Debunking Medicare Myths
By James C. Capretta
September 2, 2010
KFF Health News Original
Critics say Medicare Advantage plans are inefficient and costly. But those same critics oppose vouchers for Medicare — even though that approach would set up a direct competition between the private plans and the traditional fee-for-service program.
Text: Fiscal Commission’s Recommendations On Health Care Spending
December 2, 2010
KFF Health News Original
The National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform released its long-awaited report on recommendations to cope with the national debt, now and into the future, “The Moment of Truth.” Seven of the 66 pages concerned health care spending, especially focusing on Medicare.
U.N. Launches Largest Ever Annual Aid Appeal, Asking For $7.4B In 2011
December 1, 2010
Morning Briefing
In its annual appeal, the U.N. on Tuesday asked “governments and private donors for a record $7.4 billion next year to provide 50 million people worldwide with food, clothing and other urgent humanitarian aid,” the Associated Press/Washington Post reports (11/30).
Health Law Expands Medicare Coverage Of Preventive Care
By Michelle Andrews
August 10, 2010
KFF Health News Original
In addition, beneficiaries will get free annual wellness visits that include a health risk assessment and a review of functional and cognitive abilities.
Breast Cancer: How Politics Is Driving Up Costs
By Merrill Goozner, The Fiscal Times
August 16, 2010
KFF Health News Original
In spite of clear evidence that the high-priced drug Avastin does not benefit breast cancer patients, politicians want the FDA to maintain approval.
Campaign Claims: Health Law Myths And Facts
By Julie Appleby, KFF Health News and N.C. Aizenman, The Washington Post
October 19, 2010
KFF Health News Original
The debate that preceded passage of the health-care overhaul resumed as a heated issue in the midterm elections. Politicians and advocacy groups seeking repeal of the law are making dramatic claims about the its cost and effects. How valid are they? We evaluate some of the most common criticisms.
GAVI Says Pentavalent Vaccine Price To Fall, But $3.7B Still Needed To Vaccinate Children In Developing Countries
November 29, 2010
Morning Briefing
The average price of a vaccine that protects children against five diseases is expected to “drop to $2.58 next year compared to the current average price of $2.97,” the GAVI Alliance said Friday, Reuters reports. The group credits the expected price decline, which “represents a decrease of 30 percent over the last seven years,” in part to an “increased demand for the pentavalent, or five-in-one vaccine,” according to the news service (Kelland, 11/26).
Financing HIV/AIDS Prevention, Treatment Could Cost $400B-$700B Over 20 Years
October 8, 2010
Morning Briefing
A new report published by the Results for Development Institute in the Lancet “has offered governments and donors a glimpse into the future of HIV epidemics
Bivalent Oral Polio Vaccine Produces Better Immune Response Than Trivalent Vaccine, Study Says
October 26, 2010
Morning Briefing
The bivalent oral polio vaccine (bOPV) was found to induce a “significantly higher immune response” than the existing trivalent oral polio vaccine (tOPV), according to a study published on Tuesday in the journal Lancet, Reuters reports (Kelland, 10/26).
Today’s Opinions: Broken Promises, Boehner’s Plan B And Implementing Reform
October 12, 2010
Morning Briefing
Kaiser Health News presents a selection of Tuesday’s health care editorials from around the U.S.
Obama Administration Expected To Announce $4B Pledge To Global Fund
October 5, 2010
Morning Briefing
“The Obama administration is expected on Tuesday to announce a large increase in its pledge to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, and to call for reform of the organization,” the Wall Street Journal reports. “The pledge of $4 billion over the next three fiscal years to the Geneva-based organization comes as governments and donors around the world have slowed increases in spending to combat HIV/AIDS, with weaker economies straining budgets,” the newspaper adds (McKay, 10/5).
Federal Task Force On Preventive Care Faces New Challenge Under Health Law
By Christopher Weaver
July 15, 2010
KFF Health News Original
Panel’s recommendations on preventive care will determine which services are covered fully by insurance. That could make it a political lightning rod for lobbyists and disease advocates and conflict with its tradition of scholarly dedication to the science of randomized medical trials.
Health Care Votes Haunt Anti-Abortion Dems; Republicans Confront Challenges With ‘Pledge’
October 6, 2010
Morning Briefing
Politico reports that anti-abortion Democrats are facing stiff opposition in their bids for re-election. Organizations like the Susan B. Anthony List and other anti-abortion groups are now attacking former allies who once sided with them on abortion.
Dengue Fever Spreads In Asia, WHO Warns 2.5B People At Risk
October 7, 2010
Morning Briefing
The World Health Organization (WHO) “has warned that 2.5 billion people are at risk” of dengue fever, “which has ‘grown dramatically in recent decades,” Agence France-Presse reports. WHO officials cite higher temperatures, growing populations and international travel for the “rapid rise in urban mosquito populations” and rise in dengue. Seventy percent of the at-risk population is in Asia, the WHO said.
Donors Pledge Nearly $12B For Global Fund, Missing Lowest Funding Target
October 6, 2010
Morning Briefing
Donors at a replenishment meeting in New York on Tuesday pledged $11.7 billion over three years for the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, “higher than past support but below the lowest target set by the agency in its efforts to combat disease in the developing world,” the Financial Times reports (Jack, 10/5).
Over $6B Pledged As CGI Annual Meeting Wraps Up
September 24, 2010
Morning Briefing
Donors made 291 commitments worth more than $6 billion at this year’s Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) annual meeting, which wrapped up on Thursday, Reuters reports. “The value of [CGI] pledges for economic empowerment, education, environment, energy and health was $3 billion less than 2009, but the organization said that in previous years one or two big commitments represented a disproportionate share of the whole,” the news service writes. “Since 2005, nearly 2,000 commitments have been made valued at $63 billion” (Nichols, 9/23).
Federal Medicaid Aid Boost Becomes Issue In Kansas Governor’s Race
By Mike Shields, KHI News Service
June 14, 2010
KFF Health News Original
A bill before Congress that would extend richer federal Medicaid assistance to states has now become an issue in the Kansas governor’s race.
Despite Federal Help, States Struggle To Move People Out Of Nursing Homes
By Phil Galewitz
April 22, 2010
KFF Health News Original
A program, known as “Money Follows the Person,” aims to help elderly and disabled people in nursing homes live on their own and save tens of millions of dollars for Medicaid. But many states are having trouble finding affordable housing, and fewer than 6,000 people have moved. The goal is 37,000 by 2013.
Hunger Costs Developing Nations $450B Per Year, Report Says
September 14, 2010
Morning Briefing
“Reduced worker productivity, poor health and lost education caused by malnourishment” is costing poor nations $450 billion a year, according to a report by the aid agency ActionAid, Agence France-Presse reports (9/13).