Latest KFF Health News Stories
Employers See Negligible Increase In Workers Participating In Job-Based Coverage
Employers saw only a tiny increase in enrollment in their health insurance plans this year, even as key provisions of the health law — including a requirement that nearly all Americans carry coverage or face a fine — went into effect, a survey by benefit firm Mercer finds. Additionally, the percentage of workers eligible for job-based coverage rose only minimally, […]
Skipping Health Insurance Could Cost A Lot More Than $95
This story comes from our partner ‘s Shots blog. 2014 is the first year most Americans will have to either have health insurance or face a tax penalty. But most people who are aware of the penalty think it’s pretty small, at least for this first year. And that could turn into an expensive mistake. “I’d […]
Should Healthier Patients Be Asked To Wait To Use Costly Hepatitis C Drugs?
New treatments for hepatitis C that cost at least $66,000 to $84,000 may work better than older drugs, but their cost undermines their value to the health system, a panel of experts said during a daylong forum in San Francisco. “The price makes it very hard for the health care system,” said Steve Pearson, who […]
Missouri Pulls Out Stops, But Lags Better-Funded Illinois Effort
Free food and music are notorious for attracting young people; at least that’s the hope of Missouri insurance enrollment counselors. Before the March 31 deadline under the Affordable Care Act, groups are beefing up their campaigns to bring last-minute customers to the federal health insurance marketplace—especially young people. Cover Missouri — a coalition of 400 […]
Business Groups Split On Medicaid Expansion
With several states weighing whether to expand Medicaid under the federal health law, supporters are looking to powerful business groups to help sway skeptical state legislators. But those groups are split on the issue — just like the public at large. Nationally, the National Federation of Independent Business, which represents mostly small employers, remains opposed to the […]
What’s Next For Pennsylvania’s Medicaid Expansion?
Pennsylvania Gov. Tom Corbett has backed away from a controversial work search requirement in his Medicaid overhaul proposal that’s now under federal review. Even so, experts say it’s unclear whether that move will be enough for the plan to gain final approval. At stake are billions of dollars in federal funding for Pennsylvania and new […]
Obamacare On Campus: Reaching The Young And Uninsured
Young adults may be key to the success of Obamacare. Insurance companies need a mix of ages, and a mix of healthy and sick people to balance out the costs for everyone — and young people tend to be healthier. But persuading them to sign up for health insurance is no easy task. Many don’t know about […]
Obama Urges Latinos To Sign Up For Insurance Now
President Barack Obama appealed directly to Latinos on Thursday, telling them time is running out to sign up for health coverage this year and that they should enroll now to avoid problems. Open enrollment in the health law’s online health insurance marketplaces closes March 31 for coverage this year and that date won’t be extended, Obama said […]
Insurers Take The Lead To Reach Florida Latinos
For all of California’s troubles advertising to Latinos, that state has embraced the 2010 health law and is spending millions of dollars to get people to sign up. Florida is a different story. Florida has a high rate of uninsured Latinos — almost 10 percent of all the country’s uninsured Hispanics who are eligible for […]
Survey: Employers Less Confident Of Future Health Benefits
Big employers are pretty sure they’ll keep offering workers health care coverage. But they seem a lot less sure than they used to be, according to a survey released Thursday. Only one large company in four recently surveyed by Towers Watson and the National Business Group on Health is confident it will provide medical coverage […]
Washington State’s Insurance Ads: Quirky And Hip Or Offensive?
This story was produced in partnership with Are the new ads promoting health insurance for Washington state’s young people quirky, hip and funny — or are they insulting and offensive? Michael Marchand says it doesn’t matter. “I don’t care if people like or hate what I’m doing, so long as they get the URL right,” said […]
60,000 With HIV Left Uninsured In States Not Expanding Medicaid
The Affordable Care Act is generally a win for people living with HIV and AIDS, about 30 percent of whom are uninsured. It offers new health insurance options — both private and public — to a group that had been largely locked out of the individual insurance market because of rules about preexisting conditions. In […]
Co-Ops Report Early Enrollment Successes And Expansion Plans
The Affordable Care Act’s nonprofit co-op health plans, which see themselves as the rebel alliance battling established insurers, have signed close to 300,000 members and are set to expand into three new states next year, officials say. Starting from zero in October, New York’s Health Republic Insurance has enrolled more than 50,000 policyholders, said John Morrison, who […]
Integrating Yoga Into Medical Practice – It’s More Than ‘Just Relaxation Response’
Rajan Narayanan isn’t your average yoga instructor. During his classes, he uses words like “neuroplasticity,”avoids Sanskrit terms and sometimes shows up to teach in a suit and tie. And often, like on this particular Monday at a Maryland conference center, most of his students are physicians and nurses. Stretched out on orange and green yoga mats […]
Poll: For Right Price, Consumers Will Accept Limited Choice Of Doctors, Hospitals
People buying health insurance through the health law’s new online marketplaces are more willing than the public at large to accept a limited roster of doctors and hospitals in return for lower premiums, a poll released Wednesday finds. But that enthusiasm nosedives if they are told their regular doctor isn’t included in the plan. As a […]
Tenet Expects 15% Of Its Uninsured To Get Obamacare Coverage
Tenet Healthcare Corp., the nation’s third largest for-profit hospital operator, said Tuesday it expects 15 percent of its uninsured patients to get covered this year as a result of the Affordable Care Act. But the company isn’t counting yet on any higher profits from the shift, Tenet officials said after a conference call with Wall Street […]
Arkansas Medicaid Fight All About The Math, Governor Says
http://admin.brightcove.com/js/BrightcoveExperiences.js brightcove.createExperiences();Arkansas Gov. Mike Beebe says his strategy to win over state lawmakers skeptical about continuing the state’s Medicaid expansion is to show them the money. “It’s arithmetic, it’s not even math,” Beebe said Monday at a media briefing sponsored by Kaiser Health News and Health Affairs. The Democratic governor said if the Arkansas legislature opts against going […]
40 Percent Of Enrollees Through eHealth Website Are Young Adults
Whether enough young people are signing up for insurance coverage under the health law remains a point of debate among its critics and supporters. Now both sides have some new data. Private online marketplace eHealth reported that the percentage of people between the ages of 18 and 34 who applied for coverage through the firm’s website […]
Quick Update Of State Insurance Exchanges: Still A Mixed Bag
This story comes from our partner ‘s Shots blog. With a bit more than a month left for people to sign up for health insurance plans set up under the Affordable Care Act, the federal website known as healthcare.gov finally seems to be working smoothly — in 36 states. But what’s happening in the 14 […]
Latino Insurance Enrollment Picks Up In California, But …
Enrollment in health insurance plans through Covered California in the first two weeks of February maintained the same pace reported for the last two weeks of January, while Latino enrollment jumped significantly in January, according to state data released yesterday. About 100,000 people signed up during the first two weeks of February, almost exactly matching […]
