Latest KFF Health News Stories
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports about the politics surrounding the Wednesday unveiling of President Barack Obama’s budget as well as other news about the health law’s implementation.
Budget Battles Brewing Over Medicare, Other Entitlements
As details emerged about the president’s budget, to be released on Wednesday, it’s being criticized from both left and right.
Obama Budget Will Propose Changes To Medicare
Previews of President Barack Obama’s budget proposal, which is expected to be released next week, indicate that he will signal a willingness to compromise with Republicans by including trims to Medicare. The blueprint, though, reportedly will not make major dents in Medicaid.
NAIC Offers States Ways To ‘Mitigate’ Expected Premium Increases
Also in the news, a report from InsuranceQuotes.com concluded that the vast majority of Americans don’t know when they can start signing up for health exchanges.
Judge Rules Morning-After Pill Must Be Available Over The Counter For All Ages
The ruling came in response to a lawsuit brought by reproductive-rights groups.
A selection of editorials and opinions on health care from around the country.
GOP SGR Plan Would Ease Docs Toward Medicare Pay-For-Performance Model
Under its new proposal to replace the Medicare physician payment formula, the House GOP plan would provide physicians with a stable, pre-set fee schedule to allow an eventual transition to alternate payment models. After that transitional period, payments would be linked to performance measures and other quality metrics.
Spate Of State Actions Worries Abortion-Rights Advocates, Divides Lawmakers
The advocates fear that a recent spate of measures, including one recently approved by lawmakers in Alabama, could roll back availability of abortions while a debate in Virginia on the issue opens a chasm among lawmakers.
Health Law Coverage Expansion Will Help Ex-Felons
Stateline reports that the health law’s Medicaid expansion will make many newly released prison inmates eligible for coverage. Also in the news, reports on the latest Medicaid expansion developments in Texas, Florida and Iowa.
State Highlights: Calif. Weighs Charity Minimum For Nonprofit Hospitals
A selection of health policy stories from California, Kansas, Nevada, Oregon, Georgia, Connecticut, Massachusetts and North Carolina.
Research Roundup: Looking At CHIP To Gauge Effect Of Health Law On Doctors
This week’s studies come from Medicare & Medicaid Research Review, The Commonwealth Fund, Georgetwon University Law Center, The Kaiser Family Foundation, Trust for America’s Health, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and other news sources.
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports about how President Barack Obama’s budget proposal — to be released next week — will handle Medicare and Medicaid.
Medicare Misperceptions Create Tougher Task For Lawmakers
The New York Times reports that public misunderstandings about the specifics of entitlement benefits make trimming Medicare spending more difficult. Meanwhile, Politico reports on an idea that might bridge the partisan divide that plagues these efforts.
Feds Issue Rules For ‘Navigators’ Who Will Help Consumers Buy Health Insurance
As the Obama administration published rules for “navigators,” who will be hired in every state to help consumers shop in new insurance marketplaces, news outlets examine how states are setting up those marketplaces and the impact on consumers.
Proposal To Eliminate SGR Payment Formula Is Revised
The House panels’ proposal to replace Medicare’s sustainable growth rate formula is seen as a way to change how Medicare delivers care. Meanwhile, some House GOP lawmakers who have complained about the health law’s costs said Wednesday that it should have allocated more money to a program to cover people with pre-existing health conditions.
Dementia’s Price Tag Can Exceed $50,000 A Year, Study Finds
The study, published in the April 3 edition of the New England Journal of Medicine, found this medical condition costs the nation as much as $215 billion a year.
Study: Tricare Not Widely Accepted By Physicians
According to USA Today, the government study found the reasons cited by doctors are a lack of familiarity with the Pentagon health care program or the lag time for reimbursement.
State Roundup: Texas Hospitals Spar Over Indigent Care Payments
A selection of health policy stories from California, Texas, Kansas, Tennessee, Ohio, Oregon and Massachusetts.
Burden Of Care For Many Immigrants Untouched By Medicaid Expansion
Also in the news, media outlets offer news and analysis regarding Medicaid expansion plans and debates in Florida, Pennsylvania and Missouri.
N.C. Governor Proposes Managed Care Move For State’s Medicaid Program
In the meantime, other stakeholders in Texas, Florida and California consider changes to their Medicaid plans.
