug pricing.
Medicare Fails To Recover Hundreds Of Millions Of Dollars In Lab Overcharges
Genetic testing firms declare bankruptcy and wipe out debt to the federal government.
Una epidemia ignorada: adultos mayores que toman medicamentos innecesarios
Algunos consumen hasta 27 píldoras por día, recetadas por distintos especialistas. Médicos lideran un movimiento para suspender medicamentos innecesarios.
An Overlooked Epidemic: Older Americans Taking Too Many Unneeded Drugs
Researchers estimate that 25 percent of people ages 65 to 69 take at least five prescription drugs to treat chronic conditions. But some doctors are trying to teach others about “deprescribing” or systematically discontinuing medicines that are inappropriate, duplicative or unnecessary.
Cities, Counties and Schools Sidestep FDA Canadian Drug Crackdown, Saving Millions
Medicines are up to 80 percent cheaper north of the border and overseas, so U.S. localities are greasing a pharmaceutical pipeline that the feds warn is illegal and possibly unsafe.
Pace Of U.S. Health Spending Slows In 2016
Dramatic increases in spending that came with the influx of newly insured consumers in 2014 and 2015 appear to be moderating.
Stopping Opioid Addiction At One Key Source: The Hospital
Based on research conducted at the University of Michigan’s medical center, a group of surgeons developed a strategy to help post-surgical patients from misusing or abusing their prescription painkillers.
Texans With HIV Cope With Homes And Medicines Ruined By Hurricane Harvey
The hurricane closed pharmacies and clinics for a week or longer. Floodwaters spoiled drugs. People who fled to other states couldn’t get their prescriptions filled for HIV medicine.
The Ratcheting Price Of The Pneumococcal Vaccine: What Gives?
The price for Pfizer’s Prevnar 13 has increased 5 to 6 percent each year since its 2010 approval by the Food and Drug Administration.
Doctors Make Big Money Testing Urine For Drugs, Then Ignore Abnormal Results
Medicare and insurers struggle to oversee a booming business in testing urine samples. In some cases, pain doctors’ lack of follow-through can turn fatal.
Heated And Deep-Pocketed Battle Erupts Over 340B Drug Discount Program
Drugmakers, hospitals and lawmakers are taking sides in a showdown over a discount program that covers drug purchases at some hospitals.
Podcast: ‘What The Health?’ Meanwhile, In Other Health News…
In this episode of “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Joanne Kenen of Politico, Alice Ollstein of Talking Points Memo and Sarah Jane Tribble of Kaiser Health News discuss some of the under-covered health stories of the past several weeks, including drug price issues, the opioid epidemic and women’s reproductive health.
Receta para un dolor de rodilla: 90 píldoras de Percocet
Porque el sistema computarizado así lo indica, o por comodidad del médico, pacientes reciben pastillas extra de poderosos opioides.
Doctor’s Rx For A Stiff Knee: A Prescription For 90 Percocet Pills
Following minor surgery, KHN’s consumer columnist sees how easily doctors offer pain pills, fueling epidemic of opioid addiction.
