Latest KFF Health News Stories
Prescription Drug Price Battles Show No Sign Of Letting Up
A pair of new cholesterol drugs is renewing a battle between pharmaceutical companies, which charge huge sums of money for new blockbuster drugs, and payers for those treatments, which include insurers, Medicare and Medicaid.
For Doctors Who Take A Break From Practice, Coming Back Can Be Tough
A handful of programs around the country aim to ease physicians’ reentry into clinical practice, but they can take months and cost thousands of dollars.
Medicare Drug Plans Favor Generic Opioids Over Those Designed To Avoid Abuse, Study Finds
The Part D plans have cut back coverage of a newer version of OxyContin that has been formulated to make it tougher for people to snort or inject it. That new version is 20 times more expensive than the generic.
Adult Dental Coverage Expanding Slowly in Medicaid
The health law mandated dental care for children, but not for adults. Still, some states are slowly making more services available.
Pa., Del. Move To Maintain Health Insurance Subsidy Access
A soon-to-be-announced Supreme Court ruling could threaten health insurance subsidies for millions of people in about three dozen states. But many state officials aren’t sharing contingency plans lest they be seen as supporting Obamacare.
Bill To Speed FDA Approvals Includes Rewards For Drugs Designed For Kids
The 21st Century Cures bill now being considered by Congress would extend a program that promotes pediatric drug research.
New Preventive Health Services Approved For No-Cost Coverage
Two new procedures have been added to the list of what should be covered by insurance without charge to consumers under provisions of the health law.
What Patients Gain By Reading Their Doctor’s Notes
Doctors are increasingly making their records available to patients. Advocates say the concept makes the doctor-patient relationship less paternalistic and can lead to better patient outcomes and satisfaction. But there could be downsides, too.
Patient Finds Shopping For Low-Priced CT Scan Doesn’t Pay Off
Despite efforts to keep costs down, Douglas White gets a bill nearly three times what he expected.
Improved Economy, Obamacare Boost Demand For Travel Nurses
Rising admissions are driving up the need for nurses willing to travel across the country to work in hospitals.
Second Opinions Often Sought But Value Is Not Yet Proven
Medical reviews are recommended for patients facing serious illnesses and some individuals glean important advice, but researchers do not have much data showing whether they lead to better outcomes.
The Gray Areas Of Assisted Suicide
In bizarre, veiled conversations, some doctors vaguely hint to dying patients and their families how to hasten death. But overwhelmed families are left with profound questions and the feeling that there is no one who can answer them.
Facing Death But Fighting The Aid-In-Dying Movement
A young mother with a grave lung disease worries that a California bill that would make assisted suicide legal could pressure terminally ill people to end their lives.
Telemedicine Under Attack As Abortion Rights Supporters Seek More Options For Women
Only two states offer telemed abortions, in which a woman confers with a doctor through an Internet video connection before being prescribed drugs to terminate a pregnancy. Supporters say the practice improves early access to abortion, thus cutting down expenses and complications, but opponents say it is dangerous.
Feds Say That In Screening Colonoscopies, Anesthesia Comes With No Charge
In an announcement this week, federal officials made clear that insurers should not charge patients for the anesthesia used in a screening colonoscopy, but some other routine charges are still in dispute.
A Top-Rated Nursing Home Is Hard To Find In Texas, 10 Other States
Texas boasts the highest percentage of low-ranked nursing homes in the country, followed by Louisiana, Oklahoma, Georgia and West Virginia.
Radical Approach To Huge Hospital Bills: Set Your Own Price
A small consulting firm is disrupting hospitals’ business as usual by encouraging employers to pay much less than what hospitals bill — based on its analysis of what is reasonable.
Home Visits By Nurses For First-Time Mothers Help Reduce Government Costs
The Nurse-Family Partnership is one of more than a dozen programs that are eligible for funding under the federal health law. Congress renewed the spending this year.
Staffing An Intensive Care Unit From Miles Away Has Advantages
Some hospitals are using a remote command center to keep an eye on ICU patients. This brings the expertise of a major medical center to rural hospitals — and may help keep the rural centers open.
Study: Cataract Surgery Fast And Safe, But Many On Medicare Get Costly Pre-Testing
Having blood work and other tests before cataract surgery isn’t usually recommended, but a study finds that more than half of Medicare beneficiaries get them.
