Latest KFF Health News Stories
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Starting To Feel the Shutdown’s Bite
The government shutdown continues with no end in sight, and while it theoretically should not affect entitlement programs, the lapse of some related authorizations — like for Medicare telehealth programs — is leaving some doctors and patients high and dry. Meanwhile, the FDA quietly approved a new generic abortion pill. Sarah Karlin-Smith of Pink Sheet, Tami Luhby of CNN, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more. Also, Rovner interviews Sarah Grusin of the National Health Law Program.
This Geriatrics Training Program Escaped the Ax. For Now.
The Trump administration has restored promised funds to a program that teaches people in health care how to work with aging Americans.
Doctors With Troubled Pasts Are Performing Cosmetic Surgeries Tied to Crippling Pain and Injury
Some injured patients say they wish they had tried harder to check the backgrounds of doctors and clinics they trusted, but those records are hard to find.
How To Pick the Right Cosmetic Surgeon
While surgeons argue over who gets the best results, patients may struggle to make sense of credentials.
Health Care Cuts Threaten Homegrown Solutions to Rural Doctor Shortages
In a rural, largely Republican region of California, homegrown efforts to bolster the medical workforce face an uphill battle, in part because of federal health care cuts approved by the GOP Congress and signed by President Donald Trump in July, as well as a state budget deficit.
An AI Assistant Can Interpret Those Lab Results for You
While patients wait to hear back from their doctors about test results, many turn to AI assistants for answers despite cautions over privacy and accuracy.
Programas de inteligencia artificial te ayudan a interpretar tus resultados de laboratorio
Muchos pacientes están utilizando programas como ChatGPT de OpenAI, Claude de Anthropic y Gemini de Google, para interpretar sus datos médicos
Affirmative Action Critics Refuse To Back Down in Fight Over Medical Bias Training
A nonprofit fighting affirmative action in medicine and a Los Angeles ophthalmologist have launched a long-shot legal appeal aimed at ending California’s requirement that every continuing medical education class include training to recognize and address unconscious bias.
Do Pediatricians Recommend Vaccines To Make a Profit? There’s Not Much Money in It
Four pediatricians said evidence-based science and medicine and a desire to keep kids healthy drive doctors’ childhood vaccination recommendations. And while pediatric practices might make money immunizing privately insured children, most practices likely break even or lose money from providing the shots.
Experts Say Rural Emergency Rooms Are Increasingly Run Without Doctors
Some doctors and the groups that represent them say physicians’ extensive training leads to better emergency care, and that some hospitals are trying to save money by not hiring them. They support new laws in Indiana, Virginia, and South Carolina that require physicians to be on-site 24/7.
Amid PFAS Fallout, a Maine Doctor Navigates Medical Risks With Her Patients
A doctor doing environmental health research in rural Maine is working to establish the best practices to treat patients exposed to “forever chemicals,” potentially leading the way for practitioners across the nation.
Push To Move OB-GYN Exam Out of Texas Is Piece of AGs’ Broader Reproductive Rights Campaign
Following a petition from Democratic state attorneys general, the American Medical Association adopted a position that medical certification exams should not be required in person in states with restrictive abortion policies. The action’s success was hailed as a win for Democrats trying to regain ground after the fall of Roe.
Readers Endorse Doctor Migration and Shun ‘Elderspeak’
KFF Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
The House’s gigantic tax-and-spending budget reconciliation bill has landed with a thud in the Senate, where lawmakers are divided in their criticism over whether it increases the deficit too much or cuts Medicaid and the Affordable Care Act too deeply. Meanwhile, the Congressional Budget Office’s estimate that the bill, if enacted, could increase the ranks of the uninsured by nearly 11 million people over a decade won’t make it an easy sell. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF Health News’ Arielle Zionts, who reported and wrote the latest “Bill of the Month” feature, about a Medicaid patient who had an out-of-state emergency.
American Doctors Are Moving to Canada To Escape the Trump Administration
Canada has seen a surge of American doctors seeking to move north in the months since President Donald Trump returned to the White House.
Médicos estadounidenses se mudan a Canadá para escapar de la administración Trump
El Consejo Médico de Canadá afirmó que el número de médicos estadounidenses que han dado el primer paso para obtener la licencia en Canadá, ha aumentado más del 750%.
California’s Primary Care Shortage Persists Despite Ambitious Moves To Close Gap
The state has in recent years embraced several initiatives recommended in an influential health care workforce report, including alternative payment arrangements for primary care doctors to earn more. Despite increasing residency programs, student debt forgiveness, and tuition-free medical school, California is unlikely to meet patient demand, observers say.
Covid Worsened Shortages of Doctors and Nurses. Five Years On, Rural Hospitals Still Struggle.
The U.S. faces a crucial shortage of medical providers, especially in rural areas. The problem has been building for a while, experts say, but the pandemic accelerated it by pushing many doctors over the edge into early retirement or other fields.
Montana Examines Ways To Ease Health Care Workforce Shortages
Bills before the legislature would license community health workers and make it easier for some other health professionals licensed in other states to do business in Montana.
In New York, Providers Must Put Patient Costs on the Table
The governor’s fiscal year 2026 budget revises a law designed to limit unexpected bills that can put people at risk for unfair medical billing practices and reduce medical debt. Consumer groups say it doesn’t go far enough.
