Latest KFF Health News Stories
Digital Health Is Expanding At Rapid Speeds — But Is It Improving Patients’ Outcomes?
Experts say it’s important to be critical about what technology is being developed in the health care sphere and not get caught up in the excitement of new innovations.
Medicare Advantage Plans To Get 3.4% Pay Hike In 2019, Well Over Initial Proposal
CMS Administrator Seema Verma says the payment bump reflects higher projections for how much Medicare spending will increase next year.
Even Though Maine Voters OK’d Medicaid Expansion, Governor May Not Submit Application
The deadline to submit a routine application to ensure about $500 million in annual federal funding for expansion is Tuesday. But Gov. Paul LePage (R) has repeatedly said he won’t take any steps to expand Medicaid until lawmakers pay for the program under his terms.
Gov. Kim Reynolds (R) has signed a measure that allows the Iowa Farm Bureau to collaborate with Wellmark Blue Cross and Blue Shield on self-funded “health benefit plans,” which would fall outside the regulation of the health law. Experts say Iowa’s new law is legal and unlikely to draw pushback from the government, potentially creating a model for other states to follow.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Editorial pages highlight these and other health topics.
Media outlets report on news from Kentucky, Georgia, Ohio, Maryland, Louisiana, Massachusetts, Virginia, Florida, Wisconsin, Missouri, New Jersey and New York.
Report Shows Sewage Leaks Persisted For Months At D.C. Hospital
Staff and contractors at MedStar Washington Hospital Center identified as being responsible for clean up told investigators they were not made aware of a leak in a room where several patients were operated on last July. Media outlets report on hospital news out of Massachusetts, Illinois and Maryland, as well.
Medicaid Work Requirement Hearing In Minnesota Draws Emotional Testimony From Advocates
Along with pleas to protect those in vulnerable positions, some opponents to the requirements also spoke of the hundreds of people they would have to hire to handle all the paperwork the change would bring about.
The powerful antipsychotic Seroquel is prescribed “off label” to millions of Americans for an array of ills such as insomnia, agitation in dementia patients, and PTSD, despite medical experts’ warnings that the drug can cause diabetes, heart arrhythmia and movement disorders. In other public health news: cancer, gene editing, saline, depression, smoking and more.
Putting Money Behind Addiction Treatment Programs Won’t Do Much Good Without Trained Professionals
“Until the number of people providing services increase, all you’re doing is creating a backlog,” said Andrew Kessler, who runs the behavioral health policy consulting firm Slingshot Solutions. In other news on the crisis: “Penny-a-pill” legislation faces strong opposition from drugmakers; cooking classes aim to help those in recovery; a study looks at how the epidemic affects black adults; and a look at how to survive addiction.
Will This Youth-Driven Gun Control Movement Fizzle Just ‘Like All The Other Times’?
While some think the push for gun control will fade out of the news like any other story, the teens at the heart of the movement say that won’t happen. “They’re looking for us to get bored,” said Rosie Banks, 17, a high school junior. “We’re not going to get bored.”
Keep Drinking Your Coffee, Public Health Experts Say After Judge’s Cancer Label Warning
The science doesn’t really back up the ruling on California’s law to require a cancer label on coffee. While rodents fed massive amounts of acrylamide do develop cancer, the ones in the study were dosed at rates 1,000 to 10,000 times higher than what humans consume in food.
Massachusetts Wants To Rein In Drug Prices By Limiting What Medications Are Covered By Medicaid
But advocates and drug companies say that would harm patients and be a radical departure from how Medicaid operates now. The decision could have a nationwide impact as states look at ways to bring down spiking drug costs. Meanwhile, a new study supports the industry’s argument that even as list prices rise, net prices are going down with discounts like rebates.
Calif. Attorney General Sues Sutter Health Over Anticompetitive Tactics Linked To Higher Costs
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra alleges Sutter uses a variety of improper strategies, such as gag clauses on prices, “punitively high” out-of-network charges and “all-or-nothing” contract terms that require all of its facilities to be included in insurance networks.
Walmart’s potential entry into the health care landscape is just the latest in a flurry of acquisitions and new players in the industry. Traditional organizations are eyeing the changes warily.
Rejected Study Adds Another Layer To Ethics Questions Over NIH’s Courting Of Alcohol Industry
Stat has an exclusive look at a study that was rejected several years ago about the connection between advertising and underage drinking at the same time NIH was quietly wooing the alcoholic industry to contribute tens of millions of dollars for a study on the benefits of moderate consumption.
Whether Shulkin Resigned Or Was Fired Goes Beyond Bickering — It Could Open Door To Legal Challenges
The Federal Vacancies Reform Act gives the president authority to temporarily fill a vacancy at a federal agency with an acting official if the current office holder “dies, resigns, or is otherwise unable to perform the functions and duties of the office.” But some legal experts note that the law does not explicitly grant that authority to the president in the case of firings. The White House and former VA Secretary David Shulkin have been refuting each other’s claims over what happened.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Editorial pages focus on these and other health topics.
