Weekly Newsletter, May 17, 2019
Health Industry
Dealing With Hospital Closure, Pioneer Kansas Town Asks: What Comes Next?
By Sarah Jane Tribble and Christopher Smith
After depending on the local hospital for more than a century, Fort Scott residents now are trying to cope with life without it.
Listen: After Its Hospital Closes, A Pioneer Kansas Town Searches For What Comes Next
Deep questions underlie what is happening in Fort Scott, Kan.: Do small communities like this one need a traditional hospital at all? And, if not, what health care do they need?
Aging
‘Living Their Values’: Palliative Care Power Couple Faces Cancer At Home
By JoNel Aleccia
Kathy Brandt and Kim Acquaviva are both leaders in the world of hospice and palliative care. When Brandt learned she was dying of ovarian cancer, the couple decided it could be a teachable moment.
How To Find And Use New Federal Ratings For Rehab Services At Nursing Homes
By Judith Graham
For the first time, the federal government is measuring the quality of rehab services in nursing homes for the millions of older adults who need post-hospitalization care.
Insurance
‘Sham’ Sharing Ministries Test Faith Of Patients And Insurance Regulators
By JoNel Aleccia
Officials in Washington and other states are cracking down on companies that avoid health insurance regulations by masquerading as faith-based care.
Walmart Charts New Course By Steering Workers To High-Quality Imaging Centers
By Phil Galewitz
Walmart, the nation’s largest private employer, is recommending that employees and dependents use one of 800 imaging centers identified as providing trustworthy care.
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ States Race To Reverse ‘Roe’
Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss the new abortion bans passed in Alabama and Georgia; bipartisan congressional efforts to end “surprise” out-of-network medical bills; and a new public option health insurance plan soon to be available in Washington state.
Eric Swalwell’s Tweet About Georgia’s New Abortion Restriction Only Slightly Off-Key
By Shefali Luthra
The claim by Democratic presidential candidate Eric Swalwell is correct but could use more context and clarification.
Listen: Abortion Laws Could Have Unexpected Consequences
KHN’s Julie Rovner discusses on WBUR’s “Here and Now” some of the surprising ramifications that could follow abortion restrictions passed recently in some states.
Trump’s Talk On Preexisting Conditions Doesn’t Match His Administration’s Actions
By Shefali Luthra
The administration’s position on a pending lawsuit to get the Affordable Care Act is one of the reasons experts said there’s cause for skepticism.
Listen: A Blitz Of Health Care Bills
Kaiser Health News’ Julie Rovner talks about a package of health care bills that Democrats plan to push through the House this week during an interview on “Here and Now.”
Newsom Changes Course On Plan To Pay For Immigrant Health Coverage
By Samantha Young
California’s governor Friday scuttled his plan to siphon public health money from four counties to help provide health coverage for unauthorized immigrants ages 19 through 25.
Syndicate
How Obamacare, Medicare And ‘Medicare For All’ Muddy The Campaign Trail
By Shefali Luthra
A talking point used by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi refers to all three of these distinct concepts in a way that could magnify public misperceptions.
‘John Doe’ Patients Sometimes Force Hospital Staff To Play Detective
By Susan Abram and Heidi de Marco
A large public hospital in Los Angeles gets over 1,000 unidentified patients a year. Most are quickly identified, but some require considerable gumshoe work — a task that can be complicated by medical privacy laws.
As ER Wait Times Grow, More Patients Leave Against Medical Advice
By Phillip Reese
Crowded emergency rooms are likely to blame. In 2017, the median ER wait time for patients before admission as inpatients to California hospitals was 336 minutes — or more than 5½ hours.
Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes
By Brianna Labuskes
Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health care policy stories each week, so you don't have to.