Debra Miller

More than 20 legislators from 16 states--many of them in key leadership positions on health or budget committees that deal with Medicaid in their home states--attended a CSG policy academy in Washington D.C. on September 21-23, 2016, to learn how states are making reforms in their Medicaid program that pursue the health "triple aim": improving the quality of care for individuals, improving the health of populations, and reducing per capita costs of health care.

Maybe, but not as soon as Gov. Bentley had hoped.

On Tuesday, Aug. 23, the Alabama House failed to allow a committee meeting to move forward in time to get the lottery proposal, as a constitutional amendment, on the Nov. 8 general election ballot, according to media coverage by AL.com.

The CDC issued a travel warning advising pregnant women against travel to the Wynwood Arts District of Miami after 14 persons have been infected with Zika by local mosquitoes. The first four cases were traced to a 150 square meter area and the 10 new cases were identified by door-to-door surveys and subsequent testing, CNN reported.

Kaiser Family Foundation has posted an excellent web panel discussion on drug pricing. Representatives from Pfizer, a large international pharmaceutical company; Express Scripts, and Aetna, a major health insurance carrier, talk with Larry Levitt, a Kaiser senior vice president.