Latest KFF Health News Stories
Week In Review: Doctor Payment Fight; State Budgets And Medicaid; Medicare Brochure Protests
Challenges from conservative Democrats forced party leaders this week to cut some major spending programs, such as extending COBRA benefits for workers being laid off and providing extra money to state Medicaid programs.
Sebelius To Employers: Cover Young Adults Now
HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said federal officials are urging self-insured employers to keep young adults up to age 26 on their parents’ health plans before the deadline under the new health overhaul law. Self-insured employers, who pay the medical bills of millions of Americans, in many cases could wait until January to comply with the law.
Some Recent Grads Face Health Care Coverage Gap
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.
Democrats Scale Back Medicare ‘Doc Fix,’ COBRA Subsidy Extension In Jobs Bill
Caught up in the congressional politics swirling around a pending tax bill are proposals that affect health care for newly laid-off workers as well as Medicare and Medicaid patients.
$5 Billion In Federal Funding For High-Risk Pools May Not Be Enough
A new report says federal funding will not cover the insurance needs of all the people who now have trouble getting coverage because of preexisting conditions. But HHS officials disagree with the findings.
Many Young Adults Will Wait For Health Coverage After All
Some parents, hoping that their young adult children could get insurance soon, are finding that many large employers aren’t planning to offer the new benefit early.
New Health Law Throws Lifeline to ‘Uninsurables’
In a new KHN feature, Michelle Andrews writes about the coming changes to health care. The new law offers relief for people who can’t get insurance because they are sick or have been sick. States can set up their own pools, or let the federal government do it.
Week In Review: Politics Of Health Reform Implementation, Insurance Mandate, More CBO Estimates
This week featured more legal and political challenges to the new health law as the Obama adminstration issued rules to extend insurance coverage to young adults on their parents’ plans.
Swamped Insurance Departments Hope Website Will Answer Overhaul Questions
Want to understand how the new health law might affect you? Be prepared to spend some time online.
Book Excerpt: Why A Mandate Matters
The thinking behind the individual mandate is that, in the absence of a government-run “single payer” insurance program like Canada’s, the only way to achieve universal health insurance is to require people to obtain coverage on their own, with government assistance for those who can’t afford it. An excerpt from a new book, Landmark: The Inside Story of America’s New Health Care Law and What It Means for Us All, by The Washington Post.
Book Excerpt: How The Individual Health Insurance Mandate Will Work
A simple rule lies at the heart of the new health law: Starting in 2014, almost every American will need to carry health insurance or pay a fine. An excerpt from a new book, Landmark: The Inside Story of America’s New Health Care Law and What It Means for Us All, by The Washington Post.
Companies Get Help To Insure Early Retirees
Companies that provide health insurance to retirees who are too young for Medicare may get some financial relief due to a new $5 billion federal program.
Insurer Seeks A Little Less Parity For Mental Health Coverage
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.
Health Care Insurance Scams Rise as Layoffs Leave Workers Uninsured
A searing recession that left nearly 10 percent of the American workforce unemployed, plus a time when health care costs continue to soar, equals fertile ground for health insurance swindlers.
Big Health Insurers Have A Gift For College Grads
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.
New Health Law Expands High-Risk Coverage
Many states have “last resort” health insurance programs, but they cover few people.
COBRA Health Insurance Subsidies Waiting For Senate Action
People recently laid off are waiting – once again – to hear if they will be eligible for subsidies to stay on their employer’s health insurance.
Consumers Guide To Health Reform
The new health reform law will extend coverage to millions of uninsured Americans, but also has an effect on almost every citizen. Here’s how the law might affect you.
Changes Coming To Insurance Plans
Consumers soon will see plans without lifetime coverage limits or the ability to drop enrollees retroactively, plus there will be added benefits for children and reviews of rate increases.
Insurance Protection For Adult Children Won’t Come Fast Enough For Some Parents
A much-publicized provision of the new health overhaul law would give parents the option of keeping adult children on their insurance plans until age 26, but many details affecting eligibility and timing remain to be worked out.
