The Host
How ought to journalists cowl political candidates who make false claims in regards to the security and effectiveness of vaccines? That query will must be answered now that famous anti-vaccine activist Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has formally entered the 2024 presidential race.
In the meantime, South Carolina has turn into one of many final states within the South to move an abortion ban, making the process all however not possible to acquire for girls throughout a broad swath of the nation.
This week’s panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Well being Information, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Rachel Cohrs of Stat, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet.
Among the many takeaways from this week’s episode:
- Republican lawmakers and President Joe Biden proceed to cut price over a deal to avert a debt ceiling collapse. Unspent pandemic funding is on the negotiating desk, because the White Home pushes to guard cash for vaccine growth — although the administration has drawn criticism for a scarcity of transparency over what could be included in a clawback of unspent {dollars}.
- In abortion information, South Carolina is the most recent state to vote to limit entry to abortion, passing laws this week that will ban abortion after six weeks of being pregnant — shortly after pregnant folks miss their first interval. And Texas is seeing extra authorized challenges to the state regulation’s exceptions to guard a mom’s life, as instances more and more present that many docs are erring on the facet of not offering care to keep away from felony {and professional} legal responsibility.
- Congress is scrutinizing the position of group buying organizations in drug pricing as extra is revealed about how pharmacy profit managers negotiate reductions. So-called GPOs provide well being care organizations, like hospitals, the flexibility to work collectively to leverage market energy and negotiate higher offers from suppliers.
- Lawmakers are additionally exploring adjustments to the best way Medicare pays for a similar care carried out in a health care provider’s workplace versus a hospital setting. At the moment, suppliers can cost extra in a hospital setting, however some members of Congress need to finish that discrepancy — and doubtlessly save the federal government billions.
- And our panel of well being journalists discusses an necessary query after a outstanding anti-vaccine activist entered the presidential race final month: How do you responsibly cowl a candidate who promotes conspiracy theories? The reply could also be present in a “fact sandwich.”
Additionally this week, Rovner interviews KFF Well being Information senior correspondent Aneri Pattani about her undertaking to trace the cash from the nationwide opioid settlement.
Plus, for “further credit score,” the panelists recommend well being coverage tales they learn this week that they suppose you must learn, too:
Julie Rovner: KFF Well being Information’ “Distant Work: An Underestimated Profit for Household Caregivers,” by Joanne Kenen
Alice Miranda Ollstein: Reuters’ “How Docs Purchase Their Approach out of Bother,” by Michael Berens
Rachel Cohrs: ProPublica’s “Within the ‘Wild West’ of Outpatient Vascular Care, Docs Can Reap Big Funds as Sufferers Threat Life and Limb,” by Annie Waldman
Sarah Karlin-Smith: The New York Occasions’ “Warmth Wave and Blackout Would Ship Half of Phoenix to E.R., Examine Says,” by Michael Levenson
Additionally talked about on this week’s episode:
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This text was produced by KFF Well being Information, previously generally known as Kaiser Well being Information (KHN), a nationwide newsroom that produces in-depth journalism about well being points and is without doubt one of the core working applications at KFF — the unbiased supply for well being coverage analysis, polling, and journalism.
