Eastern Equine Encephalitis Case Confirmed In Houston County, Texas
August 27, 2024
Morning Briefing
As Texas animal health officials urge vets and owners to vaccinate horses against the mosquito-borne virus, officials in Massachusetts begin spraying in hopes of curbing the spread of the disease. West Nile virus, bird flu, and mpox also are in the news.
Northwell Health Promises 5 Years Of Birth Services At Connecticut Hospital
August 27, 2024
Morning Briefing
In the wake of an antitrust probe into Northwell Health’s merger with Nuvance Health, Connecticut Attorney General William Tong has reached an agreement with Northwell to preserve labor and delivery services for five years at Sharon Hospital. In other news, McLaren Health Care says it’s recovered from a cyberattack earlier this month.
San Francisco Offers Antipsychotic Drugs To Unhoused Meth Users
August 27, 2024
Morning Briefing
In extending aid to help users deal with symptoms like paranoia and delusions, the city hopes to reduce pressure on psych emergency services. Other reports shine a light on how wastewater monitoring could be used to track drug use in the country.
Morning Briefing for Tuesday, August 27, 2024
August 27, 2024
Morning Briefing
Open enrollment, opioid settlement funds, Medicare Advantage overbilling, weight loss drugs, extreme heat, mosquito-borne diseases, and more
CMS Designates $100M For Navigators To Aid 2025 Open Enrollment
August 27, 2024
Morning Briefing
The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services will distribute the money to 44 organizations in 28 states that work on outreach and help people to sign up for health insurance during open enrollment for the Affordable Care Act exchanges.
Eli Lilly To Offer Lower Cost, Low-Dose Zepbound; It Comes With Conditions
August 27, 2024
Morning Briefing
Patients will have to fill their own vials before they give themselves shots. They also will have to order supplies directly from the company, and they’ll have to pay in cash. Separately, researchers find GLP-1 drugs may work differently than they thought.
Planned Parenthood Files Complaints Against Missouri’s Medicaid Law
August 27, 2024
Morning Briefing
Missouri Planned Parenthoods are challenging a new law in Missouri that bans any funding — including for preventive care like cancer screenings or pap smears — from going to the reproductive health care organization. Related news comes from Oklahoma, Arkansas, and elsewhere.
2,325 People Died From Heat Last Year, Mostly In The Desert Southwest
August 27, 2024
Morning Briefing
The lead author of the report, which was published Monday in JAMA, told USA Today that the deaths were overwhelmingly concentrated in Arizona, California, Nevada, and Texas. The death toll is likely an undercount.
First Edition: Tuesday, Aug. 27, 2024
August 27, 2024
Morning Briefing
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations. Note to readers: KFF Health News’ First Edition will not be published for the rest of the week. Look for it again in your inbox on Tuesday. Have a nice Labor Day weekend!
Public Voices Often Ignored in States’ Opioid Settlement Money Decisions
By Aneri Pattani Henry Larweh Ed Mahon, Spotlight PA
August 27, 2024
KFF Health News Original
In many places, victims of the opioid epidemic are silenced in decision-making about how to use opioid settlement money, a first-of-its-kind survey conducted by KFF Health News and Spotlight PA found.
With Only Gloves To Protect Them, Farmworkers Say They Tend Sick Cows Amid Bird Flu
By Rae Ellen Bichell
August 27, 2024
KFF Health News Original
A Colorado picnic celebrated Farmworker Appreciation Day. But some dairy workers there said they aren’t feeling appreciated: They don’t have basic protective gear, even as bird flu spreads through area farms.
An Arm and a Leg: Don’t Get ‘Bullied’ Into Paying What You Don’t Owe
By Dan Weissmann
August 27, 2024
Podcast
In this episode of “An Arm and a Leg,” host Dan Weissmann speaks with Caitlyn Mai, a woman in Oklahoma who received a six-figure bill for a surgery her insurance promised to cover. This episode is an extended version of the “Bill of the Month” series, produced in partnership with NPR.
Feds Killed Plan To Curb Medicare Advantage Overbilling After Industry Opposition
By Fred Schulte
August 27, 2024
KFF Health News Original
A private 2014 decision by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services faces new scrutiny in a multibillion-dollar Justice Department fraud case against UnitedHealth Group.
Trabajadores dicen que cuidan a vacas enfermas en medio de la gripe aviar usando solo guantes
By Rae Ellen Bichell
August 27, 2024
KFF Health News Original
En Colorado, los departamentos de Salud y Agricultura dan equipos de protección gratis. Pero dicen que hasta ahora solo el 13% de los productores en tambos los han solicitado.
Trump-Vance Ticket Expresses A More Moderate Note On Abortion
August 26, 2024
Morning Briefing
While the Republican presidential nominee pledges to be “great for women and their reproductive rights,” his running mate indicates a federal ban on abortion isn’t their goal. Democrats are skeptical: “American women are not stupid,” said Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
Harris-Walz Platform Includes Effort To Wipe Out Americans’ Medical Debt
August 26, 2024
Morning Briefing
Details about how the plan would work are few, and bringing it to fruition would require Congress and the states to work together. Also in the news from the Capitol: FDA delves deeper into Ecstasy studies; a judge blocks an EPA pollution effort; and more.
J&J’s New Move Against Drug Discounts Is Charging Hospitals Full Price
August 26, 2024
Morning Briefing
The Wall Street Journal reports Johnson & Johnson informed certain hospitals that they’ll now have to pay full price for two drugs that were previously sold at discount rates — then claim a rebate. But the government is already said to have described the plan as “inconsistent” with the law.
Researchers Raise Alarm Over Levels Of Plastic Found In Human Brains
August 26, 2024
Morning Briefing
Samples of brain tissue collected early this year contain more shards of plastic than samples collected eight years ago, a study found. Also in the news: a possible microbiota-based treatment for recurrent C Diff.
