Alaska Is One Step Closer To Legalizing Subscription-Based Health Care
April 12, 2024
Morning Briefing
State lawmakers have approved a bill that would allow primary care providers to offer care based on a monthly fee, the Anchorage Daily News reported. It’s unclear whether Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy will sign the bill.
Longer Looks: Interesting Reads You Might Have Missed
April 12, 2024
Morning Briefing
Each week, KFF Health News finds longer stories for you to enjoy. This week’s selections include stories on Donald Trump’s new physician, a cadaver lab, the world’s oldest person, and more.
Viewpoints: WHO’s Changes Could Prevent Future Pandemics; India Is Trying New Way To Educate Patients
April 12, 2024
Morning Briefing
Editorial writers tackle pandemic preparedness, patient education, youth gender medicine, and more.
Harris To Visit Arizona Today; Ex-Gov. Ducey Says Court Overstepped
April 12, 2024
Morning Briefing
Excerpts of her speech showed that Vice President Kamala Harris will warn voters that giving Donald Trump another term would only mean “more suffering.” And former GOP Gov. Doug Ducey, who expanded the court in 2016, said on X that the ruling was “not the outcome I would have preferred.”
Iowa’s High Court Weighs Abortion Ban After Contentious Back-And-Forth
April 12, 2024
Morning Briefing
The seven justices, all appointed to the bench by Republicans, will decide whether to let a law that bans abortions as early as six weeks of pregnancy take effect. Other abortion news is from Tennessee, Missouri, Florida, and Maine.
US Might Lose Elimination Status As Measles Cases Climb
April 12, 2024
Morning Briefing
Where are the cases coming from? A CDC report Thursday said most involved unvaxxed Americans who got infected in the Middle East and Africa, AP reported. Also: bird flu and data-sharing.
How Medicaid’s ‘Unwinding’ Affected Millions Of Americans
April 12, 2024
Morning Briefing
More than 20 million people were pushed off Medicaid during a nationwide review of eligibility. Also: A key U.S. senator says Medicare payments to physicians have “not kept up with the times.”
Organ Transplant Surgeon In Texas Accused Of Manipulating Database
April 12, 2024
Morning Briefing
The New York Times reported that officials are investigating claims that the surgeon, who oversaw the liver and kidney transplant programs at Memorial Hermann-Texas Medical Center in Houston, altered a government database to make some of his own patients ineligible to receive new livers.
So Far, So Good For Chlamydia Vaccine: ‘This Is Desperately Needed’
April 12, 2024
Morning Briefing
In the phase 1 trial, scientists said the experimental vaccine was safe and induced an immune response. There is currently no vaccine for the sexually transmitted infection, which can cause infertility and eye infections.
First Edition: April 12, 2024
April 12, 2024
Morning Briefing
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Nearly 1 in 4 Adults Dumped From Medicaid Are Now Uninsured, Survey Finds
By Phil Galewitz
April 12, 2024
KFF Health News Original
A first-of-its-kind survey of Medicaid enrollees found that nearly a quarter who were dropped from the program in the last year’s unwinding say they’re uninsured.
Casi 1 de cada 4 adultos desafiliados de Medicaid siguen sin seguro, indica encuesta
By Phil Galewitz
April 12, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Las protecciones que tuvo el programa durante la pandemia, que impedían que se expulsaran beneficiarios, expiraron la primavera pasada.
As Bans Spread, Fluoride in Drinking Water Divides Communities Across the US
By Melba Newsome
April 12, 2024
KFF Health News Original
The broad availability of over-the-counter dental products containing fluoride has some community leaders arguing that its addition to public drinking water is no longer necessary. But public health experts worry that, much like vaccines, fluoridation may be a victim of its own success.
California Fails to Adequately Help Blind and Deaf Prisoners, US Judge Rules
By Don Thompson
April 12, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Thirty years after prisoners with disabilities sued and 25 years after a federal court first ordered accommodations, a judge found that California prison and parole officials still are not doing enough to help deaf and blind prisoners — in part because they are not providing readily available technology such as video recordings and laptop computers.
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Arizona Turns Back the Clock on Abortion Access
April 11, 2024
Podcast
A week after the Florida Supreme Court said the state could enforce an abortion ban passed in 2023, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that state could enforce a near-total ban passed in 1864 — over a half-century before Arizona became a state. The move further scrambled the abortion issue for Republicans and posed an immediate quandary for former President Donald Trump, who has been seeking an elusive middle ground in the polarized debate. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Rachel Cohrs Zhang of Stat, and Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF Health News’ Molly Castle Work, who reported and wrote the latest KFF Health News-NPR “Bill of the Month” feature, about an air-ambulance ride for an infant with RSV that his insurer deemed not medically necessary.
Research Roundup: Cancer; Covid; UTIs; Pneumococcus
April 11, 2024
Morning Briefing
Each week, KFF Health News compiles a selection of health policy studies and briefs.
Viewpoints: Poverty Has Deadly Health Consequences; Is Therapy Always The Answer For Struggling Kids?
April 11, 2024
Morning Briefing
Editorial writers discuss end-stage poverty, pediatric mental health, zombie laws, and more.
Medicare Says Leqembi Alzheimer’s Drug Will Cost It $3.5 Billion
April 11, 2024
Morning Briefing
The figure, Stat reports, is “well beyond” what Wall Street or even its maker Biogen had projected. Meanwhile, the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit accusing Regeneron Pharmaceuticals of Medicare price manipulation for its costly eye disease treatment Eylea.
Scientists May Have Stumbled Onto Source Of Severe Covid
April 11, 2024
Morning Briefing
Interstitial macrophage immune cells may be involved in turning a typical covid case into a serious one. The surprising findings might also explain why monoclonal antibodies didn’t work well on severe covid, Medical Xpress reported.
