Does President Obama Really Want To Means-Test Medicare? Probably Not
By Julie Rovner, NPR News
July 18, 2011
KFF Health News Original
President Obama (and many, many others) have been throwing around the phrase “means testing” as they talk about ways to cut spending for Medicare. “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means,” says Inigo Montoya, Mandy Patinkin’s character in one of the many now-famous lines in the […]
Today’s Headlines – July 15, 2011
By Stephanie Stapleton
July 15, 2011
KFF Health News Original
Happy Friday! In preparation for the weekend, here’s what we’re following to start the day. Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports that the debt-ceiling strategy appears to moving toward a “plan B.” The New York Times: ‘Decision Time’ On Budget, Obama Tells Leaders The president said he might summon the […]
Medicare Part B 2012 Premiums Lower Than Projected
October 27, 2011
Morning Briefing
Kaiser Health News tracked stories about today’s HHS announcement that premiums for Medicare Part B coverage in 2012 will be $99.90 a month for most beneficiaries, a smaller-than-expected increase over the $96.40 paid this year by a majority of elderly and disabled beneficiaries.
South Africa’s Population Would Be 4.4M More If Not For AIDS, Data Show
January 24, 2012
Morning Briefing
“There would be more than 4.4 million more people in South Africa if it were not for the AIDS pandemic, according to a survey released on Monday” by the South African Institute of Race Relations (SAIRR), SAPA/News 24 reports (1/23). Without AIDS-related deaths, the population would have been 55 million today, instead of 50.6 million, where it currently stands, and “[b]y 2040 the population would have reached 77.5 million — a whopping 24 million people more than is currently projected,” according to the study, GlobalPost notes (Conway-Smith, 1/23). “The survey is based on data sourced from the Actuarial Society of South Africa and the Institute for Futures Research,” SAPA/News 24 writes (1/23).
First Edition: October 28, 2011
October 28, 2011
Morning Briefing
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports about the health law’s public support, the latest on the super committee and news about the cost of Medicare Part B premiums.
Health On The Hill Transcript: Obama Tries To Aid Deficit Talks With Meetings
June 28, 2011
KFF Health News Original
KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey talks with Jackie Judd about President Obama’s separate meetings with Senate leaders Mitch McConnell and Harry Reid in which the trio is trying to find common ground on Medicare cuts to help lower the deficit.
Higher Medicare Premiums Will Undermine Social Security’s Raise
October 19, 2011
Morning Briefing
Social Security recipients are expected to get a 3.5 percent cost-of-living increase in January, but a boost in the cost of Medicare Part B premiums will likely offset some of the impact.
Health On The Hill: “Super Committee”: Recipe For Gridlock Or Potential For Consensus?
August 11, 2011
KFF Health News Original
KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey and Politico Pro’s David Nather talk to Jackie Judd about the now complete “super committee” and what it may mean for Medicare and Medicaid.
Health On The Hill: Medicare, Medicaid Taken Off Table In Budget Talks
July 27, 2011
KFF Health News Original
Neither the Boehner nor the Reid plans include cuts to Medicare or Medicaid. KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey talks with Jackie Judd about why that happened and what could bring these entitlements back into the deficit-reduction conversation.
Today’s headlines – July 14, 2011
By Stephanie Stapleton
July 14, 2011
KFF Health News Original
Good morning! Today’s headlines include reports about how tempers are flaring in the midst of debt-ceiling negotiations and how failure to reach an agreement could lead to tough choices about which of the nation’s obligations will be left unpaid. Los Angeles Times: Default Risk Widens Rift Within GOP So far, such warnings have had little impact in […]
Medicare Part B Premium Costs Likely To Cut Into Social Security’s Increase
October 20, 2011
Morning Briefing
Social Security benefits will increase by 3.6 percent, but many consumers won’t feel more weight in their wallets because of an expected boost in Medicare costs.
Oregon Program Builds On British Model
By Jessica Marcy
July 7, 2011
KFF Health News Original
Every week, Kaiser Health News reporter Jessica Marcy selects interesting reading from around the Web. American Medical News: HIV In Primary Care: Treating An Aging Epidemic Of the 3,155 U.S.-based members of the HIV Medicine Assn., 45% are older than 50, according to a March 17 Institute of Medicine report on HIV screening and access […]
Medicare Part B Premiums Going Up, Cutting Into Social Security COLA
October 13, 2011
Morning Briefing
The Social Security Administration is expected to announce the program’s first cost-of-living adjustment in two years. But a boost in Medicare premiums will undermine how much benefit receipients experience.
Today’s headlines – July 19, 2011
By Stephanie Stapleton
July 19, 2011
KFF Health News Original
Good morning! It’s hot here in Washington, and it’s not just the debt negotiations. Here’s what we’re reading to try to stay cool. Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including updates on the deficit talks, new public opinion polls and health law implementation issues. The Washington Post: Debt-Ceiling Crisis Still Eludes Compromise […]
Early Warning Systems Helping Aid Agencies Respond To Potential ‘Food Crisis’ In Sahel Region
December 13, 2011
Morning Briefing
Africa’s Sahel region is facing a potential “food crisis,” “[b]ut the good news is that the world’s Famine Early Warning System Network (FEWS NET) is giving West African countries and donor nations a period of time to prepare, says the aid group Oxfam,” the Christian Science Monitor reports. “Early reports suggest that as many as six million people in Niger and 2.9 million people in Mali live in vulnerable areas, where low rainfall, falling groundwater levels, poor harvests, lack of pastureland, rising food prices, and a drop in remittances from family members living abroad are starting to take their toll,” according to the newspaper.
Sounding Off On Medicaid’s ‘Big Difference’ In Quality Of Life
By Andrew Villegas
July 7, 2011
KFF Health News Original
How is quality of life affected by getting health insurance? Positively, both financially and mentally, a new study says. A group of researchers — led by economists from MIT and Harvard –sought to answer that question when they studied how getting health insurance coverage through Medicaid affected the health and well-being of low-income Oregon residents in a […]
GAO: Oversight Needed On Program That Gives Safety Net Providers Drug Discounts
September 26, 2011
Morning Briefing
Under this program, known as the 340 B program, drugmakers provide discounts to community health centers and other health care providers that treat vulnerable populations in exchange for having their drugs covered by Medicaid.
Scaling Up Communication And Coordination Biggest Challenge In GAVI’s $1B Vaccine Initiative
September 28, 2011
Morning Briefing
In this post in the Huffington Post’s “Impact” blog, Orin Levine, executive director of the International Vaccine Access Center at Johns Hopkins University, responds to the GAVI Alliance’s announcement on Tuesday that it will supply more than $1 billion in childhood vaccines to 37 of the world’s poorest countries, writing, “As the Alliance takes perhaps the most significant step ever toward increasing access to lifesaving immunization with this new and exciting round of country approvals, the challenge will be to ensure that every piece of the puzzle is in place to deliver on GAVI’s tremendous promise.”
Today’s Headlines – June 29, 2011
By Stephanie Stapleton
June 29, 2011
KFF Health News Original
Good morning! Here’s what we’re reading early this Wednesday: Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations include reports about a new plan offered by two senators to cut Medicare spending — but some top Democrats are lined up against it. The Washington Post: Top Democrats Reject New Plan To Cut Medicare Spending Leading […]
Who Pays For Unintended Pregnancies?
By Julie Rovner, NPR News
May 19, 2011
KFF Health News Original
The cost of unintended pregnancies is large, and much of the bill – about $11 billion per year – is ultimately picked up by the government, a new study finds.
