Latest KFF Health News Stories
Judge Halts Enforcement Of S.D. Abortion Law; Hearing On Kansas Law Today
As a federal judge halts enforcement of a S.D. law requiring a three-day waiting period and counseling for women seeking abortions, Kansas abortion providers head to federal court to challenge tough new licensing requirements.
Aflatoxin Treatment Project In Kenya Faces Challenge In Marketing Product To Poor Farmers
IRIN examines an 18-month project in Kenya testing a maize treatment aimed at controlling “a deadly fungus, aflatoxin,” which has the potential to cause cancer, immune system suppression, growth retardation, liver disease and death among the “literally billions of people in the developing world” who are chronically exposed to the fungus.
Viewpoints: Medical Docs Begin Residency; Best Practices; Kansas Abortions
A selection of opinions and editorials from around the country.
Analysis Of Appeals Court Ruling On Health Law Focuses On Bush Appointee
Legal experts are parsing the judge’s opinion for clues to what may happen if the case goes to the Supreme Court.
Patients To Get Satisfaction Survey When They Leave Hospitals
As part of the health law, federal spending will be determined partly by patients’ view of the facility and their care.
Medicare To Cover 2 Expensive Cancer Drugs
Federal program will pay for Avastin for breast cancer and Provenge for prostate cancer.
Poll Finds Some Support For Minor Medicare Cuts
Americans approve of minor cuts to help trim the federal deficit, but are much less likely to favor major cuts, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation tracking survey.
New Sleep Rules For Medical Residents
New federal rules, designed to help insure safety, go into effect today limiting first-year residents to 16-hour shifts. Meanwhile, an academic medical center in Denver is setting the standard for patient safety.
State Insurance Officials’ Panel Endorses Protection For Insurance Brokers
Key task force endorses bill to exclude fees paid to brokers from insurers’ calculations of their administrative costs. Under the health law, insurers must hold administrative costs under 20 percent, and brokers fear the companies will cut their commissions to meet that mark.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports about sleep deprived medical residents, decisions by Medicare officials on covering two expensive drugs and states struggling with budget cuts.
Multinational Drug Companies’ Scam
In an Al Jazeera opinion piece, the first in a two-part series, Khadija Sharife, a journalist and visiting scholar at the Center for Civil Society, examines how multinational drug companies control markets.
Thai Health Authorities Plan To Screen Residents Of Northeast Region For Deadly Fluke Worms
Health officials in northeast Thailand plan to screen residents over the age of 30 for fluke worms, which can be cured with one tablet of praziquantel or lead to fatal bile duct cancer in 10 to 20 years if left untreated, Reuters reports.
Using American Diplomacy To Fight NTDs
In a PLoS Neglected Tropical Diseases editorial, Peter Hotez of the Sabin Vaccine Institute outlines the diplomatic benefits of fighting NTDs in developing countries. He discusses why the State Department and USAID should be involved and outlines how they could work to expand NTD control.
The Women, Girls, and Gender Equality of the GHI: Assessment of the GHI Plus Country Strategies
This report from the Kaiser Family Foundation assesses how countries are responding to a GHI principle to address women, girls and gender equality.
U.N. Somalia Coordinator Warns About Increasing Rates Of Malnutrition
Mark Bowden, the U.N. humanitarian coordinator for Somalia, highlighted the “rapidly deteriorating” situation there resulting from drought and high food prices, Agence France-Presse reports.
WFP Head Issues Statement About Humanitarian Need In Horn Of Africa
World Food Program (WFP) Executive Director Josette Sheeran on Wednesday voiced concern about nine million people in the Horn of Africa who urgently need humanitarian aid, Bloomberg reports.
