Latest KFF Health News Stories
Today’s headlines – April 5, 2012
Good morning! Today’s headlines look at the implications a Supreme Court decision could have on the November elections: The New York Times: Court’s Potential To Goad Voters Swings To Democrats Now strategists in both parties are suggesting this could be the Democrats’ year to make the court a foil to mobilize voters. The prospect arises […]
2010 Insurance Rebates Would Have Hit $2 Billion, Study Says
Consumers would have received rebates of nearly $2 billion — in some cases as much as $300 a member — if the health-law cap on insurance profits and overhead had been in place in 2010, estimates a new study. The paper, published Thursday by the Commonwealth Fund, makes no predictions about the rebates that insurers will be required to pay this year for […]
Study: Chemo Costs Less In Doctors’ Offices
Chemotherapy costs significantly more at a hospital than at a physician’s office, and patients might have decreased access to the cheaper option, according to reports out this week. The first report, by Avalere Health, found that chemotherapy received in a hospital outpatient setting costs, on average, 24 percent more than when received at a physician’s […]
Today’s Headlines – April 4, 2012
Good morning! Here are your early a.m. headlines to get your day started: The New York Times: Obama, In Talk, Calls House GOP Budget The Work Of Rightist Radicals President Obama opened a full-frontal assault on Tuesday on the federal budget adopted by House Republicans, condemning it as a “Trojan horse” that would greatly deepen […]
Hospitals Urge Peers To Ditch Fast Food, Turn Down The Lights
Eleven of the nation’s largest hospital systems –including Kaiser Permanente, HCA Healthcare and Boston-based Partners HealthCare — today called on their industry to be better environmental stewards. The Healthier Hospitals Initiative challenges hospitals to reduce energy use and waste, purchase environmentally friendlier products and serve healthier foods. The effort is as much about reducing health risks and environmental […]
Feds Reject Hawaii’s 10-Day Medicaid Hospital Limit
Updated at 4:15 p.m. The Obama administration has rejected Hawaii’s proposal to limit most adult Medicaid recipients to 10 days of hospital coverage per year, which would have been the strictest in the nation. Instead, Hawaii has been approved to implement a 30-day hospital coverage limit starting July 1, state and federal health officials say. […]
Today’s Headlines – April 3, 2012
Good morning! Here’s what the health policy news looks like this morning: The Associated Press/Washington Post: Obama Calls House GOP Budget Plan A Trojan Horse For ‘Radical’ Change Obama, in a speech to newspaper executives, is sharply criticizing a $3.5 trillion budget proposal pushed by Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., which passed on a near-party-line vote […]
Measuring Health County-By-County
Wondering how your county measures up on health? The 2012 County Health Rankings are out this week from the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The rankings assess the health of nearly every county in all 50 states and the District of Columbia, and they allow you to compare […]
Health Insurers Move Ahead, With Or Without Individual Mandate
Cigna’s CEO, David Cordani, says the insurance industry started changing how it does business before health reform became law in 2010 and that it will continue to change, no matter what happens at the Supreme Court.
Today’s Headlines – April 2, 2012
Good morning! Here are your Monday morning headlines … Politico: The Health Reform Ruling: Four Likely Scenarios A victory in the Supreme Court — less than five months before the presidential election — doesn’t guarantee that either party can win over public opinion. And it certainly doesn’t signal the end of the debate over health […]
Consumer Tips: Workplace Wellness Plans
More and more employers are tying financial reward and penalties to workers completing a set of medical tests. KHN’s Julie Appleby says the tests can include blood pressure, cholesterol and blood sugar.
Today’s Headlines – March 30, 2012
Good morning and an especially happy Friday to you! The health law’s week at the Supreme Court is over, but we still have some headlines for you to catch up on all the analysis: The Washington Post: The Supreme Court Will Decide On The Health-Care Law Soon. It Will Tell You Later. If the usual […]
Social Media Rundown: Three Days At The Supreme Court
This week, the Supreme Court heard oral arguments on the 2010 health law, in what court watchers are calling the biggest case at the high court in decades. Here’s a rundown from the social media-sphere of what happened in those three days. Day 1: Can We Even Argue About The Health Care Law? Mon., March 26 […]
Like The U.S., Europe Wrestles With Health Care
This story comes from our partner ‘s Shots blog. The U.S. has been absorbed by the Supreme Court case this week on the future of health care. But Americans are not alone. Several European nations, where universal health care has been the norm for decades, have been waging their own intense debates as they also deal […]
Recapping The Health Law’s Week At The Court
Mary Agnes Carey, Stuart Taylor, SCOTUSblog’s Tom Goldstein, and NPR’s Julie Rovner discuss this week’s historic oral arguments and answer reader questions about what happens next.
Today’s Headlines – March 29, 2012
Here are your morning headlines — much of them trying to wrap up a tumultuous three days of health law oral arguments at the Supreme Court. Enjoy! The New York Times: On Day 3, Justices Weigh What-Ifs Of Health Ruling The justices seemed divided on both questions before them: What should happen to the rest of […]
Inside The Courtroom On The Final, Historic Day
At 1 p.m. sharp on Wednesday, the loud buzzer sounded, and from behind floor-length ruby curtains and four marble columns, the nine justices emerged to take their chairs. Chief Justice John Roberts, seated in the center in a high-backed leather chair, quickly brought down the gavel. And the last of four hearings into the 2010 health […]
House Debates Ryan Budget: Predictably Partisan
The tone was immediately and undoubtedly partisan Wednesday when the House began considering the Republican-backed 2013 budget resolution that the House Budget Committee recently approved. The House was expected to debate the Budget Committee-approved resolution for four hours, and then turn to six complete substitutes, including one that would replace the resolution with President Obama’s […]
Crowd Dwindles On Final Day of Health Law Arguments
A smaller and more subdued crowd gathered outside the Supreme Court Wednesday for the third and final day of the historic hearings over President Obama’ health care law. About 100 supporters of the law, many carrying signs saying, “Protect our Health, Protect the Law,” marched in front of the Court, while about 30 opponents stood […]
Today’s Headlines – March 28, 2012
Good morning! Last day of oral arguments on the health law at the Supreme Court. Here’s a rundown of what happened yesterday: The Washington Post: On Last Day Of Health Care Hearing, Supreme Court Considers Severability, Medicaid Expansion The Supreme Court will complete its review of President Obama’s health care law Wednesday by considering whether […]
