Latest Morning Briefing Stories
Médicos deben racionar la penicilina por el dramático aumento de casos de sífilis
A nivel nacional, las tasas de sífilis están en su punto más alto en 70 años. Entre 2018 y 2022, las tasas de esta enfermedad de transmisión sexual subieron alrededor del 80%.
Surge in Syphilis Cases Leads Some Providers to Ration Penicillin
Injectable penicillin is the go-to treatment for syphilis and the only treatment considered safe for pregnant people with the disease. But as rates of syphilis increase across the U.S., a shortage of the injectable has prompted some public health agencies to ration it.
The FTC Is Attacking Drugmakers’ ‘Patent Thickets’
It’s a big job clearing out so-called “patent thickets” drugmakers create to keep their products’ prices high. But the Federal Trade Commission is giving it a shot.
Ketamine Therapy for Mental Health a ‘Wild West’ for Doctors and Patients
Ketamine, approved by the FDA as an anesthetic in 1970, is emerging as a major alternative mental health treatment, and there are now more than 500 ketamine clinics around the country. But with little regulation and widely varying treatment protocols, it’s a medical “wild West.”
Records Show Publix Opioid Sales Grew Even as Addiction Crisis Prompted Other Chains’ Pullback
As national prescription drug distributors and pharmacies restricted the flow of oxycodone and other painkillers in response to the growing opioid crisis, Florida’s most popular grocery store ramped up its sales and distribution of the highly addictive drugs, according to a Tampa Bay Times analysis of federal data.
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Health Enters the Presidential Race
New Hampshire voters have spoken, and it seems increasingly clear that this November’s election will pit President Joe Biden against former President Donald Trump. Both appear to be making health a key part of their campaigns, with Trump vowing (again) to repeal the Affordable Care Act, and Biden stressing his support for contraception and abortion rights. Meanwhile, both candidates will try to highlight efforts to rein in prescription drug prices. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, and Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call join KFF Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Sarah Somers of the National Health Law Program about the potential consequences for the health care system if the Supreme Court overturns a key precedent attempting to balance executive vs. judicial power.
The FTC Escalates Biden’s Fight Against Drug Prices
It’s daggers out at the Federal Trade Commission in its fight against anticompetitive practices in health care. This past year, it has issued more stringent guidelines to block and discourage hospital mergers, and it investigated practices by middlemen in the drug supply chain. Now drug manufacturers themselves are in the agency’s crosshairs. In November, the FTC challenged the validity of more […]
What the Health Care Sector Was Selling at the J.P. Morgan Confab
When bankers and investors flocked to San Francisco for the largest gathering of health care industry investors, the buzz was all about artificial intelligence, the next hit weight-loss drug, and new opportunities to make money through nonprofit hospitals.
Journalist Talks Distribution of Opioid Funds — And the Companies Angling for a Piece
KFF Health News senior correspondent Aneri Pattani made the rounds on national and local media in the last two weeks to discuss the opioid settlement funds flowing to state and local governments and her reporting on the topic. Here’s a collection of her appearances.
Trump Official Who OK’d Drugs From Canada Chairs Company Behind Florida’s Import Plan
Alex Azar advanced Canadian drug importation as Donald Trump’s secretary of Health and Human Services. Now he chairs the board of a company managing Florida’s importation program.
Es común que altos funcionarios de ambos partidos dejen el servicio público por trabajos o puestos en juntas directivas, a menudo mejor remunerados, en empresas de las industrias que antes regulaban
Alex Azar’s Unusual Spin Through the Revolving Door
Washington’s infamous revolving door took an unusual turn for former Health and Human Services secretary Alex Azar. Azar spent about a decade with pharmaceutical giant Eli Lilly and Co. before coming to the nation’s capital to lead HHS in the Trump administration. But in September 2020, just a couple of months before former president Donald […]
Journalists Track Medical Device Malfunctions, Opioid Settlement Payments, and Abortion Bans
KFF Health News and California Healthline staffers made the rounds on national and local media this week to discuss their stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
Pacientes con narcolepsia enfrentan una doble pesadilla: escasez de medicamentos y estigma
Se estima que una de cada 2,000 personas en los Estados Unidos vive con narcolepsia (más de 160,000 en todo el país).
Patients With Narcolepsy Face a Dual Nightmare of Medication Shortages and Stigma
It’s been more than a year since the FDA declared a national shortage of Adderall, and it’s affecting more than just patients with ADHD. Those with narcolepsy, a much rarer condition, are often treated with the same medication. Without it, they’re often unable to drive or function as usual.
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': 2023 Is a Wrap
2023 was another busy year in health care. As the covid-19 pandemic waned, policymakers looked anew at long-standing obstacles to obtaining and paying for care in the nation’s health care system. Meanwhile, abortion has continued to be an issue in much of the nation, as states respond to the Supreme Court’s 2022 decision overturning the constitutional right to the procedure. This week, Rachel Cohrs of Stat, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, and Joanne Kenen of Johns Hopkins University and Politico Magazine join KFF Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and wrap up the year in health. Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF Health News’ Jordan Rau about his joint KFF Health News-New York Times series “Dying Broke.”
The Year in Opioid Settlements: 5 Things You Need to Know
In the past year, opioid settlement money has gone from an emerging funding stream for which people had lofty but uncertain aspirations to a coveted pot of billions being invested in remediation efforts. Here are some important and evolving factors to watch going forward.
A New Test Could Save Arthritis Patients Time, Money, and Pain. But Will It Be Used?
Stories of chronic pain, drug-hopping, and insurance meddling are all too common among patients with rheumatoid arthritis. Precision medicine offers new hope.
The Market for Biosimilars Is Funky. The Industry Thinks PBMs Are To Blame
Over the past year there’s been movement to rein in the three big PBMs, which face little regulation though they help set drug prices and drug choices for 80 percent of Americans and their doctors. The House voted Dec. 11, 320-71, for legislation that would require the PBMs to change some of the ways they […]
Millions of Dollars Flow From Pharma to Patient Advocacy Groups
Pharma money is all over the place — in universities, companies doing continuing medical education for doctors and in prominent patient advocacy organizations that are household names across America. Public Citizen, a consumer advocacy nonprofit, reports today that between 2010 and 2022, the drug industry’s main lobbying group and member companies provided at least $6 […]
