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Lifestyle factors play a beneficial role in the prevention of Alzheimer's and related dementias

As rates of Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia continue to rise in the U.S., new evidence suggests that lifestyle factors such as diet, exercise and sleep play an important role in reducing the risk of developing dementia.

14 Jun 2022

Preventive care may be free, but follow-up diagnostic tests can bring big bills

When Cynthia Johnson learned she would owe $200 out-of-pocket for a diagnostic mammogram in Houston, she almost put off getting the test that told her she had breast cancer.

14 Jun 2022

Medicaid weighs attaching strings to nursing home payments to improve patient care

The Biden administration is considering a requirement that the nation's 15,500 nursing homes spend most of their payments from Medicaid on direct care for residents and limit the amount that is used for operations, maintenance, and capital improvements or diverted to profits.

10 Jun 2022

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Taking a shot at gun control

The House passed a package of bills to restrict the availability of assault weapons to minors and other measures to curb gun violence, but talks in the Senate have yet to produce breakthroughs on what has been a legislative stalemate for years.

9 Jun 2022

They thought they were buying Obamacare plans. What they got wasn’t insurance.

Tina Passione needed health insurance in a hurry in December. The newly retired 63-year-old was relocating to suburban Atlanta with her husband to be closer to grandchildren.

7 Jun 2022

Hospice patients with dementia more likely to receive excellent care, study shows

While the hospice program was originally designed for patients with cancer, who are expected to die within six months, currently close to half of older adult hospice enrollees have a diagnosis of dementia.

6 Jun 2022

Multidisciplinary medical team needed to provide care for pregnant women with lupus, study says

A study that includes researchers at Hospital for Special Surgery underscores the importance of a multidisciplinary medical team to counsel and provide care for women with systemic lupus erythematosus, the most common form of lupus, who become pregnant.

2 Jun 2022

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Washington’s slow churn

In the wake of three high-profile mass shootings in less than a month, lawmakers on Capitol Hill have renewed negotiations over legislation that could stem gun violence.

2 Jun 2022

Despite a first-ever ‘right-to-repair’ law, there’s no easy fix for wheelchair users

Robin Bolduc isn't the type of person who takes "no" for an answer — particularly when it comes to fixing her husband's wheelchair.

2 Jun 2022

Dementia diagnosis can also make a big difference in health care costs

Getting diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease or another kind of dementia is never pleasant – but a new study shows that when and how someone's cognitive issues come to light can also make a big difference in their health care costs.

31 May 2022

A multi-pronged effort needed to ensure all patients with obesity get better care

When a person with diabetes, high blood pressure, or osteoarthritis goes to their primary care clinic, they expect treatment that's grounded in modern medical evidence.

31 May 2022

Researchers call for nursing homes to shift to non-medication-based methods to help dementia patients

A decade-long effort to reduce medication risks for nursing home residents with dementia has paid off in some ways – but produced unintended consequences that now need addressing, new research shows.

31 May 2022

Her first colonoscopy cost her $0. Her second cost $2,185. Why?

Elizabeth Melville and her husband are gradually hiking all 48 mountain peaks that top 4,000 feet in New Hampshire.

31 May 2022

Betting on ‘golden age’ of colonoscopies, private equity invests in gastro docs

Mariel needed a new gastroenterologist. Having just moved back to San Antonio, the 30-something searched for a doctor to manage her Crohn's disease, an inflammatory bowel condition that is successfully managed with medications and lifelong monitoring — including regular colonoscopies.

27 May 2022

Burned out by covid and 80-hour workweeks, resident physicians unionize

In the early weeks of the pandemic, Dr. Lorenzo González, then a second-year resident of family medicine at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, ran on fumes, working as many as 80 hours a week in the ICU.

27 May 2022

Novavax missed its global moonshot but is angling to win over mRNA defectors

Novavax hitched its wagon to the global coronavirus pandemic. Before most Americans truly grasped the scope of the danger, the small Maryland biotech startup had secured $1.6 billion in U.S. funding for its covid vaccine. Its moonshot goal: delivering 2 billion shots to the world by mid-2021.

26 May 2022

Common prostate cancer medications may increase risk of serious metabolic or cardiovascular issues

Men taking either of the two most common oral medications for advanced prostate cancer who had also undergone hormone therapy to treat their disease were at higher risk of serious metabolic or cardiovascular issues than patients who were only receiving hormone therapy, Michigan Medicine researchers found.

25 May 2022

Study estimates $1.8 billion in Medicare spending on drugs with accelerated approval

The U.S. federal government spent an estimated $1.8 billion in Medicare funds in 2019 on drugs whose clinical benefits have yet to be confirmed by the Food and Drug Administration, a new study led by researchers from the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health suggests.

24 May 2022

Gallstone disease may be a way to better diagnose deadly pancreatic cancer

Patients with pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) were six times more likely to have had gallstone disease within the year prior to diagnosis than non-cancer patients, suggesting gallstones could be a warning sign for this aggressive and deadly cancer, according to research to be presented at Digestive Disease Week (DDW) 2022.

24 May 2022

Tribal pharmacy dispenses free meds and fills gaps for Native Americans in the city

Tucked away on a side street near downtown, the Mashkiki Waakaa'igan Pharmacy offers its Native American clientele the services of any ordinary drugstore — it dispenses critical medication and provides consultation on treatments.

24 May 2022

Medicare News and Research

Lifestyle factors play a beneficial role in the prevention of Alzheimer's and related dementias

Preventive care may be free, but follow-up diagnostic tests can bring big bills

Medicaid weighs attaching strings to nursing home payments to improve patient care

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Taking a shot at gun control

They thought they were buying Obamacare plans. What they got wasn’t insurance.

Hospice patients with dementia more likely to receive excellent care, study shows

Multidisciplinary medical team needed to provide care for pregnant women with lupus, study says

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Washington’s slow churn

Despite a first-ever ‘right-to-repair’ law, there’s no easy fix for wheelchair users

Dementia diagnosis can also make a big difference in health care costs

A multi-pronged effort needed to ensure all patients with obesity get better care

Researchers call for nursing homes to shift to non-medication-based methods to help dementia patients

Her first colonoscopy cost her $0. Her second cost $2,185. Why?

Betting on ‘golden age’ of colonoscopies, private equity invests in gastro docs

Burned out by covid and 80-hour workweeks, resident physicians unionize

Novavax missed its global moonshot but is angling to win over mRNA defectors

Common prostate cancer medications may increase risk of serious metabolic or cardiovascular issues

Study estimates $1.8 billion in Medicare spending on drugs with accelerated approval

Gallstone disease may be a way to better diagnose deadly pancreatic cancer

Tribal pharmacy dispenses free meds and fills gaps for Native Americans in the city

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