Latest KFF Health News Stories
Study Finds Depression Is A Leading Risk For Higher Health Spending
Depression was the most costly among 10 common risk factors linked to higher health spending for employees, according to a new study of seven companies. The study published in Health Affairs found that the 10 factors — which also included obesity, high blood sugar and high blood pressure — were associated with nearly a quarter […]
Accountable care organizations are widely touted as one of the most effective cost-containing measures of the 2010 federal health law. Yet they have a great deal in common with the integrated delivery networks of the 1990s, leaving some wondering whether the bold experiment might come to the same disappointing end. “I don’t think these things […]
Less Experienced Doctors Cost Health Care System More, Study Says
Which physicians are driving up the nation’s health care costs the most? That’s the question that researchers at the RAND Corporation, a nonprofit research organization, aimed to answer. Their new study, published in this month’s edition of Health Affairs, found that doctors with less experience spend more money treating patients than their veteran colleagues. “We […]
Election Will Decide Health Law’s Future
The highest court in the country upheld most of the Affordable Care Act in June. But everybody knew it was only an overture to today’s contest between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney.
Health Care Stakes Are High In California
More than any other state, California has wagered heavily on the Affordable Care Act. If a Romney administration follows through with its vow to undo the health law, the state’s early expansion of Medicaid, its online insurance marketplace and other reforms will have an uncertain future.
Today’s Headlines – Nov. 5, 2012
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including reports about the final round of polls, forecasts regarding which party will control the House and Senate and analysis of how campaign-trail messages have been playing during the election season’s final hours. The Wall Street Journal: Obama And Romney Deadlocked, Polls Show The dueling assertions […]
Health Issues On The Ballot In The States
Sprinkled throughout ballots across the country are state initiatives that run the gamut from education to animal rights to marriage. And health care is well-represented, too. The National Conference of State Legislatures labels health a “key issue” in this cycle’s roundup of state ballot questions. Here is a selection of those referenda, as reported by our […]
Petition Calls For Hurricane Sandy First Responder Health Benefits
From leading evacuees through flooded streets to carrying a family pet out of a collapsing home, first responders have been dubbed the heroes of Hurricane Sandy. But not all of them had health benefits as they headed into the disaster zones this week. While local, full-time police, firefighters and EMTs have full coverage, first responders […]
Medicare Excludes Mid-Sized Physician Groups From Start Of New Payment System
Medicare is sparing 5,300 mid-sized physicians groups from the first phase of the government’s effort to pay doctors based on the quality of care. Medicare had originally planned to apply the “value-based payment modifier” to medical groups of 25 or more professionals, starting in January 2015 but based on physician performance during 2013. Doctors that […]
Los cerca de 1.200 centros comunitarios de salud a nivel nacional proveen cuidado de salud a m
The Price Is Right There In Front Of You, In Colorado At Least
The price of a knee MRI in Colorado varies from $350 to $2,336. It’s a huge gap, but it’s also remarkable that the prices themselves are known at all. Prices for health care aren’t public in most states, making shopping for the best deal nearly impossible. Different patients pay different prices for the same procedures […]
Today’s Headlines – Nov. 2, 2012
Los Angeles Times: Romney Resumes Criticizing Obama On The Stump With five days to go until election day, Romney said voters faced a clear choice, and painted a dim picture of the nation’s future if Obama were reelected – seniors unable to find doctors who were taking additional Medicare patients, middle-aged Americans seeing stagnant wages, […]
OB/GYNs And ER Docs Excluded From Health Law’s Medicaid Pay Hike
Obstetricians, gynecologists and emergency room physicians won’t be eligible for higher Medicaid pay rates for primary care doctors that start in January under the Affordable Care Act, the Obama administration ruled late Thursday. Instead, the higher Medicaid rates, which will be in effect for two years, are reserved for family doctors, internists and pediatricians, because those specialties are specifically listed in […]
How The Health Law Might Be Changed By The Next President
Obama has pledged to carry out the law, but fiscal concerns and political pressure could drive him to alter some provisions. Meanwhile, Romney’s vow to repeal the law is unlikely to be realized, but he could still have a strong impact on it.
Today’s Headlines – Nov. 1, 2012
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including highlights from the campaign trail, from the top of the ticket to some of the attention-grabbing Senate races across the country, as well as a report that the Obama administration will not oppose efforts to reopen the religious challenge to the health law. The Wall […]
Employers, Unions Jointly Demand Health Care Price Transparency
Employees who feel completely mystified by the prices they’re charged for medical procedures might be surprised to know their employers feel the same way. On Thursday, a consortium of major companies and labor unions, including GE, Wal-Mart, Boeing and the AFL-CIO issued a manifesto demanding price transparency from both health care providers and insurance companies. Consumers […]
Physicians Swap Traditional Practices For New Models
Last Thursday Dr. L. Markham McHenry, a family physician, held a meeting with some patients to tell them about changes he was planning. After 15 years of working in a private practice, the Scottsdale, Ariz.-based doctor is in the process of transitioning to a subscription-based model. His patients, who he said come from a range […]
State Averages: Quality Of Care At Community Health Centers
State averages of community health center scores on seven measures of clinical performance, collected by the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration.
Interactive Chart: Look Up How Your Local Health Center Performed
Community health center scores on seven measures of clinical performance, collected by the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration.
Quality Of Community Health Centers Varies Widely
Federally funded centers in New England generally perform better than those in the South and West.
