Latest KFF Health News Stories
Governors’ Wish List For Medicaid
A sampling of Medicaid changes some state chief executives would advance if they were given more flexibility from the federal government. This issue is likely to be a hot topic this weekend as the governors convene in Washington, D.C. for their winter meeting.
Wisconsin Union Battle Masks Medicaid Tensions
Democrats say Gov. Scott Walker’s proposal to tackle a two-year $3.6 billion deficit by making speedy changes in health care programs needs wider scrutiny.
HHS To Governors: You Have Flexibility On Health Reform Implementation
Federal officials are trying to soothe deficit-saddled governors headed for their winter meeting in Washington D.C.
Regulators Penalize Some Maryland Hospitals For Complication Rates
A Maryland program to curb hospital infection rates is showing signs of success, but nine hospitals still fell short last year and were penalized a total of $2.1 million.
When Care Is Split Between Medicare And Medicaid: KHN Interview With Melanie Bella
Melanie Bella heads the new federal office that seeks to help people whose coverage is often fragmented because they qualify for both programs and to save the government money by streamlining that coverage.
Many Americans Incorrectly Believe Health Law Has Been Repealed
Nearly a year after passage of the health care overhaul law, barely half of Americans know the law remains intact, a Kaiser Family Foundation poll shows.
Judges Reviewing Health Law Say Penalty Is Not A Tax
Congress took great pains to ensure that the penalty imposed on people who don’t get health insurance was not called a tax in the health law. This could make it tough for the Justice Department to argue that it is a tax.
Pennsylvania Closing State Health Plan For Low-Income Adults
Few options are available for the 42,000 people losing coverage.
State Worker Backlash Spreads Across The Country
The public employee backlash against Wisconsin Republican Gov. Scott Walker’s plan to help balance the state’s budget by imposing higher health care and pension co-pays is spreading across the nation, as newly-elected conservative governors seek to roll back benefits granted during better economic times.
GOP Counts The Ways To Defund Health Law
House Republicans have come up with more than half a dozen ways to throttle spending on overhaul. Democrats in the Senate can block them, and President Obama still wields the veto pen.
House Republicans passed measures to defund implementation of the health law, while the Obama administration fires back, rescinding a regulation they say could jeopardize patient access to care. Watch the video.
Sebelius Squad’s Mission: Medicaid Savings
The Obama administration is dispatching aides to states to offer advice on holding down spending on the program for the poor.
New Contraception Rules Spark ‘Conscience Clause’ Debate
Religious exemptions that allow health care workers to decline certain services to patients if they have a religious exemption should not include contraception. That’s the bottom line of the administration’s new regulations on the “conscience clause.”
States Pushing Managed Long-Term Care For Elderly And Disabled Medicaid Patients
Some patient advocates, as well as the nursing home industry, object to using managed care for such vulnerable patients, but health plans say they can provide quality services while holding down costs.
Texas Presses For Money-Saving Medicaid Changes
The Lone Star State isn’t seeking to opt out of Medicaid anymore, but it’s joining other states in pressing Washington for more flexibility in running the program.
In addition to shifting nearly all Medicaid patients to HMOs and other managed care, the Senate’s proposal would cap spending, require plans to bid for business and impose $100 fees on patients who abuse the emergency room.
States Seeking To Cut Medicaid Rolls Get Some Help
Federal officials are walking a fine line trying to satisfy the demands of budget-strapped governors who want to cut their Medicaid programs.
Hardliners On Health Law: End It, Don’t Mend It
The conservative group FreedomWorks recommends a system of vouchers to replace Medicare, Medicaid and provisions of the new health law.
Health On The Hill Transcript: President Obama’s Health Budget Scrutinized
Jackie Judd of the Kaiser Family Foundation is joined by Mary Agnes Carey of Kaiser Health News and David Nather of Politico to talk about the president’s 2012 proposed budget and a House bill that would repeal a provision of the health care overhaul that small businesses find particularly onerous.
Obama’s Medicare ‘Doc Fix’ Under Fire
In his 2012 budget, the president proposed a two-year, $54 billion solution to stop the scheduled cuts to doctors who treat Medicare patients. The plan draws on savings from a variety of sources, including states, drug makers
