Schools, Pediatricians Look to Make Up Lost Ground on Non-Covid Vaccinations
By Kate Ruder
November 18, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Health officials hope the rollout of covid shots for young children and other initiatives will boost routine vaccine rates that dropped during the pandemic and narrow socioeconomic disparities.
White House Launches Push For Access, Training On Overdose Reversal Meds
March 13, 2024
Morning Briefing
The Biden administration says that part of its efforts to stem the national overdose crisis will include “flooding the zone” with naloxone, a medication that can reverse an opioid overdose. Other federal news reports on the 340B drug discount program and the Change Healthcare hack.
Biden Signs $1.2T Spending Bill That Includes $117B For HHS
March 25, 2024
Morning Briefing
Axios reports that the funding bill “keeps health programs near status quo.” Also in the news: the 14th anniversary of the Affordable Care Act, the Health Care Cybersecurity Improvement Act of 2024, a new antibody to protect against covid, and more.
Researchers Link Chronic Constipation With Cognitive Decline
July 21, 2023
Morning Briefing
A study finds that defecation frequency may impact cognitive function. Also in the news, the benefits of maternal strep B vaccines, health care disruptions linked to preventable hospital admissions, and goals of building a real-life “bionic” person.
Watch: Young Man Faces Medical Bankruptcy — Even With Insurance
October 2, 2020
KFF Health News Original
“CBS This Morning” tells the story of Matthew Fentress, a young man who has had serious heart disease for six years. It’s the latest story in the ongoing crowdsourced Bill of the Month investigation.
Hemophilia B Treatment Has Late-Stage Study Success
January 3, 2023
Morning Briefing
Pfizer says its experimental gene therapy treatment for hemophilia B met its main goal in a study — with a single dose outperforming current care standards. Other research covers women’s higher levels of empathy, covid vaccines, hydration’s link to lower disease risk, and more.
Majority Of $1.25B Mallinckrodt Opioid Payout At Risk In Bankruptcy Plan
August 24, 2023
Morning Briefing
The company has reached a plan for bankruptcy for the second time in three years, The New York Times says. The plan would cancel the majority of the previous settlement plan in return for a final payout of just $250 million. Also in the news: AI takes a role in tackling opioid addiction.
Medicare Cuts 2024 Payments For Safety Net Hospitals By Almost $1B
August 4, 2023
Morning Briefing
The CMS cut of $957 million to a fund destined to help pay hospitals that treat poor and uninsured patients is more than eight times larger than one proposed in April, Stat says. Also in the news: Cigna reports a net income fall, people want weight-loss drugs despite the costs, and more.
Medicare Could Save $245B Over A Decade If It Covered Obesity Drugs
August 3, 2023
Morning Briefing
Axios reports on a startling statistic from new research, showing how much taxpayer money could be saved over 10 years if Medicare covered weight-loss meds. Meanwhile, Stat reports that the popularity of the GLP-1 drugs has “alarmed” insurers, and patients are braced for them to halt coverage.
Watchdog Finds That Gaps In CMS Oversight Cost Medicare Part B Millions
January 5, 2023
Morning Briefing
Medicare Part B and its beneficiaries missed out on millions in savings related to drug payments, according to a report from the Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Inspector General. HHS also issued a new rule on Medicaid reimbursements.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Our 200th Episode!
June 10, 2021
KFF Health News Original
The federal approval of a controversial drug to treat Alzheimer’s disease has reignited the debate over drug prices and the way the Food and Drug Administration makes decisions. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden seeks to gain goodwill overseas as he announces the U.S. will provide 500 million doses of covid vaccine to international health efforts. Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times and Joanne Kenen of Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also, Rovner interviews Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, the new administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. And to mark the podcast’s 200th episode, the panelists discuss what has surprised them most and least over the past four years.
Study: Arthritis Drug Boosts Effect Of ‘Morning-After’ Pill For Up To 3 Days
August 17, 2023
Morning Briefing
Researchers found that using piroxicam, a common arthritis anti-inflammatory drug, with Levonorgestrel, or Plan B, significantly increased the typical effectiveness window of 24 hours. In other news, Facebook’s parent company is criticized for rating reproductive health for adults-only.
‘No Mercy’ Chapter 7: After a Rural Town Loses Hospital, Is a Health Clinic Enough?
By Sarah Jane Tribble
November 10, 2020
KFF Health News Original
In Fort Scott, Kansas, the Community Health Center’s big green-and-white sign replaced Mercy Hospital’s name on the front of the town’s massive medical building. In the final chapter of Season One: “No Mercy,” we have an appointment to see what’s inside.
Morning Briefing for Friday, September 30, 2022
September 30, 2022
Morning Briefing
Friday’s roundup covers the FDA, suicide rates, Hurricane Ian, covid, 340B payments, Medicaid, and spies (!) Plus, weekend reads.
Biden Is Caught in the Middle of Polarizing Abortion Politics
By Julie Rovner
July 12, 2021
KFF Health News Original
The president, one of the last of a disappearing group of politicians who sought moderate compromises on abortion policy, is frustrating supporters. They wanted faster changes in federal rules. But abortion opponents — including Catholic bishops— are also taking him to task.
What Happened When the Only ER Doctor in a Rural Town Got COVID
By John Daley, Colorado Public Radio
December 4, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Hospitals across the country are struggling as staffers get infected with the coronavirus. It’s especially tough for small, rural hospitals, where even one doctor out sick can upend patient capacity.
Democrats’ Plans to Expand Medicare Benefits May Pinch Advantage Plans’ Funding
By Michelle Andrews
October 28, 2021
KFF Health News Original
As lawmakers weigh new spending provisions to cover dental, hearing and vision services for Medicare beneficiaries, a group supporting Medicare Advantage plans is airing commercials that raise concerns about the funding for those private plans.
Judge Hands Decisions On Disputed 340B Payments To HHS
January 11, 2023
Morning Briefing
A federal judge ruled that the Department of Health and Human Services will put a plan in place to address more than $1 billion in underpayments to hospitals under the federal drug discount program. Obamacare enrollment stats and Medicaid expansion benefits are also in the news.
Despite Restraints, Democrats’ Drug Pricing Plan Could Still Aid Consumers
By Michael McAuliff
November 5, 2021
KFF Health News Original
A last-minute agreement among lawmakers restored a provision seeking to hold down rising costs of prescription medicines. Although details on which drugs will be targeted remain sketchy, the legislation would help patients buying insulin and cap Medicare beneficiaries’ out-of-pocket drug costs at $2,000 a year.
What Do We Really Know About Vaccine Effectiveness?
By Julie Appleby
November 2, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Reports of waning effectiveness and mixed messages about booster shots fuel the politicization of vaccination.