Category: Kaiser Health News

Pelosi Aims For Feds To Negotiate Drug Prices, Even For Private Insurers

A draft plan spearheaded by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi would allow the federal government for the first time to negotiate prices for 250 drugs for Medicare and apply those prices to all payers, including employers and insurers.

Trump Has Blessed States’ Exploration Of Importing Drugs. Will It Catch On?

Colorado, Florida and Vermont — with the support of President Donald Trump — are exploring plans to bring drugs across the border from Canada to help lower costs.

Health Care Gets Heated On Night 2 Of The Democratic Presidential Debate

Though the candidates tended to agree on the end goal of universal coverage, differences emerged over how to get there. 

Universal Health Care For New Yorkers? Not Exactly

Despite what New York Mayor Bill de Blasio claimed during the first night of the presidential debates, universal health care in the Big Apple is still in the seeding stage.

Delaney’s Debate Claim That ‘Medicare For All’ Will Shutter Hospitals Goes Overboard

At the first Democratic presidential primary debate, former U.S. lawmaker John Delaney outlined his opposition to “Medicare for All” by claiming it would prove fatal for hospitals. It’s really not that simple.

KHN’s ‘What The Health’: Dems Debate Health Care

Democratic presidential candidates disagreed on how to fix health care in their first debate Wednesday, although they all called for boosting insurance coverage and lowering prices. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is keeping health care in the news, too, with a new plan to make medical prices more available to the public. Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal, Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call and Anna Edney of Bloomberg News join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss this, plus the latest in news about bipartisan progress on catch-all legislation to address “surprise” medical bills. Plus, Rovner interviews NPR’s Jon Hamilton about the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month” installment.

How Black Pharmacists Are Closing The Cultural Gap In Health Care

Independent black-owned pharmacies fill a void for African American patients looking for care that’s sensitive to their heritage, beliefs and values.

As The Economy Surges, A Dramatic Drop In Workers On Disability

Experts credit the lowest U.S. unemployment rate in 50 years, along with a more flexible work culture and tighter oversight of who qualifies for federal disability benefits. 

Five Things We Found In The FDA’s Hidden Device Database

The Food and Drug Administration released two decades of previously hidden data containing millions of injuries or malfunctions by medical devices. Here’s what we’ve learned so far.

More Seniors Are Dying In Falls. Doctors Could Do More To Reduce The Risk.

Doctors should assess older adults for the risk of falling, come up with individualized plans and refer seniors to physical therapists, occupational therapists and evidence-based programs.