Bill Of The Month: For Toenail Fungus, A $1,500 Prescription
By Shefali Luthra
How a prescription wiped out one woman’s health reimbursement account, raising questions about prescription drug price tags and about how health care professionals deal (or don’t) with medical costs.
No-Go For Idaho: Back To The Drawing Board On State-Based Health Plans
By Julie Appleby
The federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services advised the state that its plan to offer state-based insurance plans falls short of the Obamacare rules and could result in penalties for insurers.
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ Rocky Road Ahead In Congress For Insurance Market Bills
In this episode of KHN’s “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Alice Ollstein of Talking Points Memo, Joanne Kenen of Politico and Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post discuss the problems that are making congressional efforts to pass legislation to stabilize the individual insurance market a long shot.
Medicaid Is Rural America’s Financial Midwife
By Shefali Luthra
Medicaid payments allow struggling hospitals to maintain vital costly services such as maternity care.
Everything You Need To Know About The New Medicare Cards (But Beware Of Scams)
By Judith Graham
Starting in April, new Medicare cards will be issued to the program’s 59 million enrollees. The new cards address serious security concerns, yet there are growing “scams” linked to the rollout.
Lifting Therapy Caps Is A Load Off Medicare Patients’ Shoulders
By Susan Jaffe
Last month’s budget deal means Medicare beneficiaries are eligible for physical and occupational therapy indefinitely. Plus, prescription drug costs will fall for more seniors.
New Technologies Help Seniors Age In Place — And Not Feel Alone
By Gabi Redford
Motion sensors, Alexa and other voice-assistive technologies give seniors the tools they need to live independently and safely.
Oregon Medical Students Face Tough Test: Talking About Dying
By JoNel Aleccia
Starting this spring, aspiring doctors at the Oregon Health & Science University must prove they can communicate about difficult subjects ranging from admitting medical mistakes to notifying families about a patient’s death.
Opioid Maker Funds Efforts To Fight Addiction: Is It ‘Blood Money’ Or Charity?
By Jenny Gold
Purdue Pharma, whose signature product helped fuel the opioid epidemic, now wants to help treat it — or at least salvage its own reputation.
The Other Opioid Crisis: Hospital Shortages Lead To Patient Pain, Medical Errors
By Pauline Bartolone
A nationwide shortage of injectable opioid painkillers has left hospitals scrambling to find alternatives — in some cases leading to dosage mistakes that may harm patients.
FDA Moves To Cut Nicotine In Cigarettes, Helping Smokers Kick Habit
By Liz Szabo
In a historic move, the Food and Drug Administration stated its intent Thursday to require tobacco companies to cut nicotine levels in their products to make them less addictive. Stripping cigarettes of addictive power could lead an estimated 5 million adults to quit smoking within a year of the plan.
For Aspiring Doctors With Disabilities, Many Medical Schools Come Up Short
By Elana Gordon, WHYY
A national survey finds that medical schools should do more to help doctors with disabilities thrive. Although some schools do make needed accommodations, others need to take basic steps to help.
Use Of HIV-Prevention Drug Grows, But Lags Among Non-Whites
By Anna Gorman
The pill, known as PrEP, can reduce the risk of contracting the virus that causes AIDS by 90 percent. Its use has expanded sharply in recent years — but primarily among a white demographic.
California’s Tax On Millionaires Yields Big Benefits For People With Mental Illness, Study Finds
By Anna Gorman
The research, focused on Los Angeles County, casts a positive light on a 2004 initiative that expanded mental health services statewide. A recent state audit, however, suggested hundreds of millions of dollars from the initiative were piling up, left unspent by counties.
Participants In Rogue Herpes Vaccine Research Take Legal Action
By Marisa Taylor
Three participants in unauthorized herpes vaccine research file a lawsuit against scientist’s company, alleging adverse side effects.
Patients Overpay For Prescriptions 23% Of The Time, Analysis Shows
By Sydney Lupkin
Researchers at the University of Southern California analyzed millions of prescriptions and concluded that close to a quarter paid copays that exceeded the cost of the drugs.
A Battered Doctor, A Slain Patient And A Family’s Quest For Answers
By Brian Rinker
An addiction-treatment physician fatally shot a troubled ex-Marine after the man pummeled him inside his California office, police records show. The tragedy illustrates how the limited number of clinics available to prescribe buprenorphine, a drug that all but erases opioid withdrawal, can become crowded, chaotic and dangerous.
Black Men’s Blood Pressure Is Cut Along With Their Hair
By Susan Abram and Heidi de Marco
A new study shows that educational sessions about high blood pressure at African American barbershops, coupled with prescribing and helping to manage medication, reduced hypertension rates significantly.