Latest KFF Health News Stories
Different Takes On GOP Strategies For The Health Law
Opinion writers contemplate the current zeitgeist of GOP lawmakers and offer their insights on what repair or replacement plans should include and how their efforts might be viewed by the public.
A selection of opinions on health care from around the country.
Perspectives: Reality Of Global Drug Pricing Is Much More Complex Than Trump Realizes
Read recent commentaries about drug-cost issues.
Drugmakers Eager To Shift Focus From Price To Value
News outlets report on stories related to pharmaceutical drug pricing.
Outlets report on news from Georgia, New Hampshire, New York, Florida, Virginia, Wisconsin, Ohio, New Jersey and California.
Our Minds Are Wired To Want To Compulsively Check Social Media
The verdict is in: being on the internet compulsively is not a mental disorder. In other public health news, a blood sugar test, hearing loss and surgical devices.
Rehab Model: Mothers Who Have Their Children With Them Do Better In Recovery
Graduates of such programs are generally more likely to be abstaining, employed, in custody of their children and in support groups than women in traditional rehabilitative settings. In other news, pharmacies are booming in the heart of the opioid epidemic.
Women With High Risk Of Breast, Ovarian Cancer Missing Out On Genetic Tests, Study Finds
And cost is not the top reason. The majority say they don’t get tested because their doctor doesn’t recommend it. “This really emphasizes the importance of cancer doctors in this process, and that patients get evaluated and tested the way they should be,” says Allison Kurian, an associate professor at Stanford University and lead author on the study.
Anti-Abortion Groups Urge Tenn. Lawmakers To Take Foot Off The Gas On New Legislation
Court cases are still making their way through the system and anti-abortion activists say more cases could be harmful to the outcomes of the ones already being tried.
Americans Say Their Number 1 Concern Is Health Care Costs
A Monmouth University poll finds that health care costs outrank terrorism or crime as a worry for families. Also, a Harvard health care researcher finds that high deductibles can have a very personal effect.
Medicaid Enrollment Drives WellCare’s Profits
Centene, another Medicaid-focused insurer, also reported strong earnings in its fourth-quarter earnings report.
House Subcommittee Approves 2 Bills Tweaking Medicaid Eligibility
Democrats criticize the bills as being trivial. They would limit coverage for people who are lottery winners and those getting long-term care coverage whose spouses receive payments from annuities.
Immigration Ban Compromises Years Of Investment In Biotechnology, Industry Says
More than 150 executives are speaking out against the president’s executive order, the drug industry’s strongest collective condemnation yet of the ban. In other news, the Cleveland Clinic doctor who made headlines for being barred from entering the U.S. returned to the hospital on Tuesday, and health workers say the order is affecting their immigrant patients.
Effort To Ease Terminally Ill Patients’ Access To Experimental Drugs Gets White House Support
Backing of the legislation is part of an overall push from the president to streamline the Food and Drug Administration. In other news, the agency says it will stop redacting information in resumes submitted by experts who serve on its advisory committees.
HHS Draft Rule To Stabilize Market Highlights That Change Will Come From Legislation, Not Agencies
“None of this will fundamentally change the market,” says health insurance expert Craig Garthwaite of the rule.
North Carolina Sees 10% Drop In Health Law Enrollment Numbers
Amid uncertainty surrounding the future of the Affordable Care Act, state and national numbers for sign-ups have slipped from last year. Media outlets also report on health law news from Connecticut and Colorado.
Sanders, Cruz Fall Back On Campaign Rhetoric At Health Law Debate
The event highlighted the challenges congressional lawmakers face in coming up with a plan both sides can agree on.
‘Tom Obeyed The Law’: GOP Lawmakers Dismiss Democrats’ Ethical Concerns Over Price
“What disqualified Democratic nominees apparently is not a problem for many Republican nominees,” Dick Durbin, the No. 2 Senate Democrat, said Tuesday. “They seem to be bulletproof when it comes to ethical issues.” Meanwhile, KHN investigates stock trades made by Rep. Tom Price, the Trump pick to head the Department of Health and Human Services, while his committee was under scrutiny by the Securities and Exchange Commission.
Republicans Detest The Individual Mandate, But Other Options Aren’t Any More Palatable
Most health care economists believe lawmakers will be hard-pressed to come up with an effective and politically tolerable alternative to what has become the symbolic heart of the health law. “Carrots are expensive,” says Paul Van de Water, a senior fellow at the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities. “Sticks are unpopular.” Meanwhile, Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., reiterates that the plan to dismantle and replace the Affordable Care Act will be completed this year.
First Edition: February 8, 2017
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
