Latest KFF Health News Stories
Activists Challenge Law In Maine Allowing Physician-Only Abortions
ACLU attorney Julia Kaye says the law is a hardship on rural women because it requires them to travel several hours to receive services, but defenders of the law say there is little evidence to support that charge. Dozens of states have similar restrictions. News on abortion comes out of Georgia, as well.
When Drug Costs Get Too High, Patients Are Skipping Doses Or Just Not Taking Medication
Experts are worried this behavior could be extremely dangerous for the patients. “We have lots of treatments where if you don’t take them exactly as prescribed, you might be doing more harm than good,” said Stacie Dusetzina, a health policy researcher at Vanderbilt University. Other ways patients are trying to control costs are by asking for cheaper drugs from doctors or seeking out alternative therapies. Meanwhile, Ohio’s attorney general is suing UnitedHealth’s OptumRx unit alleging it overcharged the state for prescription drugs.
Modern Healthcare looks at how the CEO’s paychecks followed suit. In other health industry news: value-based care models and noncompete clauses for doctors.
The ad is the latest example of Democratic attacks on the Trump administration’s budget proposal for fiscal year 2020. Democrats saw health care as a winning issue in the midterms, and are hoping to repeat that success in upcoming elections. Other Medicaid news comes out of Tennessee, Ohio, Georgia and Idaho.
A review conducted by the U.S. Digital Service, an elite group of software developers and designers employed by the White House, recommended that the VA should scrap the eligibility tool and start over. The report predicted that the tool would generate errors or run slowly or crash, and that these glitches would lengthen each appointment by five to 10 minutes.
A new CDC report finds that an estimated 15 percent of people with HIV don’t know they have the virus, and that population accounted for 38 percent of all new infection, according to the study. The CDC said the data prove the effort to end HIV in the U.S. needs to focus on quickly diagnosing those who have it, treating them as soon as possible and protecting people who are at risk of getting it. But that goal isn’t easy in places where deep stigma still exists around the virus.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Opinion writers weigh in on these health topics and others.
Media outlets report on news from Maryland, Virginia, Oregon, Connecticut, Colorado, Texas, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Louisiana, Georgia, Florida, Massachusetts, Minnesota and Missouri.
Billionaire-Backed Health Venture ‘Haven’ May Find Itself Facing Legal Challenges Over Name
There are already dozens of companies named “Haven,” with a large handful that deliver or facilitate health services. “It seems very risky to me,” said Jonathan Bell, managing director of Want Branding, a firm that advises companies on name selection. In other health industry news: health savings accounts, hospitals’ religious policies, cost disclosures, and minimum wage increases.
The federal prison does not allow anti-craving medications as ongoing treatment for opioid addiction except for pregnant women, who can take methadone. Meanwhile, Massachusetts advocates want hope to revolutionize the way the criminal justice system treats people who are addicted.
FDA Orders European Seller Of Online Abortion Pills To Immediately Cease Delivery To U.S. Customers
The FDA says the “unapproved new drugs pose an inherent risk to consumers.” In other news on abortion: Tennessee judge rebuked for denying a women on house arrest to travel to get an abortion; Indiana takes steps toward allowing nurses and physician assistants to object to playing role in abortion procedure; and Maine governor wants to allow medical professionals besides doctors to be able to provide the service.
The Trump administration in 2017 threatened to withhold law enforcement grants from 29 cities, counties or states it viewed as having “sanctuary” policies that limit cooperation with federal immigration agents. Today, all those jurisdictions have received or been cleared to get the money, except Oregon, which is battling for the funds in federal court. Some of that money is slated for veterans courts that help servicemen and women who are addicted to drugs get help.
The EPA will still allow commercial use of the lethal chemical. The Trump administration “will be partly to blame when the next worker is injured or dies as a result of being exposed to this extremely dangerous chemical,” attorney Melanie Benesh of the Environmental Working Group said.
The Road To Curing HIV In South Dependent On Tackling Racism, Poverty And Homophobia
Drugs already exist to prevent and contain the virus. But there are formidable social obstacles that have to be conquered before there can be meaningful headway made. In other public health news: depression, having children, terminal illnesses, immunotherapy, Ebola, antibiotics, TV’s effect on the aging brain, and more.
Where Pharma Has Failed To Offer Hope For Alzheimer’s Treatment, Medical Devices Have Shown Promise
A new study shows that a combination of lights and buzzing activate cells to start cleaning up the brain of mice who have Alzheimer’s, stimulating activity throughout many parts of the brain.
So, Eggs Are Bad Again? New Study Offers Link Between Eggs, Increased Risk Of Heart Disease
But experts say the study doesn’t offer enough justification to drop eggs from your diet. Just don’t overdo it, scientists say.
Surgery for certain bad heart valves may soon become a thing of the past. New studies suggest it can often be better to have a new valve placed through a tube into an artery instead. “Is it important? Heck, yes,” said Dr. Robert Lederman, who directs the interventional cardiology research program at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute. The findings “were remarkable,” he added.
Electronic Consults With Specialist Doctor Can Free Up Capacity In Crowded Health Systems
The first place in the U.S. to adopt an eConsult system, in 2005, was the San Francisco Department of Public Health. Wait times fell, and a large majority of primary care doctors said it improved care. “A safety net system can’t afford to hire enough specialists to meet demand — eConsults get around that problem by increasing access through enhancing efficiency,” said Dr. Mitchell Katz, who was director of the San Francisco Department of Public Health when eConsults began there.
A massive study on the effectiveness of Apple’s product had mixed results, but many experts find them promising. Still others see a long road ahead for wearable health technology.
