Latest KFF Health News Stories
Report Looks At Income Disparities For Seniors On Medicare
Lawmakers considering major changes to entitlement programs as part of a deficit reduction package might want to consider this: Future Medicare recipients won’t be much better off financially than current beneficiaries, according to a new analysis from the Kaiser Family Foundation. In measures of income, savings and home equity, the current disparities that now exist between […]
Insurers’ Letters Spur Washington State Consumer Alert
This story was produced in partnership with The Washington state insurance commissioner issued a consumer alert Thursday advising state residents who buy their own health insurance to know their options when choosing their next health plan. The commissioner’s office issued the alert in response to dozens of phone calls and emails from consumers upset by […]
Census: More Than 850,000 Texas Kids Lack Health Coverage
This story was produced in partnership with Texas continued to have the highest rate of people without health insurance in 2012 at 24.6 percent, or more than 6 million residents, according to the Current Population Survey estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau this week. Texas also has the largest number of children without health […]
Health Law Caught In The Middle Of Budget Fight
With implementation of major provisions of the law looming, Republicans see this fall’s budget showdown as their last chance to slow or stop the president’s signature legislation from taking effect. Mary Agnes Carey and Politico Pro’s Jennifer Haberkorn discuss.
Attacking Raccoons Used In Washington State Insurance Ads
This story was produced in partnership with The Washington Health Benefit Exchange has begun airing television commercials as part of a stepped-up campaign to promote the state’s online insurance marketplace, which opens for enrollment Oct. 1. The new TV spots convey the sobering message that going without health insurance is “playing with chance” and could lead […]
Sebelius Spends Third Day Touting Health Law In Florida
This story was produced in partnership with the As home to nearly four million residents with no health insurance and state legislators opposed to Obamacare, Florida holds a large stake in the outcome of federal healthcare reform, U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius told students, local health officials and politicians during a visit […]
Insurance Marketplace 101: Answering Consumer Questions
KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey and Julie Appleby were hosted by the Washington Post’s Charity Brown earlier today for a live discussion with Post readers about how the new online marketplaces will work under the health law. A transcript of that discussion is posted below. MARY AGNES CAREY: Welcome to today’s chat about the online marketplaces. […]
Join A Live Discussion Today On washingtonpost.com
The Affordable Care Act’s health insurance marketplaces will launch Oct. 1, but many questions remain for consumers, employers and the health care industry. Who is eligible? How can they apply for subsidies? Will comparison-shopping be as easy as buying an airline ticket or hotel room? KHN’s Julie Appleby and Mary Agnes Carey, who wrote today’s […]
What You Need To Know About Enrolling In Obamacare’s ‘Exchanges’
KHN’s Jenny Gold was on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal Monday morning taking questions about the impending enrollment period for the health law’s health insurance marketplaces and what consumers need to know. See related stories: What Obamacare Means For You KHN reporters will be returning to C-SPAN’s Washington Journal each Monday throughout the summer. Tune in each […]
Campaign To Enroll LGBT Community In Health Coverage Launched At White House
The White House hosted a summit on Thursday to promote Out2Enroll – a campaign that began today to connect the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community to health coverage. The Obama administration and community advocates touted the effort to reach out to those communities about new online health insurance marketplaces, where people can compare insurance […]
Insurance Exchange Outreach In Connecticut Goes Far Afield
Across Connecticut, you can see billboards and television ads, hear radio spots and get pamphlets, all about how to get insurance under the new federal health law starting Oct. 1. But the state also is spending big bucks on less traditional ways to get the word out. So at beaches this summer, outreach workers handed […]
Health Insurance Ads Range From Weighty To Whimsical
The federal health care law is taking on unique personalities in states that have opted to run their own health insurance marketplaces. Some states are cracking wise in ads about the exchanges, where people will be able to shop for insurance starting in October. Others are rolling out catchy jingles. Some are all business. Stephanie O’Neill […]
Rx For Docs: AMA Answers Obamacare Questions
As we get closer to 2014, consumers are being surrounded by news coverage, ads and opinions about the health law. And many of them are turning to their doctors for advice. The American Medical Association wants to help doctors with answers. Today, the AMA is launching a new website to help answer frequently asked questions that physicians might hear from […]
Draft Report: Missourians Favor Medicaid Expansion
This story was produced in partnership with the JEFFERSON CITY, MO. — They traveled to six, far-flung Missouri cities. They held marathon public hearings. They got detailed state briefings. So what did the 52-member House Citizens and Legislators Working Group on Medicaid Eligibility and Reform conclude? That people want both Medicaid expansion and reform. A seven-page […]
One Woman Living Beneath A Georgetown Bridge Finds Her Way Home
Pathways to Housing offers the homeless health care services in addition to housing
Law Will Shift Demographics For Medicaid Toward Healthier Group, Study Finds
The health law is expected to change the face of Medicaid – literally. As part of the federal overhaul, some states have opted to expand in January this state-federal health insurance program for low income people to include Americans who earn as much as 138 percent of the federal poverty line (just under $16,000 for […]
How Will Obamacare Affect Your Medicare Benefits?
KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey was on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal Monday morning taking questions about how the health law will affect Medicare’s benefits. See related story: Medicare Is Not Part Of New Insurance Marketplaces. KHN reporters will be returning to C-SPAN’s Washington Journal each Monday throughout the summer. Tune in each week to stay informed about […]
Colorado Exchange Watchdog Likes What It Sees
Colorado lawmakers overseeing the set-up of the state’s health insurance exchange are generally pleased with how it’s going, but they are worried some residents will still be “left out in the cold,” without insurance even if the exchange works well. Colorado is one of 16 states and the District of Columbia that chose to set up […]
Minnesota Says Its Marketpace Rates Are Nation’s Lowest So Far
ST. PAUL, Minn. — Minnesota consumers will be able to buy a health plan for as little as $90.59 per month on MNsure, the new state health insurance marketplace, state Commerce Commissioner Mike Rothman said Friday. Rothman said Minnesota has the lowest average rates for individuals and families compared to the other states that have revealed […]
Washington State Call Center Logs 900 Calls On 1st Day
This story was produced in partnership with The phones are already busy at the Washington State Exchange call center where customer service representatives are fielding hundreds of questions about the state’s new health insurance exchange, slated to open for enrollment Oct. 1. The call center, located in Spokane, opened on Tuesday and took 900 calls that day. […]
