Latest KFF Health News Stories
Medicaid Expansion Efforts Facing Challenges From Healthcare.gov
The Washington Post and Kaiser Health News report that some people who would be eligible for this coverage may be falling through the cracks. Meanwhile, Bloomberg examines how accessing health care plays out differently in states that pursued the expansion and those that didn’t.
Meanwhile, news outlets also report on state health law implementation action in Minnesota, Iowa and Pennsylvania.
A selection of editorials and opinions on health care from around the country.
Have More People Lost Health Insurance Than Gained It?
Fact checkers from the Washington Post and FactCheck.Org examine GOP claims about the number of people who have lost coverage — both in terms of individual and employer-provided coverage — as a result of the health law.
HHS To Release Slow-Growth Health Spending Numbers As Obama Readies Big Push For Law
News outlets covered administration efforts to build public confidence in the Affordable Care Act.
White House Seeks To Tighten Background Checks To Keep Guns From Those With Mental Illness
The Obama administration is proposing regulatory changes to clarify who is prohibited from owning a gun for mental health reasons and to tighten background checks. In the meantime, lawmakers consider increasing mental health funding after the Sandy Hook massacre.
Eyes Peeled On Health Law, GOP Shrinks Expectations For Major Election Year Action
Republican lawmakers are refocusing their election-year political efforts on hammering the health law’s unpopularity even as the agenda for getting legislation done shrinks amid a tightening political climate, which could stall immigration and unemployment benefit measures.
Wis. Senator Suing Obama Administration Over Health Law Subsidies
Meanwhile, fellow Republicans Sen. Rand Paul and Rep. Phil Gingrey also are heavily criticizing the law.
New Abortion Restrictions Continue Torrid Pace With Texas Law At Center
Between 2011 and 2013, more than 200 abortion restrictions were passed in states, NPR reports. At the center of recent controversy is a Texas law that would require doctors giving abortions to have admitting privileges at nearby hospitals.
How Obamacare Coverage Is Shaking Out
Even with the health law’s insurance options, consumers struggling with chronic diseases may still face such high out-of-pocket costs on some plans that they could have trouble staying out of debt, reports the Associated Press. Meanwhile, several major drugstore chains are offering to fill prescriptions for those who enrolled in new health plans but don’t have ID numbers yet.
State Highlights: N.C. Officials Detail Medicaid Personal Info Mishap
A selection of health policy stories from North Carolina, Massachusetts, Florida, Virginia, Wisconsin and California.
Administration: Contraception Rule Does Not Burden Religious Groups
In the latest legal skirmish over the so-called contraceptive mandate in the health law, Obama administration lawyers urged Justice Sonia Sotomayor to drop an appeal from the Little Sisters of the Poor and other Catholic groups. Nonprofit religious charities can opt out of the requirement, they argued. The rule already faces a challenge from several for-profit companies that will be heard by the high court.
First Edition: January 6, 2014
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports about how the health law fits into the Capitol Hill agenda for the year ahead.
Justice Dept. Defends Birth Control Rule Against Nuns’ Suit
The administration responded to a lawsuit by a group of nuns challenging how the health law exempts them from the rule.
For The Health Law, Are The First Days The Hardest Ones?
News outlets take a look at how the health law’s implementation is working out on the ground during these first days of January.
State Insurance Exchanges Continue To Struggle Even After New Year Deadline
The Washington Post Fact Checker takes a closer look at the health law enrollment target the Obama administration is now backing away from. In the meantime, many states continue to confront insurance exchange challenges even after the crush of customers looking to get coverage to start in January.
Confusion For People Who Enrolled In Medicaid On Healthcare.gov
Some people who applied early in the open enrollment period may not actually be signed up for the program and may be flummoxed by federal robocalls encouraging them to apply again directly to state agencies. Also, news outlets offer updates from Missouri, Pennsylvania and Maryland.
House Plans Vote On Security Requirements For Health Insurance Exchanges
In what will likely be the GOP’s first effort in 2014 to undercut the health law, House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va., said Thursday he plans to bring up the measure next week.
Medicaid Expansion Boosted Emergency Room Visits In Oregon, Study Finds
A new study of a 2008 expansion of Oregon’s Medicaid program showed those with new coverage used emergency rooms 40 percent more often than other adults, throwing some water on the long-held argument that expanding Medicaid coverage lowers ER usage and boosts primary care visits.
Koch-Backed Group Launches Ads Against Senators Who Supported Health Law
Americans For Prosperity, a group backed by the billionaire Koch brothers, said it will spend $2.5 million for TV ads targeting three vulnerable Democrats who supported the health care law — Sens. Kay Hagan of North Carolina, Mary Landrieu of Louisiana and Jeanne Shaheen of New Hampshire. Other groups are using dueling personal stories to try to sway public opinion.
