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FILE - In this April 27, 2020, file photo Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Seema Verma walks to the Rose Garden to attend a briefing with President Donald Trump about the coronavirus in the Rose Garden of the White House in Washington. Federal health authorities have received reports of nearly 26,000 nursing home residents dying from COVID-19, according to materials prepared for the nation's governors. Verma says states should use “extreme caution” before reopening nursing homes to visitors. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)

Nearly 26,000 COVID deaths in nursing homes spur inspections

Jun. 1, 2020 6:56 PM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Nearly 26,000 nursing home residents have died from COVID-19, the government reported Monday, as federal officials demanded states carry out more inspections and vowed higher fines for facilities with poor infection control. The partial numbers released by the Centers for Medicare and...

President Donald Trump answers questions from reporters during an event on protecting seniors with diabetes in the Rose Garden White House, Tuesday, May 26, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

AP FACT CHECK: Trump spars with Twitter on voting, protests

Jun. 1, 2020 2:10 AM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump and Twitter tangled over truth and consequences this past week as the social media giant flagged the president's tweets for spreading false information and potentially inciting violence. The episode left Trump fuming and threatening reprisals against the platform he...

President Donald Trump speaks in the Rose Garden of the White House, Friday, May 29, 2020, in Washington. From left with Trump are, White House trade adviser Peter Navarro, White House national security adviser Robert O'Brien, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin, U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer and White House chief economic adviser Larry Kudlow. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

AP FACT CHECK: Trump vs. Twitter on truth and consequences

May. 30, 2020 9:23 AM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump and Twitter tangled over truth and consequences this past week as the social media giant flagged the president's tweets for spreading false information and potentially inciting violence. The episode left Trump fuming and threatening reprisals against the platform he...

President Donald Trump answers questions from reporters during an event on protecting seniors with diabetes in the Rose Garden White House, Tuesday, May 26, 2020, in Washington. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci)

AP FACT CHECK: Trump falsely blames Obama for pricey drugs

May. 27, 2020 2:55 PM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump tangled the facts when he asserted Tuesday at a White House Rose Garden event that “Obamacare” raised prescription drug costs for older people — the opposite is true. Trump also misfired by taunting Democratic presidential rival Joe Biden for...

FILE - In this Feb. 13, 2020, file photo, The Official U.S. Government Medicare Handbook for 2020 over pages of a Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the Inspector General report, are shown in Washington. The Trump administration says most people with Medicare will have access to prescription plans next year that limit copays for insulin to a maximum of $35 a month. Tuesday's announcement comes as President Donald Trump returns to the issue of drug prices to woo older people whose votes will be critical to his reelection prospects. (AP Photos/Wayne Partlow, File)

Most Medicare enrollees could get insulin for $35 a month

May. 26, 2020 6:01 PM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Many Medicare recipients could pay less for insulin next year under a deal President Donald Trump announced Tuesday in a pivot to pocketbook issues important in November's election. “I hope the seniors are going to remember it,” Trump said at a Rose Garden ceremony, joined...

Bill seeks to get meals to medically vulnerable seniors

May. 23, 2020 1:37 PM EDT

BOSTON (AP) — A bill that would establish a Medicare pilot program to address the link between diet, chronic illness, and senior health has been introduced by a bipartisan group including U.S. Rep. Jim McGovern. The Massachusetts Democrat said the bill would ensure that nutritious meals reach medically...

Jack Campise talks with his mother, Beverly Kearns, through her apartment window at the Kimberly Hall North nursing home, Thursday, May 14, 2020 in Windsor, Conn. The coronavirus has had no regard for health care quality or ratings as it has swept through nursing homes around the world, killing efficiently even in highly rated care centers. Preliminary research indicates the numbers of nursing home residents testing positive for the coronavirus and dying from COVID-19 are linked to location and population density — not care quality ratings. (AP Photo/Chris Ehrmann

'Invisible demon': Virus hits even top-rated nursing homes

May. 21, 2020 11:07 AM EDT

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — The Abbott Terrace Health Center in Waterbury, where 41 residents have died from the coronavirus, has been cited by regulators for infection control violations and fined three times by the state and federal governments over the last several years. It has the lowest nursing home...

FILE - In this April 30, 2020 file photo Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Seema Verma speaks about protecting seniors, in the East Room of the White House in Washington. Federal authorities aren’t setting any hard dates for when nursing homes can allow family members to visit again. “We’re urging governors to proceed with extreme caution because these are the most vulnerable citizens. We know that nursing homes have struggled,” said Seema Verma, head of CMS, in a phone interview, Monday, May 18, 2020. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, file)

Watchdog cites persistent infection lapses in nursing homes

May. 20, 2020 7:38 PM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Before COVID-19 killed thousands of nursing home residents, about 4 in 10 homes inspected were cited for infection control problems, according to a government watchdog report Wednesday that finds a “persistent” pattern of lapses. In light of the pandemic, seemingly minor...

FILE - In this April 30, 2020 file photo Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services Seema Verma speaks about protecting seniors, in the East Room of the White House in Washington. Federal authorities aren’t setting any hard dates for when nursing homes can allow family members to visit again. “We’re urging governors to proceed with extreme caution because these are the most vulnerable citizens. We know that nursing homes have struggled,” said Seema Verma, head of CMS, in a phone interview, Monday, May 18, 2020. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, file)

Feds urge 'extreme caution' for reopening nursing homes

May. 18, 2020 6:59 PM EDT

NEW YORK (AP) — Federal authorities are urging governors to use “extreme caution” in deciding when to resume visits at nursing homes, saying it shouldn't come before all residents and staff have tested negative for the coronavirus for at least 28 days. The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid...

FILE - In this March 8, 2020, file photo Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-NY., speaks at a campaign rally for then-Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Mich. (AP Photo/Paul Sancya, File)

Ocasio-Cortez among top Dems promoting Biden-Sanders unity

May. 13, 2020 6:25 AM EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) — Joe Biden and the last rival he bested to become the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, Bernie Sanders, on Wednesday announced the members of joint task forces their campaigns will use to promote party unity by hammering out consensus on six top policy issues. They include New...

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