Latest Kaiser Health News Stories
Calif. Leads Nation In Pushing Back Against Trump Administration Health Policies
In the face of federal efforts to dismantle the Affordable Care Act, policymakers in the largest state are proposing laws and other changes to counter them. Beyond that, they’re aggressively pushing measures to expand health coverage beyond what the ACA envisioned.
Federal Appeals Court Puts Chill On Maryland Law To Fight Drug Price-Gouging
The decision in Maryland’s case could slow momentum for other states that are attempting to take action to curb high drug costs.
‘Scary’ Lung Disease Now Afflicts More Women Than Men In U.S.
Barbara Bush’s case highlights that chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) — a disease linked to long-term smoking and traditionally considered a men’s disease — is now more prevalent among women.
KHN’s newsletter editor, Brianna Labuskes, wades through hundreds of health articles from the week so you don’t have to.
Medical Marijuana’s ‘Catch-22’: Federal Limits On Research Hinder Patients’ Relief
Suffering Americans seek medical marijuana as an alternative to opioids and other powerful pharmaceuticals. Though legal in 29 states, some doctors say the lack of strong data makes it hard to recommend.
How A Drugmaker Turned The Abortion Pill Into A Rare-Disease Profit Machine
An abortion drug invented decades ago is being used to treat Cushing’s syndrome — and it’s bringing in tens of millions of dollars a year.
C-SPAN: FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb Talks To KHN
Kaiser Health News reporter Sarah Jane Tribble sat down with Food and Drug Administration Commissioner Scott Gottlieb on C-SPAN’s “Newsmakers” program. The conversation ranged from how the nation should combat the opioid epidemic to reining in drug prices.
A Tale Of Two CT Scanners — One Richer, One Poorer
Why is the price of a CT scan 33 times higher in an hospital emergency room than in an outpatient imaging center just down the street?
Dialysis Patients Sign Up For November Ballot Fight
Frustrated by dialysis centers they call dirty and understaffed, patients and health care workers rallied across California Thursday before delivering more than 600,000 signatures to election offices in support of a ballot initiative intended to improve patient care.
Patient Advocacy Groups Take In Millions From Drugmakers. Is There A Payback?
Kaiser Health News launches “Pre$cription for Power,” a groundbreaking database to expose Big Pharma’s ties to patient groups.
To Treat Pain, PTSD And Other Ills, Tennessee Vets Try Tai Chi
In hopes of reducing an over-reliance on pills for anxiety and pain, the Department of Veterans Affairs has taken a turn toward alternative medicine.
‘Nightmare Bacteria’ Stalk U.S. Hospitals
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found antibiotic-resistant bacteria whose spread has “outpaced” efforts to contain them.
Psychiatrist Stays Close To Home And True To Her Childhood Promise
Yamanda Edwards is the only psychiatrist at Martin Luther King, Jr. Community Hospital, caring for residents in South Los Angeles, a community with a shortage of mental health care.
Americans Have Mixed Feelings About The ACA’s Future — But Like Their Plans
Most people who buy insurance on the individual market say they are motivated by concerns about high medical bills and a desire for peace of mind — not the law’s requirement that they have coverage, according to a new poll from the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Medicaid Minus Stigma: In Indian Country, It’s Part Of The Fabric Of Life
McKinley County, N.M., has the nation’s highest rate of Medicaid enrollment, and people there say it is vital to battle daunting economic and public health challenges.
California Takes On Health Giant Over High Costs
The lawsuit is a bold move against Northern California’s dominant hospital chain, whose prices have drawn complaints for years. It has disputed such allegations in the past.
‘Aggressive’ New Advance Directive Would Let Dementia Patients Refuse Food
Supporters call it the strongest move yet to document a patient’s advance wishes in cases of severe dementia. Critics say it would deny basic care to society’s most vulnerable.
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ VA Secretary Out, Privatization In?
In this episode of KHN’s “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Sarah Kliff of Vox.com, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News and Alice Ollstein of Talking Points Memo discuss President Donald Trump’s firing of David Shulkin, the secretary of Veterans Affairs, and Shulkin’s claim that he was forced out by those who want to privatize VA health care.
Calif. Bill Targets Profiteering In Addiction Treatment, Dialysis Industries
The legislation is intended to curb schemes in which some treatment providers sign patients up for private plans, pay their premiums and then rake in profits from inflated claims.
Readers Seek Transparency On Surgery Centers, ‘Bill Of The Month’ Investigations
Kaiser Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
