Latest KFF Health News Stories
State Exchanges Wrestle With Provider Directories, Search Tools
News outlets report on some of the challenges and sign-up tallies for state-based online insurance marketplaces in California, Minnesota, Washington and Maryland. Also in the news, progress updates regarding outreach efforts and small businesses that are attempting to use the exchanges.
State Medicaid Decisions Hurt Community Health Centers Serving Neediest
Community health centers in states that have rejected the Medicaid expansion under the health law will lose out on a half billion dollars in new revenue in 2014 that could hamper their ability to serve millions of uninsured people seeking care, according to a study from George Washington University.
Sebelius Says She Won’t Resign, Asks Public To Try Exchanges Again
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius doesn’t intend to resign over the health law’s shaky rollout of insurance exchanges, despite GOP pressure. In the meantime, she is also calling on the public to renew their attempts at buying coverage on the exchanges.
Hospitals Try New Tactics To Reduce Hospital Falls
The nation’s medical workforce grapples with preventing falls in the hospital to improve patient safety. In the meantime, seniors in some places of the country are more likely to fill prescriptions for high-risk drugs, and Miami’s seniors lead the nation in filling Medicare prescriptions.
State News: Texas To Close High-Risk Pool; Baltimore Probes Complaint Against Aetna
A selection of health policy stories from Massachusetts, Texas, California, Oregon, Missouri and Maryland.
Medicaid Expansion Still In Play In Ohio, New Hampshire
Some Ohio lawmakers push back against Gov. John Kasich’s move to bypass the legislature to expand Medicaid, and New Hampshire legislators plan to meet next month to hammer out what leaders hope will be a bipartisan deal to expand the state-federal program for the poor. Meanwhile, likely Virginia voters support expansion 51 percent to 42 percent with the divide falling along party lines, according to a new poll.
Viewpoints: ‘Surrender’ By Republicans; ‘Myth’ Of Income Verification; ‘This Fight Didn’t End’
A selection of editorials and opinions on health care from around the country.
Longer Looks: Making RomneyCare Work For Other States
This week’s studies come from The Boston Globe, The Atlantic, The New York Times and ProPublica.
First Edition: October 17, 2013
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports and analyses of the Capitol Hill deal to raise the debt limit and reopen the federal government, as well as the latest developments regarding the health law’s federal and state health insurance exchanges.
Finally Home, Traumatically Injured Vets Face New Lives As VA Faces Costs
No one can tally the full cost of caring for veterans with life-lasting wounds, but the financial price — immeasurable compared to the emotional toll on vets and their families — will increase as they age.
Options For Consumers When COBRA Coverage Runs Out
A reader asks: Can COBRA health insurance coverage be extended beyond 36 months?
In Week Two, Washington State Exchange Enrollment Nearly Triples
About 25,000 Washington state residents have enrolled in health plans through the state’s online insurance exchange marketplace during its first two weeks. That figure is nearly triple the 9,500 residents who completed their enrollment during the first week that the exchange, called Washington Healthplanfinder, was open for enrollment. An additional 37,000 people have completed applications […]
Shutdown Not Hurting Seniors’ Ability To Get Medicare Plan Information
The government may still be shut down — for now — and federal websites still caution visitors that information may not be up to date while the government is closed. But Medicare beneficiaries do not have to worry about getting accurate details from the plan finder website during the current open enrollment season, officials said. […]
States’ Medicaid Decisions Cost Community Health Centers
Community health centers will pay a steep price for states’ decisions not to expand Medicaid under the federal health law. A new study by George Washington University researchers estimates that 518 health centers in the more than two dozen states not expanding Medicaid will lose out on $555 million next year because their uninsured patients won’t […]
Miami Leads Nation In Medicare Drug Spending
Miami seniors filled more prescriptions and spent more on medications than their counterparts elsewhere, but they also fared better in comparison to the rest of the nation for their use of effective medications, such as beta blockers to reduce blood pressure.
Tuesday Came And Went — Still No Agreement To Reopen The Gov’t, Raise The Debt Ceiling
Differences among House GOP lawmakers are a key factor in this ongoing Capitol Hill drama, as some members continue to push to delay and derail parts of the health law. The current proposal emerging from the Senate includes changes to the overhaul, but most say these provisions would not significantly alter the measure.
Congressional Health Coverage At Center Of House GOP Concerns
Conservatives argue that federal contributions to their health insurance, which the health law requires them to purchase in the new online marketplaces, is an unfair subsidy. But Democrats say the government is just providing the same support that it has in the past and is in line with what other big employers give workers.
5.2M Won’t Get Coverage In States Rejecting Medicaid Expansion
A new report projects that 5.2 million adults will not get health coverage next year because their states aren’t expanding Medicaid under the health law. In Wisconsin, expanding the program becomes an issue in the gubernatorial race, while in North Carolina, county commissioners ask state officials to reconsider their decision not to expand, and in Virginia, supporters of expansion outnumber opponents in a hearing.
Health Law Politics Are Far From Over
The Washington Post reports that the political winds in individual states will impact the health law’s chances for success or failure — maybe even more than the current technical challenges that have been a hallmark of its roll out.
Report: 5.2 Million Adults Will Fall Into ACA Coverage Gap Next Year
About 5.2 million poor, uninsured adults will fall into the “coverage gap,” created by 26 states choosing not to expand Medicaid under the federal health law next year, according to a study released today by the Kaiser Family Foundation. (KHN is an editorially independent program of the foundation.) These people are projected to have incomes too high to qualify […]