Daily Edition for Monday, April 29, 2024
Agent Orange, new hospital construction, ACA, insurance approvals, patient privacy, weight-loss medications, bird flu, and more are in the news.
Exposed to Agent Orange at US Bases, Veterans Face Cancer Without VA Compensation
By Hannah Norman and Patricia Kime
The Department of Veterans Affairs has long given vets who served in Vietnam disability compensation for illness connected to Agent Orange harm. But those exposed at U.S. bases are still waiting for the same benefits.
Millions Were Booted From Medicaid. The Insurers That Run It Gained Revenue Anyway.
By Phil Galewitz
Big health insurers that have contracts with state Medicaid programs find themselves making more money even as enrollment in Medicaid programs has dropped. Here’s why.
Daily Edition for Friday, April 26, 2024
Data breach, 911 system crash, single-payer health care, bird flu, HIV, suicide, school nutrition, miscarriages, and more are in the news.
Daily Edition for Thursday, April 25, 2024
Starting Next Year, California Will Cap Annual Health Care Cost Increases: Doctors, hospitals, and health insurance companies in California will soon be limited to annual price increases. The 3% cap, approved Wednesday by the Health Care Affordability Board, will be phased in over five years, starting with 3.5% in 2025. Providers who don’t comply could face fines. Read more from AP.
Genetics Studies Have a Diversity Problem That Researchers Struggle To Fix
By Lauren Sausser
Researchers in Charleston, South Carolina, are trying to build a DNA database of 100,000 people to better understand how genetics affects health risks. But they’re struggling to recruit enough Black participants.
California Is Investing $500M in Therapy Apps for Youth. Advocates Fear It Won’t Pay Off.
By Molly Castle Work
California launched two teletherapy apps as part of the governor’s $500 million foray into health technology with private companies. But the rollout has been so slow that one company has yet to make its app available on Android, and social workers worry youths who need clinical care won’t get referrals.
Mandatory Reporting Laws Meant To Protect Children Get Another Look
By Kristin Jones
The state is looking at ways to weed out false reporting of child abuse and neglect as the number of reports reaches a record high.
En Colorado, reevalúan leyes formuladas para proteger a los menores
By Kristin Jones
Hay esfuerzos en Colorado y otros estados para revertir las leyes que obligan a informar sobre sospechas de abuso o negligencia, argumentando que el resultado ha sido demasiados informes infundados, que perjudican desproporcionadamente a las familias que son pobres, negras, indígenas o tienen miembros con discapacidades.
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Abortion — Again — At the Supreme Court
For the second time in as many months, the Supreme Court heard arguments in an abortion case. This time, the justices are being asked to decide whether a federal law that requires emergency care in hospitals can trump Idaho’s near-total abortion ban. Meanwhile, the federal government, for the first time, will require minimum staffing standards for nursing homes. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Tami Luhby of CNN, and Joanne Kenen of Johns Hopkins University and Politico Magazine join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Plus, for “extra credit,” the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week they think you should read, too.
