Latest KFF Health News Stories
KHN’s ‘What The Health’: Who Will Pay To Fix Problem Of Surprise Medical Bills?
Lawmakers and patients want to eliminate “surprise” out-of-network medical bills. Hospitals, doctors and insurers say they want to eliminate them, too, but their opposition to one another’s proposals could complicate legislative efforts. Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss this, plus the latest in news about reproductive health and health care sharing ministries.
Robin Hood To Rescue Of Rural Hospitals? New Math Promised On Medicare Payments
A proposed adjustment to the wage index, used in setting a hospital’s Medicare reimbursement payments, could be a lifeline for some rural facilities.
Listen: Answering Questions About New Abortion Laws
KHN’s Julie Rovner is among a panel of experts who take questions about the future of abortion restrictions from listeners on WAMU’s “1A.”
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ States Race To Reverse ‘Roe’
Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss the new abortion bans passed in Alabama and Georgia; bipartisan congressional efforts to end “surprise” out-of-network medical bills; and a new public option health insurance plan soon to be available in Washington state.
Listen: Abortion Laws Could Have Unexpected Consequences
KHN’s Julie Rovner discusses on WBUR’s “Here and Now” some of the surprising ramifications that could follow abortion restrictions passed recently in some states.
With Hospitalization Losing Favor, Judges Order Outpatient Mental Health Treatment
Nearly every state in the country allows courts to force people with severe mental illnesses into treatment against their will. But critics argue these controversial intervention programs fail to address underlying problems in behavioral health services.
Not-So-Happy New Year: Alabama Set To Toss Kids Off Insurance Plan Starting Jan. 1
Funding for the joint federal-state Children’s Health Insurance Program expired Oct. 1, and Congress has not yet agreed to a plan to continue the popular coverage.
Grupo lucha para que el Medicare cubra atención dental completa
Un grupo formado por miembros de la industria de la salud oral, médicos y ex funcionarios federales, se unieron con una meta que también es un desafío de salud pública: lograr que el Medicare cubra ampliamente servicios de salud dental.
Dentistry Advocates Aim To Fill Medicare Gaps
Brushing aside a political climate that favors federal cuts in health care spending, advocates for oral health are pushing to expand Medicare to provide America’s elderly with dental benefits.
Elderly Patients In The Hospital Need To Keep Moving
Spending too much time in their hospital beds can leave older patients sicker than when they were first admitted.
United’s Departure From Marketplaces Could Impact Consumers’ Costs, Access
Florida and Oklahoma counties are among the hardest hit by UnitedHealthcare’s pullout from health law exchanges.
Competition Suffers Most If UnitedHealth Exits Obamacare In 2017: Analysis
A Kaiser Family Foundation analysis released Monday, a day ahead of UnitedHealth’s expected announcement, finds 1.1 million consumers would have no choice in health insurance plans if the giant insurer drops out of Obamacare marketplaces as threatened.
Alabama Puts Hospitals At Forefront Of Medicaid Managed Care
As officials seek to take control of costs in the health coverage for low-income residents, they are relying on hospitals, not private insurance companies, to run the program.
States Simplify Medicaid Sign-Ups
Forty-nine states now take Medicaid applications by phone and 49 also accept online applications, reports the Kaiser Family Foundation.
Rising Obesity Puts Strain On Nursing Homes
Residences for older adults are increasingly overwhelmed, and unprepared, for huge patients, and facilities rarely accept more than a few.
