To Combat Gun Violence, This Artist Turns Ammunition Into Art
By Cara Anthony
December 16, 2022
KFF Health News Original
In a city plagued by gun violence, Mykael Ash is turning ammunition into art. Ash, who lives in East St. Louis, Illinois, frequently walks through parts of the city where bullet shells aren’t hard to find. The shell casings represent a cycle of inequality, Ash says, and the art he makes with it serves as a call to action.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Health Spending? Only Congress Knows
December 15, 2022
KFF Health News Original
Top negotiators in Congress have agreed to a framework for government spending into next year, but there are details to iron out before a vote — such as the scheduled Medicare payment cuts that have providers worried. Also, the Biden administration reopens its program allowing Americans to request free covid-19 home tests, as hopes for pandemic preparedness measures from Congress dim. Rachel Cohrs of Stat, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Rebecca Adams of KHN join KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey to discuss these topics and more. Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too.
Abrumados por los costos, hospitales crean sus propias agencias de enfermería
By Andy Miller
December 15, 2022
KFF Health News Original
Cada vez más sistemas hospitalarios están creando equipos internos de personal para hacer frente a la escasez de enfermeras provocada por la pandemia, y para tratar de vencer a las agencias privadas de personal temporal con sus propias armas.
Morning Briefing for Thursday, December 15, 2022
December 15, 2022
Morning Briefing
Thursday’s roundup covers Medicare Advantage, free covid tests, 2002 U.S. deaths, rising health costs, overdoses, mental health, and more.
Special Report: Hepatitis C Is Killing More Than 150 Inmates Yearly
December 15, 2022
Morning Briefing
Stat reports on numerous hepatitis C deaths occurring in prisons, despite the existence of a cure. Elsewhere in its special report, it also says that prisons hide causes of death, but that as the cost of treatments for hep C are falling, some prisons are actually treating affected prisoners “widely.”
After Record Pandemic Highs, Drug Overdose Death Rate Slows
December 15, 2022
Morning Briefing
CDC data suggests that over 107,000 overdose deaths occurred in the year until July 2022, marking the fourth month in a row that rolling 12 month totals fell. But as a report in the Boston Globe notes, Massachusetts data show that the opioid crisis is still ongoing and deaths still happen.
School Administrators, Parents Say Student Mental Health Isn’t Improving
December 15, 2022
Morning Briefing
A survey by a school mental health service that shows more than half of respondents think the issue of student mental health is either worse or the same as last year. Another study finds that more U.S. teens were hospitalized for mental illnesses during the pandemic.
Report Shows Screening Catches Just 1 In 7 Diagnosed Cancers
December 15, 2022
Morning Briefing
A report shows the vast majority of diagnosed cancers in the U.S. are found through symptoms or through medical imaging or care sought for other reasons, rather than preventive screenings. Also in the news: the Find It Early Act for breast cancer detection; expanding kids’ BMI charts to match obesity levels; and more.
Patients’ Out-Of-Pocket Health Spending Spiked 10% in 2021: CMS
December 15, 2022
Morning Briefing
This level of growth rate, Axios reports, hasn’t been seen since 1985 and was driven partly by demand for dental services, eyeglasses, and medical supplies. Modern Healthcare reports total U.S. health care spending hit $4.3 trillion in 2021, up just 2.7% from the year before.
Antiabortion Group Plans City Water Tests For Abortion Drug Evidence
December 15, 2022
Morning Briefing
The Washington Post reports on efforts by a leading antiabortion group to jail people for “trafficking” abortion medication illegally, including testing water in several large cities for evidence they say results from the process. In Montana, justices are considering if nurses could provide abortions.
10 Years After Sandy Hook: How Gun Violence Has — And Hasn’t — Changed America
December 15, 2022
Morning Briefing
In a statement Wednesday marking the Dec. 14, 2012, massacre of 20 elementary school students and six educators at Sandy Hook Elementary School, President Joe Biden said Americans have a “moral obligation to pass and enforce laws that can prevent these things from happening again.” Meanwhile, the parents of those killed push through their unspeakable grief with the hope that their children won’t be forgotten.
US Deaths Down 7% Over Last Year, But Still Higher Than Before Pandemic
December 15, 2022
Morning Briefing
Based on trends for the first 11 months of this year, the country is on track for its first annual death decline since 2009. But the numbers still look to be 19% higher than they were in 2019, before covid struck.
Free At-Home Covid Test Kits Again Available Through Federal Website
December 15, 2022
Morning Briefing
While warning Americans of a possible winter covid surge, the Biden administration is shifting its dwindling relief funds to open CovidTests.gov back up for free orders. Every household is eligible for four tests.
CMS Takes Aim At Growing Problem Of Misleading Medicare Advantage Ads
December 15, 2022
Morning Briefing
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services proposed a rule to ban some deceitful advertising by Medicare Advantage plans that use confusing imagery or language or don’t name the health insurance plan’s name. The growing number of such ads have led people to sign up for plans that don’t cover their doctors or prescriptions.
Research Roundup: CRISPR; Covid; Cluster Headaches; Cardiac Tissues
December 15, 2022
Morning Briefing
Each week, KHN compiles a selection of recently released health policy studies and briefs.
First Edition: Dec.15, 2022
December 15, 2022
Morning Briefing
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
Squeezed by Temp Nurse Costs, Hospital Systems Create Their Own Staffing Agencies
By Andy Miller
December 15, 2022
KFF Health News Original
Hospitals have depended on travel nurses to fill shifts, especially during covid surges. Now some larger systems, reeling from high contract labor costs, have created staffing units, aiming to lure nurses who want more work flexibility and better pay than staff RNs get.
Mass Shootings Reopen the Debate Over Whether Crime Scene Photos Prompt Change or Trauma
By Lauren Sausser
December 15, 2022
KFF Health News Original
After almost every mass shooting, a debate is renewed over whether to publish the photos of the carnage the guns have inflicted.
Estados desafían a Biden a que baje precios de medicamentos permitiendo importaciones desde Canadá
By Phil Galewitz
December 14, 2022
KFF Health News Original
En Estados Unidos se pagan unos de los precios más altos del mundo por los productos farmacéuticos de marca. Los medicamentos son generalmente menos caros en el vecino Canadá, donde el gobierno controla los precios.