He Thinks His Wife Died in an Understaffed Hospital. Now He’s Trying to Change the Industry.
By Kate Wells, Michigan Public
April 19, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Nurses are telling lawmakers that there are not enough of them working in hospitals and that it risks patients’ lives. California and Oregon legally limit the number of patients under a nurse’s care. Other states trying to do the same were blocked by the hospital industry. Now patients’ relatives are joining the fight.
Newsom Offers a Compromise to Protect Indoor Workers from Heat
By Samantha Young
Updated April 18, 2024
Originally Published April 18, 2024
KFF Health News Original
After rejecting proposed rules to protect millions of workers in sweltering warehouses, steamy kitchens, and other hot workplaces, California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration has offered a compromise to allow the protections to take effect this summer. But state and local correctional workers — and prisoners — would have to wait even longer.
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Too Big To Fail? Now It’s ‘Too Big To Hack’
April 18, 2024
Podcast
Congress this week had the chance to formally air grievances over the cascading consequences of the Change Healthcare cyberattack, and lawmakers from both major parties agreed on one culprit: consolidation in health care. Plus, about a year after states began stripping people from their Medicaid rolls, a new survey shows nearly a quarter of adults who were disenrolled are now uninsured. Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post join KFF Health News’ Mary Agnes Carey to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner interviews Caroline Pearson of the Peterson Health Technology Institute.
Drug Shortages Hit Record For The First Three Months Of This Year
April 18, 2024
Morning Briefing
In the first quarter of this year, 323 drugs were low in supply, according to data from the American Society of Health-System Pharmacists, compared with 320 in 2014. Meanwhile, reports highlight how prior authorizations are also worsening the growth hormone shortage.
High Brain Cancer Rates Found In Kids At New Mexico Air Force Base
April 18, 2024
Morning Briefing
Military.com reports on a new Air Force study that seems to point to a higher-than-normal rate for rare brain and spinal cord cancer among service members’ children at Cannon Air Force Base. Separately, more communities across the U.S. are removing fluoride from water.
Research Roundup: TB; Multidrug-Resistant Bacteria; Covid
April 18, 2024
Morning Briefing
Each week, KFF Health News compiles a selection of health policy studies and briefs.
Viewpoints: We Must Act Before H5N1 Becomes Next Pandemic; Medicaid Should Cover Lifesaving Donor Milk
April 18, 2024
Morning Briefing
Editorial writers discuss H5N1, donor breast milk, American life expectancy, and more
Neurorights Group: In Today’s Techy World, Brain Data Needs Protections
April 18, 2024
Morning Briefing
Stat reports on efforts to prevent consumer technology companies from Hoovering-up data from users’ brains, including a new bill to expand the relevant privacy protections in Colorado. Meanwhile, a dispute between Epic Systems and startup Particle Health over data-sharing is in the news.
Some Doctors Add Gun Safety Questions To Wellness Visit Checklist
April 18, 2024
Morning Briefing
During a doctor visit, patients are accustomed to lifestyle questions regarding exercise or substance use that can impact overall health. Now some physicians are adding gun safety to that list. Also: the long road to recovery for gun violence survivors.
At Least 4 States Hit By 911 Outages; Services Restored In Some Areas
April 18, 2024
Morning Briefing
Landlines and mobile phones were unable to connect to the emergency phone line in parts of South Dakota, Nebraska, Texas, and Nevada on Wednesday, with service now partially restored. The cause is being investigated.
GOP Again Quashes Efforts To Restore Abortion In Arizona
April 18, 2024
Morning Briefing
The state Senate might vote in the next few weeks to reverse the near-total abortion ban, but it’s not certain the House will approve the measure.
Report: Every State Shows Racial, Ethnic Inequalities In Health Care
April 18, 2024
Morning Briefing
News outlets note that this is true even for states with “robust” health systems, and the best health outcomes, new data from the Commonwealth Fund shows. Also in the news: botched executions for Black prisoners, toxic water supply in a majority Latino city, and more.
Texas’ Planned Medicaid Changes Could Upend Coverage For 1.8 Million
April 18, 2024
Morning Briefing
Under the proposal, three top nonprofit children’s health plans would be bounced as the state looks to shift coverage to more for-profit companies.
Hospitals’ Trauma Care Prices Differed Wildly In 2023: Study
April 18, 2024
Morning Briefing
A new study found prices were so unpredictable between hospitals that some insured patients needing trauma care even ended up with more bills than uninsured people did. Stat, meanwhile, covers tech startups who are making money out of hospital price transparency rules.
First Edition: April 18, 2024
April 18, 2024
Morning Briefing
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations.
The Path to a Better Tuberculosis Vaccine Runs Through Montana
By Jim Robbins
April 18, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Researchers at the University of Montana have pitched in to develop a more effective vaccine in the fight against an ancient disease that still kills an estimated 1.6 million people a year worldwide.
En Montana, investigan una nueva y poderosa vacuna contra la tuberculosis
By Jim Robbins
April 18, 2024
KFF Health News Original
La tuberculosis mata a 1.6 millones de personas anualmente, en especial en zonas pobres del planeta.
Medicare’s Push To Improve Chronic Care Attracts Businesses, but Not Many Doctors
By Phil Galewitz and Holly K. Hacker
April 18, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Most Medicare enrollees have two or more chronic health conditions, making them eligible for a federal program that rewards physicians for doing more to manage their care. It shows promise in reducing costs. But not many doctors have joined.
Paris Hilton Speaks up for California’s ‘Troubled’ Teens
By Molly Castle Work
April 17, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Heiress Paris Hilton is on a mission to shine a light on the “troubled teen industry,” a largely unregulated multibillion-dollar industry that is gaining public scrutiny for alleged abuse of vulnerable youths. Hilton told state lawmakers in Sacramento on Monday she was subjected to abuse disguised as therapy decades ago when she was housed in […]