Kaiser Permanente’s Third Quarter Finances Show $1.5B Loss
November 7, 2022
Morning Briefing
Meanwhile, a financially-troubled Mississippi hospital failed to reach a deal with a medical campus that was planning to take over the facility, AP reports. In other news, Microsoft has an AI tool that transcribes doctor-patient discussions, at the expense of sharing sensitive info with tech giants.
This Dental Device Was Sold to Fix Patients’ Jaws. Lawsuits Claim It Wrecked Their Teeth.
By Brett Kelman and Anna Werner, CBS News
March 1, 2023
KFF Health News Original
A dental device called AGGA has been used on about 10,000 patients without FDA approval or proof that it works. In lawsuits, patients report irreparable harm. The AGGA’s inventor and manufacturer have denied all liability in court.
Morning Briefing for Thursday, June 16, 2022
June 16, 2022
Morning Briefing
Thursday’s roundup covers medical debt, covid vaccines, 340B payments, abortion, monkeypox, baby formula, guns, forever chemicals, and more.
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.
Readers and Tweeters Weigh In on Medical Debt, the Obesity Epidemic, and Opioid Battles
June 24, 2022
KFF Health News Original
KHN gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
Patent Battle Over Generic Versions Of Gilead HIV Drug Settled
September 13, 2022
Morning Briefing
Five drugmakers had proposed generic versions of Gilead’s HIV and hepatitis B drugs and are now licensed to sell them from around 2031 onward. Also in the news: Medicare advantage star ratings, and more.
‘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.
Supreme Court Reinstates Medicare Drug Reimbursements To 340B Hospitals
June 16, 2022
Morning Briefing
Hospitals participating in the 340B program will be able to recoup billions in drug payments that Supreme Court justices unanimously decided were improperly cut. The Trump administration reduced the Medicare subsidies, and the Biden administration defended the policy.
Sen. Wyden: $3.5T Budget May Have to Trim but It Can Set a Path to ‘Ambitious Goals’
By Michael McAuliff
July 20, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), who is helping to negotiate the health care spending framework for the Democrats’ budget plan, said lawmakers may have to settle for very basic versions of programs deployed in the package. But the key, he added, is to get the “architecture of these changes, bold changes,” started and show people what is possible.
Biden Releases a New Plan to Combat Covid, but Experts Say There’s Still a Ways to Go
By Victoria Knight and Julie Appleby
September 15, 2021
KFF Health News Original
There’s agreement that the plan includes important action items but also elements that will trigger political opposition.
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.
White House: It Could Take $7B To Combat Monkeypox
July 27, 2022
Morning Briefing
The nearly $7 billion estimate was presented to President Joe Biden as one of a number of different options to fund federal mitigation efforts. Meanwhile, the U.S. now has more monkeypox cases than anywhere else, and the first case in a pregnant woman has been reported.
Funcionarios advierten sobre sitios de pruebas para covid de dudosa calidad
By Michelle Andrews
January 18, 2022
KFF Health News Original
Lo sitios de pruebas de covid han proliferado en casi todas las grandes ciudades. Pero no todos ofrecen un servicio de calidad. Cómo detectarlos.
US Will Spend Over $2B To Back White House Biomanufacturing Plan
September 15, 2022
Morning Briefing
The plan, outlined with new details Wednesday, is about expanding drug manufacturing capabilities in the U.S., with an eye on future pandemic responses. Meanwhile, Roll Call notes “pandemic fatigue” may threaten funding efforts in the battle against monkeypox. The polio outbreak is also reported.
Study Predicts Over 50% More Deaths From Liver Cancer By 2040
October 7, 2022
Morning Briefing
Analysis suggests cases of Hepatitis B and C, more alcohol usage, higher body weight, and more diabetes will be to blame. Separately, a slight drop in food poisonings from salmonella and listeria is reported, but pandemic restrictions are thought to have played a part in the fall.
‘Not Quite on Board’: Parents Proving a Tough Sell on Covid Vax for Teens
By Jenny Gold and Samantha Young
November 2, 2021
KFF Health News Original
California offers a lens on the challenges officials face in persuading parents to embrace covid shots for young children. While the state has a strong showing in overall vaccination rates, just 59% of kids 12 to 17 — eligible for a shot since May — are fully vaccinated.
After Pandemic Ravaged Nursing Homes, New State Laws Protect Residents
By Susan Jaffe
August 20, 2021
KFF Health News Original
This year, 23 states passed more than 70 pandemic-related provisions affecting nursing homes, including measures setting minimum staffing levels, expanding visitation protections and limiting owners’ profit margins.
Judge: HHS Must Restore Full 340B Drug Payments Until 2023
September 30, 2022
Morning Briefing
Modern Healthcare reports on a decision from District of Columbia Judge Rudolph Contreras, who found that a Health and Human Services Department lower reimbursement rate was “defective.” Meanwhile, Michigan joins efforts to crimp costs from contract travel nurses.
Biden Moves to Overturn Trump Birth Control Rules
By Julie Rovner
April 14, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Return to pre-Trump policy is second win of the week for abortion-rights backers.
Court Reinstates Tennessee’s 6-Week Abortion Ban
June 29, 2022
Morning Briefing
As Indiana and Iowa also look to roll back abortion access, Wisconsin’s attorney general is challenging the state’s 173-year-old ban. And birth control and Plan B controversy takes root in Missouri.