Julie Rovner, NPR News

Abortion Supporters Now Blast Administration Over Health Law

KFF Health News Original

The administration is getting an earful from abortion rights groups for making sure that states getting federal funds to run insurance programs for people with pre-exisitng conditions don’t cover elective abortions.

Ranks Of The Uninsured Keep Growing

KFF Health News Original

The U.S. census’ estimates of how many people in the country don’t have health insurance won’t be done until late summer, but the CDC is out with a snapshot of its own. And the findings aren’t pretty.

Patient Survey: More Health Care Is Better, Despite What Experts Say

KFF Health News Original

A new survey finds that, when it comes to their own health care, most people say “more is better, newer is better, you get what you pay for.” That’s frustrating for experts who say these things are often not true.

Some Recent Grads Face Health Care Coverage Gap

KFF Health News Original

With the new health law’s requirement that young adults be able to remain on their parents’ health plans until they turn 26. But when exactly the new benefit begins, who exactly is eligible and who decides all have the same answer: It depends.

Insurer Seeks A Little Less Parity For Mental Health Coverage

KFF Health News Original

You might think the fight over mental health parity – the requirement that health insurance plans not handle coverage for mental ailments any differently than coverage for any other disorder – would be over. You would, however, be wrong.

Medicare Doctor Pay ‘Fix’ Deadline Looming – Again

KFF Health News Original

For the third time this year, Congress has just days to avert a scheduled 21 percent cut in pay to doctors who treat seniors and others on the Medicare program. And no one seems to be able to figure out how to solve the problem in anything except a stopgap way.

Medicare Advantage Plans Earn So-So Quality Grades

KFF Health News Original

An analysis by the consulting firm Avalere Health finds less than a fourth of the roughly 11 million people enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans as of this spring belonged to plans that had earned four- or five-star quality ratings from Medicare officials.

Big Health Insurers Have A Gift For College Grads

KFF Health News Original

This year’s crop of college graduates may have trouble finding a job, given the state of the economy. But some of them will have a much easier time keeping health insurance while they look.

Health Law Rolls Back Abortion Rights, Groups Say

KFF Health News Original

Recent fights between anti-abortion groups could leave people with the impression that the new health overhaul law expands women’s access to abortion. But abortion-rights groups vehemently disagree. “There are extraordinary things in health care reform for women,” says Judy Lichtman, a senior adviser to the National Partnership for Women and Families, which supports abortion rights. […]

House Democrats Weigh Obscure Tactic To Pass Health Care

KFF Health News Original

Democrats are exploring a tricky procedure called “deeming” to speed up passage of health care legislation. The move would allow the House to pass the Senate health bill without a separate and distinct vote on it.

Refresher: What’s In The Health Reform Bills

KFF Health News Original

Since the Senate passed its version of a health overhaul Christmas Eve, most of the debate has focused on the politics of the effort. By now, many people have forgotten – if they ever knew – what the bill would actually do.

Health Care No Stranger To Congressional Budget Reconciliation Process

KFF Health News Original

To get health reform passed, Democrats could use a process called budget reconciliation, which allows them to advance the bill with a simple majority. Republicans say the process was not designed for such a large bill, but reconciliation has often been used to move major health policy.