Latest KFF Health News Stories
Medicaid Advocates See Virginia’s Expansion Decision As Broader Political Shift
Virginia’s decision to expand Medicaid after years of resistance is giving some hope that opposition against the issue has lessened in recent years. Meanwhile, in Texas, poor state oversight has led to companies skimping on essential care for sick children and disabled adults.
Many Women With Common Type Of Breast Cancer Can Forgo Chemotherapy
“We can spare thousands and thousands of women from getting toxic treatment that really wouldn’t benefit them,” said Dr. Ingrid A. Mayer, from Vanderbilt University Medical Center, an author of the study. “This is very powerful. It really changes the standard of care.”
States Safeguard Protections Created By Health Law As Trump Administration Chips Away At Them
Some states are moving to ban short-term “junk” health insurance plans, while others are requiring people to buy coverage. Worries about high costs and spiking premiums are driving some of the efforts.
Experts are concerned about the president’s proposal to switch some expensive drugs from one part of Medicare to another part. Advocates for older Americans say the problems are not inevitable, but will be difficult to solve.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Editorial pages look at these and other health care issues.
Opinion writers focus on the government’s response to the devastating health situation in Puerto Rico.
Opinion writers look at issues shaping various health care policies.
Research Roundup: Effects of Marijuana Use; Orphan Drug Competition
Each week, KHN compiles a selection of recently released health policy studies and briefs.
Media outlets report on news from California, Oregon, Wisconsin, Louisiana, Kansas and Puerto Rico.
In Mich., GOP Lawmakers Look For Ways To Thwart Legalization Of Recreation Marijuana
Meanwhile, Sen. Bill Nelson (D- Fla.) says he’s in favor of allowing Florida doctors to prescribe smokable medical marijuana.
States’ Abortion And Reproductive Health Regulations Under Investigation By Trump Administration
The Department of Health and Human Services is scrutinizing requirements in California that “crisis pregnancy centers” tell women about state-subsidized family-planning services, including abortion, and that most health insurance plans cover abortions. Hawaii confirms that its similar rules are under review as well.
Blue Cross of Texas Agrees To Delay Plans To Scrutinize ER Visits
Consumer groups and doctors have argued that patients needing care may delay seeking help because they fear the insurer could opt to not cover the emergency department services.
In other news, the FDA reports 172 people were sickened by the romaine lettuce E. coli outbreak and adds it hasn’t found a source.
Clinical Trial Launched To Test If HIV-Positive Organ Donation Is Safe And Can Save Lives
Researchers will assess the risks of transplanting kidneys from HIV-positive donors into patients with the virus. “We have an organ shortage crisis in this country and individuals living with HIV are disproportionately affected,” says Dr. Christine Durand, assistant professor of medicine at Johns Hopkins University.
If Doctors Use Your Data To Develop Treatments, Do They Need To Tell You?
Ethicists, patients, doctors and courts are wrestling with that question as efforts grow to expand care through better data and technology. Also, Stat offers a guide to CRISPR, and Madrigal Pharmaceuticals says one of its drugs has shown progress treating fatty liver disease.
Cuts To Medicare Part B Payments At Center Of Oncologists’ Lawsuit Against HHS
The cancer doctors are suing over ongoing sequestration budget cuts that cut Medicare Part B drug reimbursements by 2 percent. In other medical practice news from the day: Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services’ Merit-based Incentive Payment System hits reporting goals; the NBA names its first director for mental health; and statin tolerance is examined.
Va. GOP: Work Requirements Put Conservative Stamp On Medicaid Expansion
House Speaker M. Kirkland Cox says the expansion approved this week “includes what I consider the most conservative set of reforms to Medicaid in the nation as part of a plan to expand healthcare coverage to working Virginians.” Also, in Michigan, expansion supporters protest one candidate’s efforts to switch gears.
Doctors Are Prescribing Fewer Opioids, Says AMA
The number of opioid prescriptions dropped 22 percent between 2013 and 2017, leading to an estimated 55 million fewer scripts, according to the doctors’ group. These numbers are part of the American Medical Association’s argument against proposed federal clinical practice legislation. Also in the news, an expose on the marketing techniques used by some corners of big pharma regarding these medicines. Meanwhile, updates on legal action in Utah, Kansas and Michigan; efforts in Philadelphia to clear opioid “tent camps;” California’s experiment in distributing fentanyl tests; and other hot topics.
FDA Should Enforce ‘Right-To-Try’ Law As Drafted, Says Author Sen. Johnson
“This law intends to diminish the FDA’s power over people’s lives, not increase it,” Sen. Ron Johnson (R-Wis.) wrote in a letter to Food and Drug Agency Commissioner Scott Gottlieb.
