Latest KFF Health News Stories
Hospitals Clash With House Republicans On Medicare Cuts
Hospitals have come out swinging against payment cuts to their industry included in the House Republican plan to stop a scheduled Medicare physician payment cut next January. And the House GOP is swinging right back. As the House edges toward a vote Tuesday on legislation that would give physicians a two-year reprieve from a scheduled 27 […]
Today’s Headlines – December 13, 2011
Good morning! Here are your early morning headlines: The Washington Post: House To Vote On Extension Of Payroll-Tax Reduction A Republican aide said conservative lawmakers have been persuaded to support the bill because of how its costs would be covered. The bill, which would also extend unemployment benefits and avert deep scheduled cuts in Medicare […]
Today’s Headlines – December 12, 2011
Good morning! Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, reports about Congress’ efforts to inch toward the finish line on a spending deal, a payroll tax bill and a way to avert a scheduled deep cut in Medicare reimbursement rates for doctors. The Washington Post: Congress Edges Toward A Compromise On Spending It appears […]
Fund To Help Cover Early Retirees Nearly Out of Money
A $5 billion fund that helped cover health insurance for more than five million early retirees will stop taking claims for expenses incurred after Dec. 31 because it is running out of money, according to a notice Friday in the Federal Register. The funds were used to reimburse employers who subsidize health insurance for early retirees, ages 55 to […]
Every week, reporter Jessica Marcy selects interesting reads from around the Web. The New York Times Magazine: A Drug That Wakes The Near Dead The heart attacks never came. Four days later, Chris woke up. It was not the awakening of Hollywood movies in which the patient comes to, just as he was, speaking full […]
Today’s Headlines – December 9, 2011
Happy Friday! Here are your morning headlines: The Los Angeles Times: Boehner Defies Obama Veto Threat With New Payroll Tax Plan The package Boehner has been compiling for more than a week was not made publicly available, but it includes the payroll tax holiday as well as an extension of long-term unemployment benefits, which also […]
States Cut Community Health Center Funding
Just as demand for services at community health centers has been projected to increase — both because of the recession and the health law’s expansions in access to medical care — state funding for these centers has reached a seven-year low for fiscal year 2012, according to a new report. A survey by the National Association of Community Health […]
Why Observing Prostate Cancers Is Gaining Ground On Surgery
An expert panel suggests doctors shouldn’t call most low-risk prostate tumors cancer at all.
Berwick Calls Republicans ‘The True Rationers’
Don Berwick, who left his job last week as head of the Medicare and Medicaid programs after sustained opposition from Senate Republicans who accused him of supporting rationing, struck back Wednesday with a blistering attack on his critics. “The true rationers are those who impede improvement, who stand in the way of change, and who […]
In Houston, The Doctor Can’t See You Now
This story is part of a reporting partnership that includes KUHF, and Kaiser Health News. At the Martin Luther King Jr. Health Center on Houston’s south side, patients can fill a prescription, see a podiatrist, and get new eyeglasses. They can even buy fresh fruits and vegetables at a weekly farmer’s market. But what they […]
Today’s Headlines – December 8, 2011
Good morning! Here are your headlines: The Associated Press/Washington Post: House Leaders Hope GOP Lawmakers Ready To Back Bill Renewing Payroll Tax Cut, Jobless Benefits Top House Republicans hope to win rank-and-file GOP support for a measure renewing this year’s Social Security payroll tax cut and extending benefits for the long-term unemployed. House GOP lawmakers […]
CMS: States’ Health Spending Gap Widens
Updated Dec. 8, 2011 at 1:03 p.m. Researchers at the office of the actuary and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services offered the first snapshot of state-by-state health-care spending since the recession Wednesday, as well as a look at where provisions of the 2010 health law could have their greatest effect. The authors of the research […]
Today’s Headlines – December 7, 2011
Good morning! Here are the early morning highlights to get you going: The Washington Post: Republicans Split On Democratic Plan To Extend Payroll Tax Cut Many predict that the tax cut will ultimately be extended as part of a broad bill that would address other budget issues facing end-of-the-year deadlines, such as an extension of […]
Home Health Advocates Push Remote Monitoring In Medicare
Home care technology can play a critical role in keeping patients out of hospitals and at home, but many providers believe new policies should be used to encourage its adoption. Advocates for those changes were on Capitol Hill yesterday to push for legislation that would expand the use of such technology, which allows home health […]
Today’s Headlines – December 6, 2011
Good morning! Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including a story detailing how the health law is helping Medicare beneficiaries save money on their prescription drug costs. Politico: 2011 Policy Report Cared: Health Care Forecast With a presidential election and a Supreme Court ruling, 2012 will be the year that could determine […]
Bad Grades On New National Health Report Card
Ahead of the unveiling Tuesday of the latest United Health Foundation’s America’s Health Rankings, Reed Tuckson, a foundation board member, had a scary message for the nation: We’re facing “a tsunami of preventable illness,” Tuckson said. “We aren’t prepared for the consequences of that.” In an interview with KHN in advance of the release of the […]
Tracking The GOP Presidential Candidates’ Health Care Maneuvers
With only four weeks until Iowa Republicans gather for presidential caucuses, and with the candidate field shrinking, both candidates and bloggers are intensifying their focus on the battle for the Republican nomination for president. Despite uniform opposition to most or all of the tenets in the health law, the candidates are seeking political advantage by […]
Today’s Headlines – December 5, 2011
Good morning! Here’s your early morning headlines to get you going: The Washington Post: Congress Faces Pivotal Week On Stimulus, Spending Measures Monday begins a pivotal week in Congress, the last opportunity this year to pass some kind of economic stimulus package to boost the ailing economy. This will also be a decisive moment for […]
Houston Poaches Cancer Scientists From Boston
This story is part of a reporting partnership that includes KUHF, and Kaiser Health News. MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston has lured 55 scientists away from Boston’s Dana-Farber Cancer Institute. The personnel grab will help the academic hospital jump quickly into the field of cancer drug development. MD Anderson – part of the University […]
Doing Things Right: Why Three Hospitals Didn’t Harm My Wife
A bike accident sent Michael Millenson’s wife to three hospitals. It led him to offer a unique perspective on the health care system.
