Latest KFF Health News Stories
Insurer Tells Texas Judge That Medicaid Cuts To Therapy Don’t Harm Children
The assertion is part of an eight-month fight over whether the state can cut payments for services to low-income children in the Medicaid program. News outlets also report on Medicaid developments in North Carolina, Ohio and Tennessee.
Leery Flint Residents Urged To Turn On The Taps
People in Flint, Michigan, who have been plagued by water issues, are now causing a conundrum for experts who need them to go back to using water so it flushes the system of lead. Meanwhile, a task force created to investigate the crisis says it was a failure of leadership and a clear case of environmental injustice.
Concerns Raised About Chicago-Area Hospital Merger Plan In Court Proceeding
The Federal Trade Commission requested the hearing over the proposed merger of Advocate Health Care and NorthShore University HealthSystem. News outlets also report on regional hospitals in Florida, South Dakota and Wyoming.
Number Of Abortion-Trained Doctors Surges, But Distribution Remains A Problem
The doctors who are learning the procedure are staying near the cities where they trained, leaving rural areas with a dearth of providers who know how or are willing to perform abortions.
FDA Panel Shoots Down Early Approval Request For Experimental Lung-Cancer Treatment
The advisory panel is recommending that the Food and Drug Administration wait for data from a phase 3 clinical trial before deciding on Clovis’ rociletinib. In other agency news, an FDA official says long-awaited biotech medicine guidelines are still in the works.
Senators Seek To Delay Administration’s Release Of Overall Hospital Star Ratings
The lawmakers say they support the effort but think the ratings do not adequately assess hospitals that deal with large numbers of low-income patients or chronic, complex problems.
Trade Deal Jeopardizes Access To Affordable Medicine, Health Groups Tell Congress
The groups are urging lawmakers to reject the Trans-Pacific Partnership deal because “it would lock in policies that keep prices of too many medicines unaffordably high.”
The filing deadline was Tuesday for the briefs in the case concerning the federal government’s mandatory contraception coverage requirements. The challengers proposed that insurance companies create stand-alone contraception plans. The Obama administration says such plans would “impose logistical obstacles on women seeking contraceptive coverage” and was “inconsistent with federal and state insurance law.”
Hospitals’ Pain Assessment Guidelines Leading To Dangerous Overprescribing Practices, Groups Say
More than 60 nonprofit groups and medical experts have sent a letter to the agency that accredits U.S. hospitals, asking it to revise its standards for pain management. They say that doctors routinely ask patients to assess their pain, which is leading to too many prescriptions for opioids.
Bill To Incentivize Zika Drug Development Heads To President’s Desk
President Barack Obama is expected to sign the legislation, which allows the Food and Drug Administration to include Zika drug developers in the agency’s priority review voucher program. However, the measure comes with no extra funding to battle the virus.
With $250M Immunotherapy Donation, Parker Aims To Crash Through Bureaucratic Research Roadblocks
Sean Parker, the co-founder of Napster, is creating the Parker Institute for Cancer Immunotherapy, which will focus on collaboration between scientists in their efforts to unlock the body’s own immune system to fight cancer.
Ark. Governor Says Failure To Fund Medicaid Expansion Will Kill Highway Initiative
Gov. Asa Hutchinson says if the legislature fails to approve his efforts to keep and revamp the expanded Medicaid program, the remaining budget gap will prevent him from moving forward on plans for new highways. Meanwhile, in Maine, the state Senate approved Medicaid expansion by one vote and South Dakota officials are still planning for an expansion.
HHS Report Repudiates Dire Warnings About Premiums Spiking Under Health Law
Premiums have gone up 8 percent, and when subsidies were factored in the increase was even smaller at 4 percent. The report counters predictions that premiums would see double-digit jumps.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
A selection of opinions from around the country.
Perspectives On The Affordable Care Act — Is It Meeting Expectations?
Columnists and editorial writers examine and review various aspects of the federal health law and its Massachusetts predecessor, which is now celebrating its 10th anniversary.
News outlets report on health issues in Arizona, Florida, Wisconsin, North Carolina, Missouri, North Dakota, New Hampshire, Tennessee, South Carolina, Maryland, Nebraska and Hawaii.
NYC Launches $2M Ad Campaign To Trigger Talk About Mental Health Issues
Meanwhile, N.C. Gov. Pat McCrory hopes to increase the state’s spending on mental health, a judge in Washington orders a partial shutdown of a treatment facility for mentally ill defendants because of safety risks and inpatient psychiatric beds are scarce in California.
Michigan Governor: Staff Had Told Him Flint Wasn’t A Problem
Gov. Rick Snyder claims that he had been assured that outside experts were wrong about the crisis in Flint. Elsewhere, health-related water problems have also emerged in New Hampshire and Florida.
California Health Officials Hopeful Outbreak Of Fentanyl Overdoses Is Slowing
There have been no reported fentanyl-related overdoses in nearly a week, following a spree that struck Sacramento County in late March. Elsewhere, The Tennessean takes a look at the state’s continuing opioid problem.
