health care

Former Planned Parenthood CEO On Leadership Upheaval

5:23pm July 20, 2019

NPR's Sarah McCammon talks to Pamela Maraldo, former CEO of Planned Parenthood. She left the organization under similar circumstances as Dr. Leana Wen, who was ousted from her position this week.

Nationally, drug overdose deaths reached record levels in 2017, when a group protested in New York City on Overdose Awareness Day on August 31. Deaths appear to have declined slightly in 2018, based on provisional numbers, but nearly 68,000 people still d

Health & Safety

U.S. Overdose Deaths Dipped In 2018, But Some States Saw 'Devastating' Increases

5:16pm July 18, 2019

by Selena Simmons-Duffin

Provisional overdose data for 2018 show a note of hope in an overall bleak picture. But in some states, the numbers actually got worse. What explains the disparities?

Opioid Epidemic 'Road Map' Shows 76 Billion Pills Distributed Between 2006 And 2012

5:25pm July 17, 2019

NPR's Mary Louise Kelly talks with Washington Post reporter Scott Higham about federal data that shows the scope of the opioid crisis: 76 billion pills distributed between 2006 through 2012.

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The Trump administration has suggested buying a prescription drug is like buying a car — with plenty of room to negotiate down from the sticker price. But drug pricing analysts say the analogy doesn't work.

Car Shopping, Handbags And Wealthy Uncles: The Quest To Explain High Drug Prices

4:48pm July 17, 2019

by Selena Simmons-Duffin

Trump administration officials say drugs' list prices are like cars' sticker prices — easily negotiated. But in the life and death world of medicine, say price watchers, that analogy falls apart.

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Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter begins closing statements during the opioid trial at the Cleveland County Courthouse in Norman, Okla., on Monday, July 15. It's the first public trial to emerge from roughly 2,000 U.S. lawsuits aimed at holding drugma

Health & Safety

Pain Meds As Public Nuisance? Oklahoma Tests A Legal Strategy For Opioid Addiction

5:55pm July 16, 2019

by Jackie Fortier

The first civil trial against an opioid manufacturer, Johnson & Johnson, has ended in Oklahoma. The verdict could affect lawsuits filed by other local and state governments coping with addiction.

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Bacteria (purple) in the bloodstream can trigger sepsis, a life-threatening illness.

Health & Safety

Regulations That Mandate Sepsis Care Appear To Have Worked In New York

5:16pm July 16, 2019

by Richard Harris

Sepsis, the body's overreaction to infection, strikes more than a million Americans a year and kills more than 250,000. Evidence suggests that regulations can improve its diagnosis and patient care.

Medicare Advantage plans, administered by private insurance companies under contract with Medicare, treat more than 22 million seniors — more than 1 in 3 people on Medicare.

Health & Safety

Medicare Advantage Plans Overbill Taxpayers By Billions Annually, Records Show

3:08pm July 16, 2019

The federal government wants to deploy several new tools for catching insurers that have overcharged Medicare $30 billion in the past three years alone. But the insurance industry is balking.

Tomas Philipson, seen in 2008, has been named acting chairman of President Trump's Council of Economic Advisers.

Trump Taps Health Care Expert As Acting Top White House Economist

10:32pm July 15, 2019

by Scott Horsley

President Trump has been expected to nominate Tomas Philipson as permanent chair of his Council of Economic Advisers. Philipson, an expert on health economics, succeeds Kevin Hassett.

Oklahoma Opioid Trial Ends

6:08pm July 15, 2019

by Jackie Fortier

Monday was the last day in a widely-watched trial about opioid addiction in Oklahoma. The state sued opioid manufacturers, but only Johnson & Johnson fought it in court after others settled.

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Health & Safety

Overhauling Kidney Care

8:26am July 13, 2019

This week, President Trump signed an executive order aimed at improving the care of kidney patients. Nephrologist Amaka Eneanya talks with Scott Simon about some of the new initiatives.