Journalists Reflect on Trump Picks, Racism and Public Health, and Unnecessary Dental Implants
November 23, 2024
KFF Health News Original
KFF Health News and California Healthline staff made the rounds on national and local media in the last two weeks to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
Federal Watchdog Urges Crackdown on Medicare Advantage Home Visits
By Fred Schulte
November 22, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Medicare officials are pushing back against a federal watchdog’s call to crack down on home visits by Medicare Advantage health plans — a practice the watchdog says may waste billions of tax dollars every year. In late October, a Health and Human Services inspector general audit found that the insurers pocketed $7.5 billion in 2023 from diagnosing health conditions that […]
Possible Reasons For Fewer Fatal Opioid ODs: Less-Potent Pills, Xylazine
November 22, 2024
Morning Briefing
Tests on the nation’s illicit pill supply have shown that, compared to last year, fewer pills have lethal doses of fentanyl. Another piece of the puzzle could be xylazine, a tranquilizer often mixed with fentanyl, which causes users to fall asleep.
FDA Lifts 3-Year Block On Study Of Marijuana Benefits For PTSD In Vets
November 22, 2024
Morning Briefing
Meanwhile, cannabis progress could stop under the Trump administration; a labeling issue prompts a recall of the popular drug Clonazepam; Novartis acquires Kate Therapeutics; and more.
Chemical Used In Water Purification May Cause Toxic Byproduct, Study Says
November 22, 2024
Morning Briefing
In other public health news: low covid vaccination rates; a spike in Valley fever in Arizona; a ground beef recall; and more.
Calif. Passes Measure To Restrict AIDS Healthcare Foundation Spending
November 22, 2024
Morning Briefing
The approved proposition is a measure from an apartment trade group and comes in the wake of the AIDS Healthcare Foundation having supported several rent control initiatives. Other news from around the nation comes out of Oregon, Wisconsin, Alabama, Florida, and Georgia.
Longer Looks: Interesting Reads You Might Have Missed
November 22, 2024
Morning Briefing
Each week, KFF Health News finds longer stories for you to enjoy. Today’s selections are on vaccines, food additives, addiction, dermatology, and fungi.
Project 2025 Authors Awarded Spots in Trump Administration
November 22, 2024
Morning Briefing
Although many of President-elect Donald Trump’s Cabinet picks have come from the dust jacket of Project 2025, prominent author Roger Severino, a staunch anti-abortionist, has been rejected from consideration for the position of HHS secretary due to his views on abortion being too controversial.
Trump Taps Loyal Ally Pam Bondi As Nation’s Chief Law Enforcement Officer
November 22, 2024
Morning Briefing
In her role as Florida attorney general, Bondi sought to overturn the Affordable Care Act. Although that effort was unsuccessful, the Supreme Court did rule that the individual mandate to purchase insurance was unconstitutional. Also, GOP Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene of Georgia is poised to become the chairperson of the not-yet-created subcommittee on government efficiency.
Senate Democrats Push Forward With 12 Judge Confirmations, Drop 4 Others
November 22, 2024
Morning Briefing
Majority Leader Chuck Schumer says the four who were withdrawn from consideration didn’t have the votes to get confirmed. However, the Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday advanced the nominations of six additional judicial picks.
As Anti-Abortion Rhetoric Ramps Up, Blue States Erect Protective ‘Firewall’
November 22, 2024
Morning Briefing
Threats to abortion medication, shield laws, and contraception at the national level have officials in Democratic-leaning states shoring up reproductive freedoms where they can. Meanwhile, in the wake of ProPublica reporting about deaths of pregnant women, Georgia has given the boot to all members of its Maternal Mortality Committee.
Fundraising For Nonprofit Providers To Help Offset Low Operating Margins
November 22, 2024
Morning Briefing
Post-pandemic operating margins remain low. With the National Institutes of Health — a major source of grant funding — facing an uncertain future under the incoming administration, nonprofit health systems are turning to large donors for help.
First Edition: Friday, Nov. 22, 2024
November 22, 2024
Morning Briefing
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Georgians With Disabilities Are Still Being Institutionalized, Despite Federal Oversight
By Sam Whitehead
November 22, 2024
KFF Health News Original
For nearly 15 years, the feds have had oversight of Georgia’s treatment of people with mental illness and developmental disabilities. Observers say the state still jeopardizes some of its most marginalized residents by not meeting the terms of its settlement with the Justice Department.
Readers Embrace ‘Going It Alone’ Series on Aging and Chastise Makers of Pulse Oximeters
November 22, 2024
KFF Health News Original
KFF Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
TV’s Dr. Oz Invested in Businesses Regulated by Agency Trump Wants Him To Lead
By Darius Tahir
November 21, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Celebrity doctor Mehmet Oz recently held broad investments in health care, tech, and food companies. Were he confirmed to run the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, his job would involve interacting with giants of the industry that have contributed to his wealth.
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Trump’s Nontraditional Health Picks
November 21, 2024
Podcast
Not only has President-elect Donald Trump chosen prominent vaccine skeptic Robert F. Kennedy Jr. to lead the Department of Health and Human Services, Trump also has said he will nominate controversial TV host Mehmet Oz to run the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, which oversees coverage for nearly half of Americans. Meanwhile, the lame-duck Congress is back in Washington with just a few weeks to figure out how to wrap up work for the year. Rachel Cohrs Zhang of Stat, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, and Riley Ray Griffin of Bloomberg News join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Sarah Varney, who has been covering a trial in Idaho challenging the lack of medical exceptions in that state’s abortion ban.
Florida Gov. DeSantis’ Canadian Drug Import Plan Goes Nowhere After FDA Approval
By Phil Galewitz
Updated November 22, 2024
Originally Published November 21, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Florida sued the FDA over what it said was a “reckless delay” in approving its drug importation plan. Now, nearly a year after the FDA gave the state the green light, the program has yet to begin.
