Latest KFF Health News Stories
Puerto Rico Fiscal Relief Bill Proposes To Tap $12B Public Health Fund
The Republican measure would help Puerto Rico avoid a bond default on Jan. 1, but to get to the $3 billion price tag, the bill would use money for research and preventive medicine programs nationwide. The bill summary says the money was as yet “unobligated” and could be “repurposed.”
Senate Panel Slams Drug Companies For Skyrocketing Prices
In the first of a series of hearings to examine the cost increases for prescription drugs that are no longer protected by patents, the Senate Special Committee on Aging blasts four pharmaceutical companies for their price spikes.
Congress Continues To Wrestle With Budget Bill, ACA Funding Provisions In Play
The House will vote Friday on a short-term funding measure. Meanwhile, a proposed delay of the health law’s so-called Cadillac tax is emerging as a point of contention in the negotiations.
Calif.’s Three Largest Health Insurers Report Profits In Marketplace Business
The companies are among a select few yet to make money on this business, the Los Angeles Times reports. Also, health marketplace news reports from New Hampshire and Connecticut.
Federal Officials Detail State Obamacare Enrollment Numbers
News outlets report on state-specific sign-up tallies and remind consumers that the health law’s first deadline this open season is fast approaching.
Health Law Plans Draw 1 Million New Sign-Ups This Enrollment Season
Obama administration officials were upbeat in reporting the enrollment figures, saying the numbers are reason for confidence in Obamacare’s long-term stability. They also downplayed concerns about rising costs of premiums and deductibles.
Viewpoints: Democrats Undermine ‘Cadillac Tax’; Clinton’s Conservative Bent; End-Of-Life Needs
A selection of opinions on health care from around the country.
News outlets report on health care developments in California, Connecticut, Georgia, Massachusetts, Missouri, Nebraska and Florida.
Pa. Joins FTC Effort To Block Merger Between Penn State Hershey Hospital And PinnacleHealth
In other hospital news, Carolinas HealthCare System unveiled plans to spend $3 billion on capital projects.
Iowa Unsure How Many Providers Have Joined Up With Private Medicaid Companies
Four for-profit firms will take over the state’s Medicaid program on Jan. 1. Also, employees of the University of Iowa hospital system say it has yet to sign contracts with any of the managed care companies, despite the system announcing earlier that it had.
VA Employee Accountability Will Be Under Scrutiny At House Hearing
Leaders of the Committee on Veterans’ Affairs want to know why more disciplinary action and firings have not taken place for worker misconduct. In other military health news, special drug courts are increasingly being used to help vets get treatment rather than imprison them.
The Division of Select Agents and Toxins, which regulates hundreds of U.S. labs working with the organisms like anthrax, plague and Ebola, will now be run by Daniel Sosin. A recent internal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention review found that for years labs were allowed to continue experiments despite failing multiple safety inspections.
Tallying Law Enforcement-Related Deaths Critical To Community Well-Being, Researchers Find
Meanwhile, scientists at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have their hands tied by congressional restrictions on research into gun violence. The lack of information is glaring in the wake of mass shootings and police shootings that are prompting policymakers to search for ways to take action.
Physician Burnout: It’s Getting Worse
Students in the medical field are also feeling the stress. In a new study, participants portrayed their supervisors as monsters, and themselves as sleep-deprived zombies. And the researchers note that it’s not just students who are affected: quality of care suffers when residents are depressed.
The Wall Street Journal provides a rare look at a drug company’s process as three years of market research led Pfizer to settling on Ibrance’s $9,850-a-month price. In other pharmaceutical pricing news, a Senate panel opens hearings on the costs of generics and a GlaxoSmithKline executive talks about the difference in the debate tenor between now and the 1990s.
With Friday Deadline Fast Approaching, Budget Deal Still Elusive
It’s likely that Capitol Hill lawmakers will vote Friday on a short-term budget measure to keep the government open and give House Speaker Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., more time to negotiate.
Kansas’ Medicaid Expansion Plan Could Be Budget Neutral, Study Finds
News outlets also report on developments related to the low-income health insurance program in South Dakota and Arkansas.
U.S. Government Recovers Millions In Funds From States Where Exchanges Faltered
The Wall Street Journal reports that more than $200 million has been recouped, and officials hope to collect more of the original grant funding. Meanwhile, an analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation finds that consumers who don’t buy health insurance in 2016 will face bigger tax penalties. Also, the Congressional Budget Office predicts the health law will likely have an impact on the American workforce.
Viewpoints: GOP Putting Repeal Plan In Place For 2017; Gun Violence And Public Health
A selection of opinions on health care from around the country.
News outlets report on health care developments in Connecticut, Washington, Idaho, California, Texas, Minnesota and Puerto Rico.
