Latest KFF Health News Stories
Adam Boehler, head of Medicare and Medicaid’s innovation institute, said significant financial awards will be given to the top submissions, but he declined to say how much money is being devoted to the program. In other news, Dr. Eric Topol says he’s not impressed with what AI has done to progress health care.
Opioid Lawsuit That’s Flying Under The Radar May Actually Upstage Sweeping Case In Ohio
Oklahoma decided against joining the massive consolidated opioid lawsuit against drugmakers that’s caught most of the country’s attention. But Oklahoma’s case is slated to be the first to go to trial, and could set the stage for many of the arguments that will be made in the larger case. In other news on the epidemic: ‘Mexican Oxy’ pills, the dangers of synthetic opioids, and the Insys court case.
With Purchase Of Technology Firm, J&J Continues Push Into Surgical Robotics Field
Johnson & Johnson is buying a company that created a medical device that can help physicians access nodules in patients’ lungs to diagnose and target treatments. Large medical-device makers have recently been pushing into the robotics market, partly because the equipment can command high price tags. In other health industry news: hospital sales, bankruptcy, and lawsuits.
A tour for journalists inside the facility that serves as a emergency intake shelter for migrant children includes stops by a soccer field, the phone-home room, the medical clinic and the school classrooms, as well as descriptions of holiday parties and talent shows. Child welfare advocates, though, say that’s not reality. “We see a very different picture than the reporters see,” Leecia Welch, senior director of legal advocacy and child welfare at the National Center for Youth Law, told NPR.
Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) pledged to make military housing reform the subject of further Senate hearings and said Congress must halt the problems. The problem came to light when Reuters reported that the living conditions for families on military bases were often slum-like and unsafe.
With New Records Regulation, CMS Wants To Empower Patients To Control Their Health Care
At the HIMSS19 conference in Florida, CMS officials talked up two newly proposed rules intended to push the industry to make use of application programming interfaces to speed up how patients can access information on their mobile devices.
Following a Frontline and Wall Street Journal investigation, HHS is now investigating why the Indian Health Services allowed a pediatrician to continue working for the federal agency for 21 years after officials concluded he was molesting Native American boys. People familiar with the doctor’s situation say information about the allegations against him at one IHS hospital were never recorded in his credentialing file at the second facility where he worked.
During a dinner at the White House before the National Prayer Breakfast, President Donald Trump reportedly laced into devout-Christian Sen. Chris Coons (D-Del.). People who witnessed the confrontation said it was “awkward” and aggressive. The intensity of the exchange underscores how much the president sees abortion as a winning issue with his much-needed evangelical base. News on abortion comes out of Arkansas, Mississippi and Kansas, as well.
The short-term plans offer far less coverage than ones regulated under the Affordable Care Act. Although they have been subject to political bickering in the past, some Energy and Commerce Committee Republicans hinted that they might support consumer advisories for the coverage. The GOP lawmakers were less receptive to the other legislation aimed at shoring up the health law that was offered at the meeting–including a rule requiring the plans to disclose that they may not cover pre-existing conditions.
Democrats Push More Moderate, Politically Palatable Plan That Would Allow Medicare Buy-In At Age 50
The Democratic lawmakers say their plan moves in the direction of universal coverage in a more realistic way than progressive-favored “Medicare for All” proposals would. “This is a piece of legislation where you could turn the switch on overnight,” said Rep. Joe Courtney (D-Conn.). The sponsors said the plan will pay for itself with premiums from the new enrollees.
Students, teachers, law enforcement, activists and parents talk about the year following the Parkland mass shooting — how they’ve grieved, how they haven’t, how they’ve learned to live with fear and panic attacks, how they remember those they’ve lost and how they search for closure. “We don’t need (the anniversary) to remind us what happened. We live with it every day,” said businessman Andrew Pollack, whose 18-year-old daughter Meadow died in the attack.
The measure is one of the most significant gun control bills to advance this far in recent years. The panel also voted to advance a bill that would close a loophole in the current background-check law that allows a gun purchase if a check is not completed in three days. The vote came the day before the one-year anniversary of the mass shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla., which left 17 people dead and kicked off a vocal gun control movement led by students who survived.
Media outlets report on news from Iowa, New Mexico, Ohio, California, Maryland, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Texas, Georgia, Florida, Colorado, Connecticut, Washington, Minnesota, Wisconsin and Missouri.
First Edition: February 14, 2019
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Opinion writers weigh in on these and other health topics.
Opinion writers weigh in on the current measles epidemic.
Read recent commentaries about drug-cost issues.
Pharmacy Benefit Managers Are Drawing Fire From All Directions In Debate Over Drug Pricing
News outlets report on stories related to pharmaceutical pricing.
Media outlets report on news from Massachusetts, Texas, California, Ohio, Kansas, Nevada, Minnesota, and Florida.
Coverage on movement in the state capitols comes out of California, Arizona, Iowa, Texas, Maryland, Georgia, Ohio, South Dakota, New Mexico and Florida.
