KFF Health News Weekly Edition: Nov. 17, 2023
Facing Financial Ruin as Costs Soar for Elder Care
By Reed Abelson, The New York Times and Jordan Rau
The United States has no coherent system of long-term care, leading many to struggle to stay independent or rely on a patchwork of solutions.
Adult Children Discuss the Trials of Caring for Their Aging Parents
By Reed Abelson, The New York Times and Jordan Rau
The financial and emotional toll of providing and paying for long-term care is wreaking havoc on the lives of millions of Americans. Read about how a few families are navigating the challenges, in their own words.
Who Will Care for Older Adults? We’ve Plenty of Know-How but Too Few Specialists
By Judith Graham
The principles and practices of geriatrics are being widely disseminated. And we understand much more now about how to improve older adults’ care. Yet we don’t have enough geriatricians to meet the growing demand.
What the Health? From KFF Health News: Congress Kicks the (Budget) Can Down the Road. Again.
Congress narrowly avoided a federal government shutdown for the second time in six weeks, as Democrats came to the rescue of divided House Republicans over annual spending bills that were supposed to be finished by Oct. 1. But the brinksmanship is likely to repeat itself early in 2024, when the next temporary spending patches expire. Meanwhile, a pair of investigations unveiled this week demonstrate how difficult it still is for seniors to get needed long-term and rehabilitation care. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Rachel Cohrs of Stat, and Joanne Kenen of Johns Hopkins University and Politico Magazine join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.
Do Republican Spending Cuts Threaten Federal HIV Funding? For Some Programs, Yes.
By Grace Abels, PolitiFact
Spending cuts proposed by a Republican-led House subcommittee would cut millions from HIV-related spending.
Why It’s So Tough to Reduce Unnecessary Medical Care
By Markian Hawryluk
Treatments that don’t help patients, and may even harm them, are difficult to eliminate because they can be big sources of revenue.
How Lawmakers in Texas and Florida Undermine Covid Vaccination Efforts
By Amy Maxmen
State legislatures and politicians are pressuring public health officials to keep quiet about covid vaccines.
What One Expectant Mom’s Effort To Get an RSV Shot Says About Health Policy
By Elisabeth Rosenthal
Today we bring you the story of a patient seeking the RSV vaccine — and how her frustrating journey illustrates why it can be so hard in the United States to get an important medicine recommended by federal regulators. Hannah Fegley of Silver Spring, Md., says she spent seven hours on the phone last month […]
Compensation Is Key to Fixing Primary Care Shortage
By Michelle Andrews
Many proposals have been floated about how to address the nation’s primary care problem. They range from training slots to medical school debt forgiveness but often sidestep comprehensive payment reform.
Biden Administration’s Limit on Drug Industry Middlemen Backfires, Pharmacists Say
By Arthur Allen
A rule taking effect Jan. 1 was intended to stop one set of abuses by pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs, but some pharmacists say it’s enabling these price brokers to simply do new things unfairly.
The Unusual Way a Catholic Health System Is Wielding an Abortion Protest Law
By Judy Lin
Dignity Health is suing several patients and their advocates for “commercial blockade” for refusing discharge during the covid-19 pandemic. The lawsuits could set precedents for use of the California commercial blockade statute, conceived to constrain abortion protesters, and how hospitals handle discharges.
It’s Getting Harder to Find Long-Term Residential Behavioral Health Treatment for Kids
By Aaron Bolton, MTPR
Intermountain Residential in Montana is one of the only facilities in the United States that offer long-term residential behavioral treatment for kids as young as four. Now, administrators say they’re not sure how long it can keep its doors open.
What Long-Term Care Looks Like Around the World
By Jordan Rau
Most countries spend more than the United States on care, but middle-class and affluent people still bear a substantial portion of the costs.
Abortion “Until the Day of Birth” Is Almost Never a Thing
By Julie Rovner
It’s one of the most frequent claims made by antiabortion lawmakers: That abortion rights supporters favor allowing abortions literally until the end of pregnancy. “Frankly I think it’s unethical and immoral to allow for abortions up until the day of birth,” Sen. Tim Scott (R-S.C.) said at last week’s GOP presidential primary debate. At that […]
Beyond Insulin: Medi-Cal Expands Patient Access to Diabetes Supplies
By Angela Hart
California’s Medicaid program is making it easier for people with diabetes to obtain the supplies and equipment they need to manage their blood sugar, partly by relaxing preauthorization requirements that can cause life-threatening delays.
Why Do We Pay For so Much Worthless Health Care?
By Markian Hawryluk
Medical advances are expensive. Take Wegovy, the wildly successful obesity drug that we learned last week may also reduce the risk of heart disease. If just 10 percent of Medicare beneficiaries start taking the drug, taxpayers could be on the hook for nearly $27 billion a year. So how can the country afford the latest […]
Most States Ban Shackling Pregnant Women in Custody, Yet Many Report Being Restrained
By Renuka Rayasam
Illustration by Oona Zenda
Advocates for pregnant people in police custody say repeated incidents show prohibitions on handcuffs and other restraints are little more than lip service.
Listen to the Latest ‘KFF Health News Minute’
“Health Minute” brings original health care and health policy reporting from the KFF Health News newsroom to the airwaves each week.
