KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': A Not-So-Health-y GOP Debate
The first Republican presidential debate of the 2024 cycle took place without front-runner Donald Trump — and with hardly a mention of health issues save for abortion. Meanwhile, in Florida, patients dropped from the Medicaid program are suing the state for not giving them enough notice or a way to contest their being dropped from the program. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico, and Victoria Knight of Axios join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, for “extra credit,” the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week they think you should read, too.
Daily Edition for Thursday, August 24, 2023
Orange County Residents Reeling After Mass Shooting At Popular Bar: A gunman killed three people and six were taken to hospitals after a shooting Wednesday night at Cook’s Corner, a historic and popular biker bar in Trabuco Canyon that was frequented by former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. The alleged gunman was also killed. Sources said the man, retired from the Ventura Police Department, was targeting his estranged wife. “It’s disturbing to learn that another domestic dispute led to another mass shooting,” said Orange County Supervisor Katrina Foley. “We must do more to prevent senseless acts of gun violence and protect survivors.” Read more from the Los Angeles Times, The Orange County Register, and The New York Times.
Timing and Cost of New Vaccines Vary by Virus and Health Insurance Status
By Julie Appleby
Flu. Covid. RSV. When and how to get vaccinated against them can be confusing. Here are some of the most important things to know.
Dangers and Deaths Around Black Pregnancies Seen as a ‘Completely Preventable’ Health Crisis
By Sandy West
Studies show that high rates of Black fetal and infant deaths are largely preventable — and part of systemic failures that contribute to disproportionately high Black maternal mortality rates.
California’s Medical Board Can’t Pay Its Bills, but Doctors Resist Proposed Fixes
By Annie Sciacca
Patient advocates have long alleged the Medical Board of California is ineffective at policing doctors. But a proposal to beef up its budget and overhaul procedures faces stiff resistance from the doctors’ lobby.
After Backlash, Feds Cancel Plan That Risked Limiting Breast Reconstruction Options
By Rachana Pradhan and Anna Werner, CBS News and Leigh Ann Winick, CBS News
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services backed off from a plan that could have curtailed access to a type of reconstructive surgery known as DIEP flap. Breast cancer patient advocates are relieved.
Daily Edition for Wednesday, August 23, 2023
Maternal death rates, HIV care, masks, covid vaccines, student mental health, hazardous waste, and more are in the news.
The Painful Pandemic Lessons Mandy Cohen Carries to the CDC
By Fred Clasen-Kelly and Rachana Pradhan and Holly K. Hacker
Mandy Cohen, the new director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, earned praise for her leadership and communication as the face of North Carolina’s response to covid-19. People in the state’s most vulnerable communities tell a more complicated story.
Doctors and Patients Try to Shame Insurers Online to Reverse Prior Authorization Denials
By Lauren Sausser
Prior authorization is a common tool used by health insurers for many tests, procedures, and prescriptions. Frustrated by the process, patients and doctors have turned to social media to publicly shame insurance companies and elevate their denials for further review.
Daily Edition for Tuesday, August 22, 2023
Hospital evacuation, water safety, suicide stigma, covid hospitalizations, vaccines, West Nile, and more are in the news.
