Latest KFF Health News Stories
Video: Weighing The Impact Of Health Issues On Campaign 2012
KHN hosts a discussion on the Obama and Romney plans with former Democratic Sen. Tom Daschle and conservative health care analyst Avik Roy, followed by a reporters’ roundtable with KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey and Sarah Varney, Karen Tumulty of the Washington Post and Politico’s Jonathan Allen.
Denver Debate: Medicaid As A Domestic Priority
The Medicaid program was not a major focus of Wednesday night’s debate between President Barack Obama and former Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney, but it was a topic of discussion as the two candidates laid out their domestic policy priorities.
How Will The Election Change Medicaid?
Frequently asked questions about Romney and Obama’s very different visions for the future of state-federal health program.
Medicaid Helps D.C. Clinic Care For Ex-Prisoners
After their release, former prisoners often don’t have a job and, therefore, don’t have health insurance. The health law’s Medicaid expansion could be changing that soon, though.
States Cut Medicaid Drug Benefits To Save Money
Illinois is the latest state to act, imposing a limit of four drugs.
13 States Cut Medicaid To Balance Budgets
Provider cuts may limit care for poor people and make it harder to expand the program in 2014.
Once Focus of Health Law, Some In Poverty May Be Left Out
Mississippi family’s insurance problems could remain if state decides to follow Supreme Court’s option to decline Medicaid expansion.
In Pennsylvania, Medicaid Cuts Reduce Options For Dental Care
Cuts to the state budget leave Medicaid beneficiaries with only basic dental coverage.
Ruling Puts Pressure On States To Act
The Supreme Court Thursday gave states the option to skip the Medicaid expansion, but the pressure of accepting millions in new federal dollars to pay for coverage for low-income people may be too great.
N.Y. Insurance Co. Exec: ‘Life Will Go On,’ Expensively, Without Individual Mandate
If the Supreme Court strikes down the health law, New York would be in a somewhat unique position, according to David Abernethy, a senior vice president of EmblemHealth.
Oregon’s DeMars: SCOTUS Decision Won’t Change State’s Reform Plans
Even if the Supreme Court overturns the law, Chris DeMars, a senior program officer at Oregon’s Northwest Health Foundation, expects the state to move forward with insurance exchanges and an effort to coordinate care.
AdvaMed’s Nexon: Expect More Health Cost Reduction Pressure
David Nexon, a top health care adviser to the late Sen. Ted Kennedy, says that no matter what, tremendous pressure to reduce spending will continue to push lawmakers to find ways to control health care costs.
Kaiser Permanente’s Ross: There’s No Effective Substitute For The Mandate
Murray Ross, a vice president in the part of the company that sells health plans, says the law’s individual mandate is needed to attract healthier participants, which balances risks and costs.
Medicaid Association Director: Uncertainty, Legislative Politics Have Slowed State Implementation
Andy Allison, Arkansas Medicaid director and president of the National Association of Medicaid Directors, is adamant that cash-strapped states won’t be able to do much to expand coverage to the uninsured if the Supreme Court strikes down the law.
Mich. Medicaid Director: “A Struggle” To Meet Deadlines If Law Upheld
Michigan Medicaid Director Steve Fitton believes it will be a “struggle” for his state to be ready to implement the health law on schedule if the Supreme Court upholds the measure. But he’s confident that Michigan can handle the expected new enrollees in Medicaid.
Lawsuit Challenges Medicaid Managed Care Decision In Missouri
Missouri’s efforts to winnow contracts for its Medicaid managed care business are being challenged by one of the companies left out in the cold: Molina Healthcare, which alleges the state changed the bidding rules in the middle of the process.
Poor, Sick And Expensive: Colorado’s Scaled-Down Medicaid Expansion
The state is one of just a few that is expanding Medicaid ahead of a major expansion called for in 2014 by the federal health law. Though the state estimates that 50,000 people meet the income bar, Colorado will only be able to offer coverage to 10,000 people.
Webcast Replay: Deconstructing The Supreme Court’s Historic Health Law Arguments
Our panelists, who answered questions from readers that even the justices didn’t ask, includes KHN Senior Correspondent Mary Agnes Carey; Stuart Taylor, attorney, author and KHN legal analyst; Tom Goldstein, Goldstein & Russell, P.C., and publisher of SCOTUSblog; and Julie Rovner, health policy correspondent, NPR.
Transcript Highlights: The Medicaid Expansion Arguments
Here are some of the highlights from the Supreme Court’s Wednesday afternoon session during which they pondered questions about the health law’s Medicaid expansion.
