Latest KFF Health News Stories
‘Gang Of Six’ Budget Talks Hit Wall As Sen. Coburn Withdraws
Among the key points of contention were his proposed cuts to Medicare.
HHS Offers New Initiatives To Add Momentum To ACOs
The so-called accountable care organizations are designed to encourage physicians and hospitals to better coordinate care. However, the Obama administration regulations regarding their formation have been met with stiff criticism.
Inspector General: Push For EMRs Overlooks Security Issues
The PBS NewsHour reports that the Office of the Inspector General found a lack of security control during prior audits of Medicare contractors, state medicaid agencies and hospitals.
JAMA: Number Of ERs Decline Just As Emergency Visits Rise
A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association reports that the number of emergency departments has been declining for the past two decades.
Latest Development In Gingrich-Ryan Medicare Dust-Up: An Apology
But even as these high-profile Republicans exchange words regarding plans to revamp the Medicare program, NPR reports that in the broader debate, both political parties have a lot at stake and claim an advantage.
On Op-Ed Pages, Controversies Abound: Romney, Gingrich, Abortion, Telemedicine, Cancer Funding Cuts
A selection of viewpoints from around the country.
Health Law Faces Legal Challenges And Political Battles
Senate Republicans target the law’s IPAB and issue a top-10 list of its biggest problems. Meanwhile, CQ HealthBeat reports on the merits of the “imminent injury” argument that is in play in at least one legal challenge to the law.
Maine Law Could Be At Odds With Federal Overhaul
A new law, which Maine’s governor signed Tuesday, allows interstate insurance sales and insurers to set rates based on age, location and occupation.
State Roundup: Med Schools In Texas Face Budget Crunch
New outlets report on state health policy issues.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports about budget developments, the continuing political hijinx surrounding Medicare issues and the Obama administration’s plan to offer a new path for accountable care organizations.
HHS Announces New Accountable Care Initiatives; Provider Backlash To ACO Rule Continues
CMS Administrator Dr. Donald Berwick announced new programs today to ‘encourage’ better care coordination.
OPINION: Study Will Unite HIV Advocates, Add Funding Pressure To Obama Administration
In a post on Foreign Policy’s “Passport” blog, assistant managing editor Elizabeth Dickinson looks at the potential ramifications of a recent study, which found that early antiretroviral treatment in HIV-positive people can prevent transmission by 96 percent.
Haiti Presents Plan To Immunize 90 Percent Of Newborns
Haiti has a plan to vaccinate 90 percent of newborns by 2015, according to the Pan American Health Organization, but “[w]hether the plan works will depend on Haiti’s ability to reverse decades of incompetent government and bad coordination among aid groups,” as well as whether there will be funding, the New York Times reports.
OPINION: Innovative Funding Mechanisms Needed For Global Development
“Innovation in development finance doesn’t preclude innovation in other areas of development policy. In fact, they must go hand in hand,” Jamie Drummond, executive director of ONE, writes in a post on the Guardian’s “Poverty Matters Blog,” noting findings from his group’s annual report.
U.S. Envoy To Visit North Korea To Assess Food Shortages
Robert King, the U.S. special envoy on North Korea’s human rights issues, will lead an official visit to North Korea next week to assess food shortages in the country, according to a report from Yonhap news agency, Agence France-Presse reports.
Bill Gates Calls For Greater Immunization Efforts In World Health Assembly Address
Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, on Tuesday called for a “Decade of Vaccines” in a keynote address at the World Health Assembly in Geneva, saying strengthening immunization programs against infectious diseases worldwide could save 10 million lives by 2020, Reuters reports. He said countries should aim for 90 percent immunization coverage against diseases such as polio, meningitis and pneumonia and said pharmaceutical companies should work to make existing and new vaccines affordable to developing countries, according to the news agency (Nebehay, 5/17).
WHO Director-General Outlines Vision For Reform In World Health Assembly Opening Address
WHO Director-General Margaret Chan on Monday laid out her vision for reforming the international health agency in the opening address of the World Health Assembly in Geneva, saying she sees “a WHO that gives a bigger voice to the many partners working on health, but encourages them to speak with a coherent voice that responds, first and foremost, to the needs and priorities as defined by recipient countries,” Intellectual Property Watch reports.
Two Drug Makers Will Disclose Prices They Charge UNICEF For Vaccines
The Telegraph reports that when “UNICEF began publishing prices agreed with suppliers for a range of vaccines over the past decade, … some companies
Study Finds Three-Month TB Treatment Regimen Just As Effective As Standard Longer Course
“Health officials on Monday celebrated a faster treatment for people who have tuberculosis but aren’t infectious, after investigators found a new combination of pills knocks out the disease in three months instead of nine,” the Associated Press/Seattle Times reports (Stobbe, 5/16).
As Federal Gov’t. Hits Debt Limit, Budget Plans Draw Attention
Politico reports that a proposed cap on discretionary spending for labor, health and human services and education programs would be felt most acutely by poor people.
