Archive

Latest KFF Health News Stories

Justices Uphold Individual Mandate, Set Limits On Medicaid Expansion

KFF Health News Original

The ruling on Medicaid creates a new arena for political battles in the 26 states that sued to overturn the law. Within hours of the decision, Republican officials in several states said they were likely to oppose expanding the program.

Video: Making Sense Of The Supreme Court Ruling

KFF Health News Original

KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey, Stuart Taylor and Julie Appleby are joined by SCOTUSblog’s Tom Goldstein and Lyle Denniston to break down Thursday’s landmark Supreme Court decision on the constitutionality of the health law.

3 Large Insurers Promise To Keep Many Popular Features Of Health Law If High Court Strikes It Down

KFF Health News Original

UnitedHealthcare, Aetna and Humana said no matter how the Supreme Court rules on the health law, they would continue to allow young adults coverage on their parents’ plans and offer no-copayment preventive services.

Many Businesses Offer Health Benefits To Same-Sex Couples Ahead Of Laws

KFF Health News Original

The desire to attract top employees is driving a long-term trend toward coverage. Last year, 52 percent of all employers offered domestic partner health benefits, with the percentage varying widely by region and industry. KHN’s Julie Appleby filed this story.

Scorecard: What The Health Law Has Delivered, Or Not

KFF Health News Original

Kaiser Health News compares data on the progress of the health law’s implementation to the original projections of the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office and the Obama administration.

Video: Obama Fields Questions On Limbaugh, ‘War On Women’

KFF Health News Original

During a Tuesday news conference, the president responded to questions about Rush Limbaugh and the heated debate over contraception coverage, and about whether Republican positions on these issues constitute a “war on women.”

Q&A: Why Did I Receive A Bill From An Out-Of-Network Radiologist?

KFF Health News Original

Michelle Andrews answers a question from a reader who received a bill from an out-of-network radiologist after a routine mammogram at an in-network hospital. The reader asks: What can we citizens do to ensure our rights?

Q&A: I Was Billed, But Aren’t Colonoscopies Free Under The Health Law?

KFF Health News Original

Michelle Andrews answers a question from a reader who had a colonoscopy and was billed a 30 percent co-pay. The reader asks: Aren’t preventive services like that free under the health law?

Alaska Takes Biggest Step Yet Toward Health Insurance Exchange

KFF Health News Original

Alaska has opposed the federal health law so adamantly that it is the only state that chose not to even apply for a $1 million grant the federal government was passing out to states to plan a health insurance exchange. But that doesn’t necessarily mean there won’t be an online marketplace to buy insurance in Alaska.

Rules Requiring Contraceptive Coverage Have Been In Force For Years

KFF Health News Original

Employers have pretty much been required to provide contraceptive coverage as part of their health plans since December 2000. That’s when the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ruled that failure to provide such coverage violates the 1978 Pregnancy Discrimination Act. But controversy over a new rule requiring even religious employers to cover contraception remains.

Minnesota Plans For Exchange, Even Without New Law

KFF Health News Original

Gov. Mark Dayton, a Democrat, said that authorization will be needed at some point from the state legislature for an exchange. But he also suggested that much work could be done ahead of legislative action.