Category: Kaiser Health News

Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes

Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health articles from the week so you don’t have to.

Discreetly Tracking Down Sex Partners To Stop A Surge In STDs

In response to a spike in syphilis and gonorrhea cases, one Oregon county is sending medical sleuths to break the bad news in person. Some people have no idea they’ve been exposed to an infection.

4 Takeaways On Puerto Rico’s Death Toll, In The Wake Of Trump’s Tweet Storm

The controversy over the death toll from Hurricane Maria continues as the president tweets that the official estimate adopted by territory officials is a political ploy.

Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ A Detour On A Smoking Off-Ramp

In this episode of KHN’s “What the Health?” Sarah Jane Tribble of Kaiser Health News, Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal, Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner and Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call talk about the Food and Drug Administration’s latest actions to address teenagers’ use of e-cigarettes, Arkansas’ Medicaid work requirements and news about the uninsured from the latest federal Census report.

Insurer To Purdue Pharma: We Won’t Pay For OxyContin Anymore

Embattled drugmaker Purdue Pharma defends OxyContin as some insurers are dropping the drug in favor of other abuse-deterrent opioid painkillers.

Insurer To Purdue Pharma: We Won’t Pay For OxyContin Anymore

Embattled drugmaker Purdue Pharma defends OxyContin as some insurers are dropping the drug in favor of other abuse-deterrent opioid painkillers.

Is ‘Precision Medicine’ The Answer To Cancer? Not Precisely.

Doctors and hospitals love to talk about the patients they’ve saved with precision medicine, and reporters love to write about them. But the people who die still vastly outnumber the rare successes.

In Trump’s First Year, Nation’s Uninsured Rate Unchanged

The Census Bureau reports that the nation’s uninsurance rate was 8.8 percent in 2017 but notes that the rate did increase in 14 states.

Doctor To The Stars Disciplined Over Use Of Controversial Menopause Therapy 

Dr. Prudence Hall has made a name for herself in the field of “bioidentical hormones” — plant-based compounds purportedly customized for each patient’s needs. Experts say the popular approach is unproven; California regulators say she was grossly negligent in her care of two patients.

Unwitting Patients, Copycat Comments Play Hidden Role In Federal Rule-Making

As HHS decided to cut $1.6 billion in drug payments to hospitals, it weighed thousands of comments generated by a pharmaceutical-funded advocacy group.