Latest KFF Health News Stories
Once Opposed To The Health Law, Now A Convert
One man’s opposition to the health law turned after the self-employed, self-reliant man bought a plan available through the law, which helped him pay his hospital bills when faced with a heart condition.
Exemption Gives Some Texas Residents Health Law Reprieve
Community-based organizations work to educate residents on the federal law by walking them through the “hardship waiver” application process.
A Small West Virginia Town Rallies For Better Health
“Sustainable Williamson” campaign includes 5K races, a community garden, healthier food and cancer screening.
New Providers Face Obstacles in Texas Women’s Health Program
Physician groups generally don’t have the public financing to pay for services that aren’t expressly covered by the state program — creating difficulties for their low-income patients, as well as for their own practices.
Minnesota Exchange Chief Resigns Amid Criticism
MNsure Executive Director April Todd-Malmlov stepped down under fire for the troubled rollout of the state’s health marketplace and an ill-timed, two-week Costa Rica vacation she took in November.
Claims Drop After Texas Takes Over Women’s Health Program
With the exclusion of roughly 40 Planned Parenthood clinics, claims for birth control and wellness exams dropped for the first six months of 2013, as did enrollment numbers.
Obamacare Benefits Elusive For Many Working Poor In Northern Florida
In rural panhandle towns, people know little about the health law, and what they know they don’t like. Still, many could benefit from the law’s subsidies to buy insurance, while others will be left out because the state is not expanding Medicaid.
Because of the diversity of this immigrant population, experts say educational campaigns to raise awareness about the health law’s new coverage options must avoid a “one-size-fits-all” model.
Affordable Care Act Brings More Money, More Stress To Illinois Clinics
Health centers expand thanks to federal grants, but increased competition could hurt smaller facilities.
Obamacare Day One: A Tale Of Two States
There was a party atmosphere at Affordable Care Act events in California, where the law has been embraced, and in Virginia, where it has been resisted. But consumers will have very different experiences in the two states.
Fight Over Obamacare Is Anything But Over In Florida
The nation’s most diverse political swing state is ground zero in the battle over the federal health law.
Views On Obamacare Closely Track Party Preference In Washington State
In Washington state, 80 percent of Democrats surveyed approve of the Affordable Care Act while 80 percent of Republicans don’t, according to an Elway Poll conducted on behalf of The Seattle Times.
Little Evidence to Back Texas Abortion Law, According To Official Records
Texas has strict new regulations on abortion facilities and the doctors performing them. But a Texas Tribune review of state inspection records turned up little evidence to suggest the facilities were putting patients in danger.
Texas Outbreaks Make a Case for Vaccinations
A recent rash of measles and whooping cough cases has spurred calls for new state legislation to change the immunization consent process.
How Will Immigrants Fare Under Obamacare? It’s Complicated
What benefits, if any, immigrants get under the health-care overhaul depends on several factors: their immigration status, income, length of stay in this country and – in limited cases – their country of origin.
Texas Minors Can No Longer Use Tanning Salons
As of Sept. 1, the state became one of about a dozen to ban indoor tanning by the young, citing research linking the practice to deadly forms of skin cancer.
Florida Is No. 2 In Nation For Rate Of Uninsured
Census data show that about 25 percent of state residents lack health coverage in a state that has opted against the health law’s expansion of Medicaid, the government health program for the poor and disabled.
Mapping A Strategy To Reach Uninsured In King County, Wash.
Maps that show where the highest levels of uninsured live will help them target these areas for education and outreach in order to boost insurance coverage as required by the federal Affordable Care Act.
Women’s Health Claims in Texas Decline Under New Program
The number of claims filed for medical and family planning services in the new state-run Texas Women’s Health Program has dropped since the state ousted Planned Parenthood and set up its own program without federal financing.
New Missouri law Imposes Hurdle For Insurance Exchange
The law requires insurance counselors
