Latest KFF Health News Stories
In Letter To Hill, HHS Asserts Authority To Redistribute Money To Insurers
Elsewhere, more subpoenas are issued in the investigation of whether some Hill staffers may have leaked Medicare policy news to stock brokers.
Audit Questions Female Inmate Sterilizations In California
At least 39 female inmates in California prisons underwent sterilizations in which the women’s informed consent was in question, according to a state audit released Thursday.
Preliminary Report Examines Immigrants’ Issues Getting Coverage
A study to be released in the next several weeks by an Illinois advocacy group examines issues that prevented the enrollment of many legal immigrants, The Associated Press reports. Meanwhile, The Washington Post examines a coal mining community’s hostility to the health overhaul despite its residents’ needs.
CDC Says Scientists May Have Been Exposed To Anthrax
As many as 75 researchers in Atlanta may have come in contact with the live virus after workers failed to follow proper safety procedures. CDC says the risk of infection, however, is low.
Montana Medicaid Ballot Initiative Falls Short
Supporters announced that they didn’t have enough signatures by the filing deadline. Meanwhile, in other state news on Medicaid expansion, Virginia Gov. Terry McAuliffe is facing a deadline on how to respond to the General Assembly’s budget, which did not include his request.
Obama To Extend Full Marriage Benefits To Gay Couples
Same-sex married couples will be eligible for emergency family leave and the full panoply of spousal benefits provided under federal law, regardless of whether the state in which they live recognizes their marriages. In addition, the government plans to extend those benefits to federal employees.
Calif. Marketplace Officials Raise Concerns About Initiative’s Effects
Backers of the ballot measure say it will not disrupt how the exchange works in the state but allow the insurance commissioner more authority over premium increases.
Most People Buying On Exchanges Were Uninsured, Survey Finds
Nearly six in 10 people buying their own health insurance through health law exchanges were previously uninsured — most for at least two years, according to a new survey that looks at the experiences of those most affected by the law.
State Highlights: Suit Over Transgender Medicaid Coverage In N.Y.; Calif. Nursing Home Inspections
A selection of health policy stories from New York, California, Texas, Connecticut, Colorado and Minnesota.
Viewpoints: Health Law’s ‘Risk’ Question; Medicaid Options In Va.
A selection of editorials and opinions on health care from around the country.
This week’s studies come from JAMA Internal Medicine, Circulation, The Urban Institute, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Employee Benefit Research Institute and the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports about a new poll of showing a majority of those signing up for marketplace plans had been uninsured before and the Obama administration’s decision to extend marriage benefits, including family leave, to same-sex couples.
Insurers’ 2015 Rate Filings Set Stage For Consumer Decisions
The Wall Street Journal notes that, as rates for the upcoming season shake out, consumers will make choices between paying higher premiums to stay on their current plans or switching coverage to save cash. Meanwhile, news outlets detail recent reports that analyze these costs, as well as the impact of federal subsidies, and offer regional takes on the rates.
Health Law Causing Confusion For Consumers, Health Professionals
News outlets take a look at continuing health law implementation challenges, including the difficulties that consumers are having in getting their coverage after enrolling and that the doctors’ offices face when they attempt to confirm patients’ new health plans.
Cost And Quality Concerns Linger Over Baby-Boomer Long Term Care
Elsewhere, a California home care company weighs how new labor laws will affect their bottom line and industry.
Experts Urge Business To Track Worker Health
A new group is urging businesses to improve the health of employees — and says the move could save up to $30 billion a year in health care costs.
Administration Opened Marketplaces Despite Technology Concerns, GOP Senators Say
In new report, Sens. Orrin Hatch, R-Utah, and Charles Grassley, R-Iowa, allege the White House’s delayed decisions kept health officials from meeting development deadlines for the online exchanges, Reuters reports. Meanwhile, a GAO official tells a Senate panel that the government has a flawed strategy on tech projects.
Insurers Face Difficult Cost And Coverage Calculations Regarding Gene-Sequencing Tests
Reuters reports that the question for health plans increasingly is becoming whether to pay for these tests, which can cost between $5,000 and $17,000.
High Court Decision Imminent On Health Law’s Birth Control Mandate
Also pending is a decision regarding free speech arguments against a Massachusetts law that creates a buffer zone around abortion clinics to keep protesters from patients.
Insider-Trading Probe Involving Capitol Hill Staff And Medicare Policy Heats Up
The Wall Street Journal reports that prosecutors have issued grand jury subpoenas for evidence related to whether congressional staffers provided advance information to stock traders regarding a change in health care policy.
