Latest KFF Health News Stories
Former Montana Health Staffer Rebukes Oversight Rules as a Hospital ‘Wish List’
The push-pull in Montana reflects a national tension as states try to decide what counts as fair checks on tax-exempt hospitals and industry players weigh in. The debate centers on whether nonprofit hospitals do enough good to earn their charitable status.
Six Years Into an Appalachia Hospital Monopoly, Patients Are Fearful and Furious
Ballad Health, with the largest state-sanctioned hospital monopoly in the nation, has failed for years to meet many quality-of-care goals, leaving some patients afraid of their local hospitals but with no other nearby options.
Your Next Hospital Stay Could Involve Fewer IV Fluid Bags. Here’s Why.
When Hurricane Helene struck in late September, it flooded the largest IV fluid factory in the United States. The Baxter International facility in western North Carolina had been producing 1.5 million IV bags a day, 60 percent of the nation’s supply. The company immediately began rationing its products, and the shortage sent ripples through the […]
Indiana Hospitals Pull Merger Application After Pushback Over Monopoly Concerns
Two Indiana hospital rivals withdrew their application to merge after facing pushback from the Federal Trade Commission and the public.
Georgians With Disabilities Are Still Being Institutionalized, Despite Federal Oversight
For nearly 15 years, the feds have had oversight of Georgia’s treatment of people with mental illness and developmental disabilities. Observers say the state still jeopardizes some of its most marginalized residents by not meeting the terms of its settlement with the Justice Department.
Readers Embrace ‘Going It Alone’ Series on Aging and Chastise Makers of Pulse Oximeters
KFF Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
Nearly All Vermonters Have Health Insurance, but Care Is Tough To Find
Almost all people have health insurance in Vermont, a state famed for its maple syrup and Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, yet residents pay the nation’s highest insurance premiums for individual coverage and endure months-long waits for care — and most hospitals here are losing money, according to state reports and interviews with residents and […]
Listen: A Tussle With a Rattlesnake Can Take a Bite Out of Your Wallet
Listen to KFF Health News’ Jackie Fortiér recount how a backyard snakebite led to a harrowing hospitalization — and big bills — for a San Diego family.
FTC, Indiana Residents Pressure State To Block Hospital Merger
Hundreds of people and the Federal Trade Commission weighed in on a proposed hospital merger in Terre Haute, Indiana, with most arguing that the creation of a monopoly would increase costs and worsen patient care.
Nationwide IV Fluid Shortage Could Change How Hospitals Manage Patient Hydration
Many U.S. hospitals are conserving critical intravenous fluid supplies to cope with a shortage that may last months. Some hospital administrators say the shortage accelerated their plans to change IV fluid hydration protocols altogether.
Hospitals Adjust as Rates of Maternal High Blood Pressure Spike
Health researchers are noticing a growing problem in American pregnancies: more cases of blood pressure so high it can be deadly for the parent and baby. U.S. rates of newly developed and chronic maternal high blood pressure skyrocketed from 2007 through 2019, and researchers say they haven’t slowed down. Hospitals are working to adjust their […]
Prepared for Trump’s Comeback, California’s Attorney General Is Ready To Fight
Attorney General Rob Bonta, a longtime champion of reproductive rights, is ready to lead California in the fight to protect abortion under Trump’s second presidency. In a Q&A, he shares how his upbringing prepared him for the role.
In Vermont, Where Almost Everyone Has Insurance, Many Can’t Find or Afford Care
Vermont has one of the lowest uninsured rates in the U.S., even though its residents pay some of the highest health insurance costs. Still, most of its hospitals are losing money and patients often face long waits for care.
As Nuns Disappear, Many Catholic Hospitals Look More Like Megacorporations
The nation’s Catholic health systems were largely founded and led by nuns with a mission to serve the sick regardless of their creed or financial means. Today, no nuns run any U.S. Catholic health system, while many of these hospitals pull in billions, according to their financial reports.
Sin monjas en sus pasillos, muchos hospitales católicos parecen más mega corporaciones
La Iglesia Católica aún regula la atención que se brinda a millones de personas en estos hospitales cada año, usando directrices religiosas para prohibir abortos y limitar anticonceptivos.
Vance Wrongly Blames Rural Hospital Closures on Immigrants in the Country Illegally
Experts disputed the claim by Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance, noting that a range of other issues — from low reimbursement rates to declining patient use — combine to cause these facilities to shutter.
Helene and CVS Land Double Whammy for 25,000 Patients Who Survive on IV Nutrition
A Massachusetts woman ended up stranded in the hospital because CVS stopped providing the IV nutrition she needs to survive at home. Without it, she’d starve.
As Hospitals Get Bigger, Medical Debt Is Harder for Patients To Shake
If you get sick in America, there’s a good chance you’ll end up in debt. Four in 10 U.S. adults have some form of health-care debt, KFF has found. One surprising risk: living in a community where hospitals have consolidated — an increasingly common development as health systems merge or large systems gobble up smaller hospitals. That’s […]
Patients Are Relying on Lyft, Uber To Travel Far Distances to Medical Care
Uber and Lyft have become a critical part of the nation’s infrastructure for transporting ailing people from their homes — even in rural areas — to medical care sites in major cities such as Atlanta.
California Hospitals Scramble on Earthquake Retrofits as State Limits Extensions
California legislators for years have granted extensions on a 1994 law requiring hospitals to retrofit their buildings to withstand earthquakes. Gov. Gavin Newsom in September vetoed an extension for all hospitals but signed a bill granting relief to rural and “distressed” hospitals and some others.
