Latest KFF Health News Stories
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ Some Things Old, Some Things New
In this episode of KHN’s “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner discuss final action on bills in Congress to address the opioid epidemic and fund federal health agencies. They also look at new efforts by the Food and Drug Administration to crack down on teen nicotine use.
VA Adding Opioid Antidote To Defibrillator Cabinets For Quicker Overdose Response
A project that started in a Boston Veterans Affairs facility will soon go nationwide. It puts naloxone, also known as Narcan, into emergency supplies cabinets throughout the VA system.
Judges In California Losing Sway Over Court-Ordered Drug Treatment
In a Medicaid-funded pilot project starting with 19 counties, clinicians and other providers are now in charge of deciding what kind of treatment an offender needs. The change has rankled some judges and attorneys — and forced some felons to spend more time in jail — but it has been largely embraced by clinicians and county agencies.
Readers And Tweeters Slice And Dice Precision Medicine, Step Therapy
Kaiser Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
Sobredosis de opioides en el trabajo, una realidad que empleadores ignoran
En ciertas industrias, como la de la construcción, el consumo de opioides es una constante con la que pocos empleadores están preparados para lidiar.
Workers Overdose On The Job, And Employers Struggle To Respond
Despite the growing epidemic of Americans misusing opioids and overdosing on the job, many employers turn a blind eye to addiction within their workforce — ill-equipped or unwilling to confront an issue they are at a loss to handle.
Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes
Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health articles from the week so you don’t have to.
Half As Many People Are Trying Heroin, But Marijuana Use Grows
An annual government survey of drug use and health shows a dramatic drop in the number of people who tried heroin but an uptick in pot use.
Menos personas consumen heroína, pero más usan marihuana
El consumo de heroína bajó, pero más mujeres embarazadas y adultos jóvenes consumen marihuana, bajo la percepción errónea de que es inofensiva.
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ A Detour On A Smoking Off-Ramp
In this episode of KHN’s “What the Health?” Sarah Jane Tribble of Kaiser Health News, Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal, Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner and Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call talk about the Food and Drug Administration’s latest actions to address teenagers’ use of e-cigarettes, Arkansas’ Medicaid work requirements and news about the uninsured from the latest federal Census report.
States Looking To Tax Opioids Pin Hopes On November Elections
At least 11 states are going to try to tax opioids despite pushback from pharmaceutical companies.
Giuliani’s Consulting Firm Helped Halt Purdue Opioid Investigation In Florida
Post-9/11, Giuliani Partners helped craft a plan that put a halt to a probe into Purdue’s marketing of OxyContin.
Suicide By Opioid: New Research Suggests Overdoses Should Be Classified As Self-Harm
Researchers combined the number of suicide deaths with those associated with drug overdoses in an effort to better grasp the overlap between these two public health epidemics.
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ Opioids, EpiPens And Health Funding
In this episode of KHN’s “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Alice Ollstein of Talking Points Memo, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times and Joanne Kenen of Politico discuss Senate action on health funding and opioid legislation, the state of the individual insurance market and consternation over expiration dates on EpiPens, the self-injected allergy remedy. Also, could an otter with asthma signal a potential public health crisis?
Rehabilitation Plus Rehab? Jails Dispense Drugs To Treat Inmates’ Addictions
Rather than go cold turkey, inmates increasingly have the option to take medication to help beat addiction to opioids and other substances. But some warn these substitute drugs serve as another crutch — and a costly one at that.
Babies Dependent On Opioids Need Touch, Not Tech
One doctor in Kansas works to make sure every hospital in the state can provide the soft start, ideally with their mothers, that babies with neonatal abstinence syndrome need.
Purdue Pharma’s Sales Pitch Downplayed Risks Of Opioid Addiction
Through a widely circulated brochure and a videotape of testimonials, the maker of OxyContin stressed patients’ right to opioid treatment for pain.
Clinicians Who Learn Of A Patient’s Opioid Death Modestly Cut Back On Prescriptions
A study published Thursday shows that doctors, dentists and other medical providers cut overall opioid dosages by nearly 10 percent after receiving notification of a death from a medical examiner and information on safe prescribing.
As Opioid Crisis Rages, Some Trade ‘Tough Love’ For Empathy
An approach known as Community Reinforcement and Family Training, or CRAFT, coaches families to deal with a loved one’s substance abuse with compassion.
Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes
KHN’s newsletter editor, Brianna Labuskes, wades through hundreds of health articles from the week so you don’t have to.