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The FTC is attacking drugmakers’ ‘patent thickets’

The Federal Trade Commission has challenged the validity of over 100 drug product patents, focusing on devices used to deliver medicines, like inhalers and autoinjectors, in an effort to increase competition and potentially lower some prices.

31 Jan 2024

Study: Many older adults worry about costs, time off work and COVID-19 risk when considering surgery

When it comes to having surgery, older adults don't just base their decision on how much pain they'll feel and how quickly they'll recover, a new study finds.

30 Jan 2024

Ouch. That ‘free’ annual checkup might cost you. Here’s why.

When Kristy Uddin, 49, went in for her annual mammogram in Washington state last year, she assumed she would not incur a bill because the test is one of the many preventive measures guaranteed to be free to patients under the 2010 Affordable Care Act.

26 Jan 2024

Senate probes the cost of assisted living and its burden on American families

A U.S. Senate committee on Thursday launched an examination of assisted living, holding its first hearing in two decades on the industry as leaders of both parties expressed concern about the high cost and mixed quality of the long-term care facilities.

25 Jan 2024

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Health enters the presidential race

Based on the results of the first-in-the-nation primary in New Hampshire, it appears more likely than ever before that the 2024 presidential election will be a rerun of 2020: Joe Biden versus Donald Trump. And health is shaping up to be a key issue.

25 Jan 2024

Study lays the groundwork for improving end-of-life care

A Rutgers Health analysis of millions of Medicare records has laid the groundwork for improving end-of-life care by demonstrating that nearly all older Americans follow one of nine trajectories in their last three years of life.

24 Jan 2024

Preparing to hang up the car keys as we age

Lewis Morgenstern has made up his mind. When he turns 65 in four years, he's going to sign an advance directive for driving.

24 Jan 2024

Medicare Advantage is popular, but some beneficiaries feel buyer’s remorse

Medicare Advantage plans are booming — 30.8 million of the 60 million Americans with Medicare are now enrolled in the private plans rather than the traditional government-run program.

23 Jan 2024

What’s indoor air quality like in long-term care facilities during wildfires? Worse than you’d think.

Every year, wildfires across the western U.S. and Canada send plumes of smoke into the sky. When that smoke blows into southwestern Idaho’s Treasure Valley, it blankets Boise-area residents in dirty air.

23 Jan 2024

Watch: Older Americans say they feel stuck in Medicare Advantage plans

As enrollment in private Medicare Advantage plans grows, so do concerns about how well the coverage works, including from people who say they are stuck in the private plans as their health declines.

22 Jan 2024

Tailored opioid prescribing limits more effective at reducing prescription length, study finds

Many states have passed new laws that place restrictions on the duration of first-time opioid prescriptions to help address the opioid epidemic.

19 Jan 2024

Study explores social and economic factors linked to withdrawal of life support after intracerebral hemorrhage

Living in a high-income neighborhood, having private health insurance, and being older are tied to an increased likelihood that life support will be withdrawn for people who have suffered severe bleeding in the brain, a new study shows.

18 Jan 2024

CDC report highlights urgent need for guideline adherence in prescribing antifungal medications

The CDC's study on Medicare Part D beneficiaries reveals high prescription rates and costs for topical antifungal medications, emphasizing the need for proper prescribing guidelines amid rising antimicrobial-resistant fungal infections.

16 Jan 2024

What would a second Trump presidency look like for health care?

On the presidential campaign trail, former President Donald Trump is, once again, promising to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act — a nebulous goal that became one of his administration's splashiest policy failures.

16 Jan 2024

Bivalent COVID-19 vaccines show higher effectiveness against thromboembolic events

Study finds bivalent mRNA COVID-19 vaccines are more effective than monovalent vaccines in preventing thromboembolic events in older adults and those with end-stage renal disease.

14 Jan 2024

What would a Nikki Haley presidency look like for health care?

Republican presidential hopeful Nikki Haley will learn how her campaign is resonating with voters after the Jan. 15 Iowa caucuses, the first presidential nominating contest of this election year.

12 Jan 2024

New study reveals higher mortality risk in COVID-19 patients with newly-diagnosed atrial fibrillation

The incidence and prognosis of newly diagnosed AF in patients hospitalized due to SARS-CoV-2.

12 Jan 2024

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': All about the (government) funding

As this election year begins in earnest, making it harder for Congress to pass bills, lawmakers on Capitol Hill are still struggling to fund the government for the fiscal year that began last October.

11 Jan 2024

$In a fractious rerun, GOP rivals Haley and Desantis debate health care. Trump sits it out.$

In a fractious rerun, GOP rivals Haley and Desantis debate health care. Trump sits it out.

The race to win the quickly approaching Iowa caucuses was the theme running through Wednesday night's Republican presidential debate hosted by CNN at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa. Front-runner Donald Trump was again absent and only two other candidates made the cut: Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley.

11 Jan 2024

Delicate labor-industry deal in flux as Newsom revisits $25 minimum health wage

Gov. Gavin Newsom is revisiting California's phase-in of a nation-leading $25 minimum wage for health workers in the face of a projected $38 billion deficit, less than three months after he approved the measure.

11 Jan 2024

Medicare News and Research

The FTC is attacking drugmakers’ ‘patent thickets’

Study: Many older adults worry about costs, time off work and COVID-19 risk when considering surgery

Ouch. That ‘free’ annual checkup might cost you. Here’s why.

Senate probes the cost of assisted living and its burden on American families

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Health enters the presidential race

Study lays the groundwork for improving end-of-life care

Preparing to hang up the car keys as we age

Medicare Advantage is popular, but some beneficiaries feel buyer’s remorse

What’s indoor air quality like in long-term care facilities during wildfires? Worse than you’d think.

Watch: Older Americans say they feel stuck in Medicare Advantage plans

Tailored opioid prescribing limits more effective at reducing prescription length, study finds

Study explores social and economic factors linked to withdrawal of life support after intracerebral hemorrhage

CDC report highlights urgent need for guideline adherence in prescribing antifungal medications

What would a second Trump presidency look like for health care?

Bivalent COVID-19 vaccines show higher effectiveness against thromboembolic events

What would a Nikki Haley presidency look like for health care?

New study reveals higher mortality risk in COVID-19 patients with newly-diagnosed atrial fibrillation

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': All about the (government) funding

In a fractious rerun, GOP rivals Haley and Desantis debate health care. Trump sits it out.

Delicate labor-industry deal in flux as Newsom revisits $25 minimum health wage

Expanding research and clinical options for children with cancer

Examining how pain could play a direct protective role in the gut

From Puberty to Menopause: Clue’s CEO, Audrey Tsang on the Power of Femtech

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