Latest KFF Health News Stories
Editorial pages focus on these health issues and others.
Opinion writers weigh in on how to improve access to health care and lower costs.
Media outlets report on news from Maryland, D.C., Georgia, Texas, Missouri, California, Massachusetts, Illinois, Virginia, Connecticut, Wisconsin and Florida.
“At a time when the EPA — now being run by a coal lobbyist — is trying to roll back federal regulations on coal ash, these new data provide convincing evidence that we should be moving in the opposite direction,” says Abel Russ, lead author of the report. Other news on the environment looks at “forever chemicals,” an underground fire, and dangerous fire-fighting chemicals, as well.
The research was halted years ago over safety concerns, but has once again received the go-ahead from the government. However, officials didn’t give a reason for the about-face, and scientists, who say the research could unleash a pandemic either by accident or through terrorism, are outraged. In other public health news: supplements and dementia, black women and HIV, health technology, stress, and more.
Media outlets offer stories on vaccinations and the measles outbreaks that are gripping the country as new cases are reported.
Abortions using medication are most commonly prescribed as a two-part process, in which a patient receives a dose of mifepristone followed by misoprostol 24 to 48 hours later. “If medication abortion is treated more or less like a regular prescription drug, that really could change how people access it and change the stigma around it,” says Elizabeth Nash, senior state issues manager at the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health think tank that supports abortion rights. News on abortion comes out of Texas and Ohio, as well.
Two pharma companies recently ditched efforts to develop weight loss drugs, a trend that highlights the struggles to create a treatment that would be worth the money they have to put into it.
Policies To Address Opioid Crisis Would Cause People To Turn To Heroin, Fentanyl In The Short-Term
A new simulation study finds that effective policies to combat the opioid crisis could actually result in more deaths in the next five to ten years. “This doesn’t mean these policies should not be considered,” said Keith Humphreys a former senior policy adviser at the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. News on the national drug crisis comes out of Maryland and D.C., as well.
The lawsuit highlights part of an ongoing war between insurance companies and providers over payment and billing issues, one that puts the patient right in the middle of the fight by sending payments straight to patients after they seek out-of-network care. In other health industry news: small company’s stock surge surprises investors; Johnson & Johnson sets ambitious goals; a CEO’s compensation package is revealed; and more.
Of the 25 largest PACs tied to physicians’ associations, 80 percent donated more to incumbent senators who voted against an expansion of background checks in June 2016 and 96 percent donated more to House lawmakers who didn’t co-sponsor a similar measure. “We think it’s important for those physicians to know where their dollars are going,” said Dr. Jeremiah Schuur, a co-author of the study. Gun news comes out of California, as well.
Desperate parents marched into the United States this weekend and demanded asylum hearings — a plan hatched by immigration lawyers who saw a quicker way to reunification than the bogged-down court system.
‘Tsunami Wave Of Women Veterans’ Puts Pressure On VA To Step Up With Health Care Services
About 500,000 women now use Veterans Affairs for health care, compared with 160,000 in 2001. VA officials say it is a priority to better serve those vets. Among basic issues the women face is finding doctors trained to deal with gynecological matters and ensuring that VA facilities have child-care services available when female veterans come for appointments. In other veterans’ health care news: alleged misconduct among VA physicians and nurses; a permanent director of the Veterans Health Administration; a new foundation geared toward veterans’ health; and more.
An Epidemic Of Nursing Home Closures In Rural Areas Leaves Vulnerable Residents With Few Options
More than 440 rural nursing homes have closed or merged over the last decade, and instead of being able to find new care in their homes and communities, many residents end up at different nursing homes far from their families.
At the crux of the matter: should fecal transplants be treated like a drug or like other organ transplants? The answer will determine how the FDA regulates the procedure, how much it costs and who gets to profit. In other pharmaceutical news: out-of-pocket costs for prescription drugs, patient advocacy groups’ ties to pharma; and kickbacks from drugmakers.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Editorial pages focus on these health topics and others.
Opinion writers express views about recent decisions on abortion.
Each week, KHN’s Shefali Luthra finds interesting reads from around the Web.
Media outlets report on news from New York, Ohio, California, Texas, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Kansas and Colorado.
