Latest KFF Health News Stories
Election Outcome Could Bring Big Changes to Medicare
Democrats and conservatives are divided over whether the federal health program for people over 65 should be run almost entirely by the private sector. If Trump retakes the White House, the shift to Medicare Advantage may accelerate.
No Evidence Trump’s Drug Program for Terminal Patients Saved ‘Thousands’ of Lives
Though the former president has repeatedly hyped the impact of his experimental drug program, there’s no basis for his claims in government data, and medical experts say he’s exaggerating.
Dentists Are Pulling ‘Healthy’ and Treatable Teeth To Profit From Implants, Experts Warn
Americans are getting dental implants more than ever — and at costs reaching tens of thousands of dollars. Experts worry some dentists have lost sight of the soul of dentistry: preserving and fixing teeth.
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': The Campaign’s Final Days
It’s the final days of the 2024 campaign, and Republicans are suddenly talking again about making changes to the Affordable Care Act if former President Donald Trump wins. Meanwhile, new reporting uncovers more maternal deaths under state abortion bans — and a case in which a Nevada woman was jailed after a miscarriage. Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call join KFF Health News’ Emmarie Huetteman to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner interviews Irving Washington, a senior vice president at KFF and the executive director of its Health Misinformation and Trust Initiative.
‘A Pressure Campaign’: Beverly Hills Settles After Allegedly Blocking Abortion Clinic
California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced a settlement with Beverly Hills after finding city officials pressured the landlord to cancel DuPont Clinic’s lease. It’s the state’s first enforcement action under Proposition 1, which enshrined abortion rights in the state constitution.
Florida Medical Device Maker Exactech Declares Bankruptcy
The company faces more than 2,000 lawsuits alleging it sold defective knee and hip implants.
Post-Helene, Patients Who Rely on IV Nutrition Face Severe Shortages
Hurricane Helene, which struck North Carolina last month, wrecked a Baxter International factory that produced 60 percent of the country’s IV fluids, according to the American Hospital Association. The company is rationing its products, and some hospitals have delayed or canceled surgeries that require large amounts of IV hydration. Among the worst-hit patients are those […]
Vance Wrongly Blames Rural Hospital Closures on Immigrants in the Country Illegally
Experts disputed the claim by Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance, noting that a range of other issues — from low reimbursement rates to declining patient use — combine to cause these facilities to shutter.
California Mental Health Agency Director To Resign Following Conflict of Interest Allegations
Toby Ewing, executive director of California’s Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission, is resigning amid an investigation into his conduct and revelations that he traveled to the U.K. courtesy of a vendor as he sought to protect state funding for its contract.
Presidential Election Puts Affordable Care Act Back in the Bull’s-Eye
The outcome of the upcoming presidential election could affect the number of insured Americans, the fate of premium-reducing subsidies, the shape of Medicaid, and the cost of coverage for tens of millions of people.
Exclusive: Emails Reveal How Health Departments Struggle To Track Human Cases of Bird Flu
Emails show how health officials struggle to track the bird flu, partly in deference to the agricultural industry. As a result, researchers don’t know how often farmworkers are being infected — and could miss alarming signals.
¿Se puede confiar en una mamografía para identificar el riesgo de enfermedad cardíaca?
La enfermedad cardíaca es la principal causa de muerte en los Estados Unidos. Fue responsable de más de 300,000 —o aproximadamente 1 de cada 5— muertes de mujeres en 2021.
Long-Term Care Facilities Must Provide Addiction Care, Advocates Say
When you think about the opioid crisis, the image of adults in their 20s, 30s, even sometimes those who are middle-aged, may come to mind. Rightly so, since most overdose deaths occur in people between ages 25 and 64. But did you know older adults are increasingly at risk of overdosing from opioids, too? In fact, from 2021 […]
PBM Math: Big Chains Are Paid $23.55 To Fill a Blood Pressure Rx. Small Drugstores? $1.51.
Criticism of prescription drug middlemen has intensified recently in the wake of a federal agency’s actions and legislative reform attempts. Georgia Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, though, vetoed a related bill that would have helped independent pharmacies, citing the unfunded cost of the move.
A California Official Helped Save a Mental Health Company’s Contract. It Flew Him to London.
The director of a California state mental health agency traveled to the U.K. courtesy of Kooth, a digital mental health company with a $271 million contract to build a therapy app for the state’s youth. Weeks earlier, he pressed key legislative staffers to restore a proposed cut to Kooth’s funding.
Can You Rely on Your Mammogram To Identify Heart Disease Risk?
Clinicians and researchers are searching for answers to whether an incidental finding on breast X-rays could improve the detection of cardiovascular disease risk among women.
California Continues Progressive Policies, With Restraint, in Divisive Election Year
This legislative cycle, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed bills affirming reproductive rights and mandating insurance coverage of in vitro fertilization, but the Democrat was reluctant to impose new regulations and frequently cited costs for vetoing bills.
Helene and CVS Land Double Whammy for 25,000 Patients Who Survive on IV Nutrition
A Massachusetts woman ended up stranded in the hospital because CVS stopped providing the IV nutrition she needs to survive at home. Without it, she’d starve.
As Hospitals Get Bigger, Medical Debt Is Harder for Patients To Shake
If you get sick in America, there’s a good chance you’ll end up in debt. Four in 10 U.S. adults have some form of health-care debt, KFF has found. One surprising risk: living in a community where hospitals have consolidated — an increasingly common development as health systems merge or large systems gobble up smaller hospitals. That’s […]
Public Health Departments Face a Post-Covid Funding Crash
During the coronavirus pandemic, states received a rush of funding from the federal government to bolster their fight against the disease. In many cases, that cash flowed into state and local health departments, fueling a staffing surge to handle, among other things, contact tracing and vaccination efforts. But public health leaders quickly identified a familiar […]
