Latest KFF Health News Stories
Issa Seeks Answers About HHS Waiver Process
Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif., the chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, is seeking information about the process used by the Department of Health and Human Services to grant health law waivers. He also is asking questions about why the waivers will be ending.
PBS NewsHour Examines Use Of Twitter To Track Disease Spread
PBS NewsHour’s blog “The Rundown” examines “a recent slate of independent studies” that assert “Twitter can accurately track the spread of a virus or disease
Viewpoints: WSJ On ‘Super Committee’; NEJM Perspectives On Medical Devices
A selection of various opinion columns, especially highlighting some from The New England Journal of Medicine.
First Edition: August 11, 2011
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including details about the GOP selections for the deficit deal’s ‘super committee’ and speculation about what the panel’s chances might be for success.
Emergency Department Use Of CT Scans Rises Sharply
About 14 percent of ER patients received a scan in 2007, compared to about 3 percent in 1996, study finds.
Murray, Hensarling To Be ‘Super Committee’ Co-Chairs
House and Senate GOP leaders announced today their choices for the 12-member bipartisan “super committee.” Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid unveiled his selections yesterday.
Every week, Kaiser Health News reporter Jessica Marcy selects interesting reading from around the Web.
Polls And Expectations For Deficit Panel
Two new polls indicate that Americans want the ‘super committee’ to reach an accord that includes new taxes on the wealthy and major cuts in domestic spending. Public opinion appears cool, though, to proposals to make significant changes in Medicare. Meanwhile, former Senate Majority Leader Bill Frist tells Kaiser Health News that this joint panel has a chance at finding success – even in lowering Medicare spending growth. But Pro Publica outlines why the deep partisan budget battles go beyond the work of this one group.
Pakistan Faces HIV/AIDS Spreading From High-Risk Groups To General Population
“For a long time, perceptions of Pakistan as a conservative Muslim country encouraged a belief that HIV/AIDS incidence would be non-existent or very low,” but “with the number of HIV cases rising, the government finally included it in its 2009 national health policy,” BBC News reports. However, the full extent of the disease “is still not widely acknowledged,” and “experts say the epidemic is not being properly tackled,” the article states.
Viewpoints: High-Cost Drugs And Medicare; Pitfalls For ACOs; Federal Funding Fix Hits Nursing Homes
A selection of opinions and editorials from around the country.
BMJ News Examines WHO Financing And Reform
BMJ News examines financing for and efforts to reform the WHO, which “are raising concerns over conflict of interest.” The article looks at a reform package announced in May by WHO Director-General Margaret Chan at the World Health Assembly, as well as the first World Health Forum, set for November 2012. The forum, which aims to discover the expectations of global health players, “has yet to gain the formal approval of the [WHO] executive board, which will discuss it at its November meeting and again next January,” according to BMJ (Hawkes, 8/9).
Twitter, Facebook Emerging As Disease-Fighting Tools
Social media are quickly becoming a central part of the effort to protect public health.
Many Low-Income Seniors Go Without Enhanced Medicare Drug Coverage
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which says that as many as 2 million eligible Medicare beneficiaries are not enrolled in the Medicare Low-Income Subsidy Program, is stepping up efforts to market the assistance to consumers.
New Report Finds Lackluster Growth For Nonprofit Hospitals
Moody’s finds that the hospitals reporting the slowest rate of revenue growth in 20 years, the Wall Street Journal reports. Also in hospital news, a new urgent care center in New Orleans is off to a good start and California officials weigh one chain’s efforts to take over more facilities.
$28 Million Awarded To Help Establish New Community Health Centers
The funds, provided by the Department of Health and Human Services as a result of the health law, will help an estimated 286,000 people gain access to health care, according to HHS officials.
Kansas Rejects Health Law Exchange Grant
Kansas will send back its $31.5 million Early Innovator Grant to the Department of Health and Human Services, which would have helped pay for the development of the state’s online insurance exchange. Gov. Sam Brownback said he was returning the money because of doubts that the federal government would be able to maintain its promised future payments.
