Latest KFF Health News Stories
Women who are on the path to recovery were having their babies taken away from them, sometimes as early as right from the hospital. That was setting off a spiral, where to cope with the pain the women would turn to opioids and thus make it harder to ever get their kids back.
When Others Have Given Up On Patients, This Neurologist Steps In
Dr. Alice Flaherty likes to tinker with machines until she fixes what’s broken. And her current interest involves patients who others say aren’t really sick or lack motivation to get better. “I got interested in that whole thing, like if you want to get better then you’re sick, if you don’t want to get better, then it’s a vice,” she says. “What was it that made us attribute willfulness to people who were obviously miserable?” In other public health news: smoking, video game addiction, autism, diets, ticks, alternative medicines, and more.
Stat looks at these and other questions — like what will happen to the company? — following the charges against Theranos CEO Elizabeth Holmes and the company’s former president Ramesh Balwani.
What Would You Sacrifice For Lower Premiums? For Younger Consumers The Answer Is Privacy
If it ends with them saving money, the younger consumers were happy to let insurers trawl through their digital data. As the ages went up, people were less inclined to be alright with the tactic.
165-Page Internal NIH Report Lays Bare Just How Cozy Scientists Were With Alcohol Industry
“So many lines” were crossed in the alcohol study that people were “frankly shocked.” The investigation was prompted by reports that scientists were wooing the alcohol industry to pay for the study that would tout the benefits of daily moderate drinking.
Maine Governor Remains Steadfastly Intractable Over Medicaid Expansion In Face Of Two Court Rulings
Maine voters approved the expansion of the state’s Medicaid program last year and two courts have recently ordered the plan enacted. But Gov. Paul LePage (R) continues to say he won’t do it unless lawmakers come up with a way to cover the cost.
The American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Physicians and the American Psychiatric Association have all issued statements against the Trump administration’s new policy. “To pretend that separated children do not grow up with the shrapnel of this traumatic experience embedded in their minds is to disregard everything we know about child development, the brain, and trauma,” reads a separate petition from mental health professionals.
“We’re asking the Administration to reverse their decision and instead work with Congress and Governors on bipartisan solutions to protect coverage and lower health care costs for all Americans, all while protecting those with preexisting conditions,” nine governors say in their letter to the Trump administration.
Trump Administration Poised To Unveil Final Rule On Association Health Plans
The plans, which let small businesses and self-employed individuals band together for more affordable coverage, won’t have to meet all the strict regulations laid out by the Affordable Care Act. The Trump administration says they will help bring down premiums, but experts warn that they’ll siphon healthy people away from the exchanges.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Opinion pages look at these and other health issues.
Perspectives: Stop China From Spreading Fentanyl Into The U.S.
Editorial pages focus on the opioid epidemic and other drug-related issues.
Media outlets report on news from New York, Iowa, New Hampshire, Ohio, Texas, California, Puerto Rico, Minnesota, Massachusetts, Florida and Illinois.
Texas Heart Transplant Center Reopens For Business Following Internal Review Of Deaths
Among other changes the Baylor St. Luke’s Medical Center announced a reorganization of its heart transplant team. Other changes include refining how patients are selected for the program and reorganizing the multidisciplinary approach to patient care.
California Seeks To Clear Coffee Of Cancer Risk Warnings Despite Presence Of Dangerous Chemical
If approved, the proposed regulation could be a win for the coffee industry, which lost an 8-year-old lawsuit in the Los Angeles Superior Court over a law that could require warnings be placed on all packaged coffee sold in the state.
Appeals Court Puts California’s Aid-In-Dying Law Temporarily Back In Effect
The law had been declared unconstitutional by a judge last month because it was voted on during a special session. The state appeals court has issued a stay.
“We have turned very rapidly into a kind of Wild West of ultrasonic devices, vastly outstripping any kind of evidence-based guidelines for their use,” said Timothy Leighton, an authority on ultrasonic devices. In other public health news: abortion, suicide, salmonella, educational toys and more.
Father’s Day Shines Spotlight On Chronic Public Health Issue In U.S.
Advocates say that fatherlessness can be one of “the greatest trauma that young people face,” and that its negative health impact on children needs to be taken seriously.
A Few Missed Doses Of Testosterone End In Happy Accident For Transgender Man
Trans men have conceived on purpose, but Tanner isn’t one of them. He didn’t suspect he was pregnant until the morning sickness hit. It was a shock, but he and his partner said that from the start, there was no doubt that they wanted the baby.
Many sites have internal messaging systems that allow people to connect with third and fourth cousins, aunts and uncles many times removed, and others that have distant familial connections to the user.
