Latest KFF Health News Stories
Media outlets report on news from Ohio, Minnesota, Florida, Texas, Michigan, Virginia, Illinois and California.
Top Doctor At D.C. Public Hospital Is Fired After Alleging Mismanagement
Dr. Julian Craig, an internal medicine physician, appeared before the City Council’s health committee and criticized the Veritas management company, saying it disregarded hospital programs designed to ensure patient safety. In other industry news, Medicare officials announce an expansion of a program to help rural hospitals, and a historic hospital in Massachusetts is hoping to merge with a larger system.
Majority Of Iowa’s Medicaid Recipients Left With Only One Provider
But federal rules require states that contract out their Medicaid management to offer recipients more than one option.
Brexit Strains England’s Already-Hurting Health System As Doctors, Nurses Flee Back To Europe
Long before Brexit, the N.H.S. suffered from chronic staffing shortages, but recruiting nurses from the European Union had helped plug the gap. Now though, England faces a potential mass exodus of a good percentage of its health care workers.
New Drug-Resistant Strain Of Malaria Threatens To Upend Years Of Eradication Efforts
“It has a big potential to spread,” says Dr. Arjen M. Dondorp, deputy director of the Mahidol Oxford Tropical Medicine Research Unit in Bangkok. “We should be very worried that other countries in Southeast Asia can be affected by this, and, of course, that it will reach Africa at some point.” In other public health news: stem cell treatments, breast cancer, transgender patients, Legionnaires’ disease, allergies, and more.
Simply Asking Patients If They Use Opioids Isn’t Enough. This Hospital Goes Further.
Screening alone doesn’t do much for patients, experts say, but Christiana Care Health System in Delaware pairs patients with addiction counselors and gets them enrolled in community-based drug treatment program before they’ve even left the hospital.
Startling Upswing In Middle-School Aged Girls Self-Harming May Be Due To Cyberbullying
Self-inflicted injury, including such behaviors as cutting, burning and ingesting poisons, is one of the strongest risk factors for suicide.
Almost 50 Years Ago, Industry Put Kibosh On Study Linking Sugar With Heart Disease, Cancer
The newly discovered research shows that the sugar industry knew about the harms associated with it, but covered up those dangers.
Navigate Thanksgiving Smorgasbord Without Piling On The Pounds
Experts say that eating a good breakfast — and not “saving” calories for later — helps people to not overeat when the big meal comes around. Meanwhile, others give advice on staying healthy while traveling during the holidays, and on important discussions to have around the dinner table.
Yes, Health Law Enrollment Numbers Are Up. But That Doesn’t Tell Full Story.
Because the enrollment window is much shorter — it ends Dec. 15 in most states — it’s not clear if the final numbers will be more than previous years.
Murkowski, A Key GOP Swing Vote, Signals Support For Repealing Individual Mandate
A spokesperson for Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) says that the comments should not be construed as support for the Republicans’ tax bill. Meanwhile, the American Academy of Actuaries is warning Congress against repealing the mandate, and health care leaders watch with trepidation as a vote on the measure nears.
First Edition: November 22, 2017
NOTE TO READERS: KHN’s First Edition will not be published Nov. 23-24. Look for it again in your inbox Nov. 27. Here’s today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Viewpoints: Rising Medicare Premiums Pinching Budgets; GOP Needs Alternative To Individual Mandate
A selection of opinions on health care from around the country.
Media outlets report on news from Minnesota, Tennessee, Puerto Rico, Pennsylvania, California, D.C., Vermont and Ohio.
Mayor Acknowledges NYC’s ‘Troubling’ Lapses Over Public Housing Lead Inspections
Mayor Bill de Blasio announces he has appointed a chief compliance officer to oversee the lead testing process after it was discovered that the city had failed for years to do the required inspections.
Hot New Immunotherapy Field Continues To Deliver Promising Results
Scientists have genetically altered cells to attack more than one place on a cancer cell. “The idea that we could have one magic bullet is naïve,” says Dr. Crystal L. Mackall, the senior author of the study. In other public health news: the lucrative field of dermatology; using the bugs that are in our bodies; stillbirth; tobacco; weight loss and more.
Purity, Potency Of Illegal Drugs Have Reached New Levels, Worrying Health Officials
The problem is that users aren’t expecting the higher strength drugs and are overdosing because of the increased potency of them. In other news on the crisis: addiction treatment, patients with chronic pain who desperately need opioids, an interview with the U.S. surgeon general, and opioid prescription practices.
Preliminary Report Finds Oregon Mismanaged $78M In Medicaid Funds
The report from the state Health Authority director says the figure comes from overpayments to some contractors and money it still owes other companies. In addition, he said budget and accounting problems kept the state from collecting $34 million that the Medicaid program is owed. Other Medicaid news comes from Kansas, Florida and Georgia.
Medicare Trust Fund Is Not Sustainable Long-Term, HHS Warns
The agency estimates that the ratio of workers paying taxes to beneficiaries eligible for Medicare will drop from 3:1 in 2016 to 2:1 by 2091, even as health care costs continue to rise.
VA Secretary Signals New Support For Privatized Care For Veterans
“The direction I’m taking this is to give veterans more choice in their care,” Veterans Affairs Secretary David Shulkin says. The issue is a hot-button topic for those involved in veterans’ advocacy.
