Latest KFF Health News Stories
California Insurance Marketplace Wants To Kick Out Poor-Performing Hospitals
Providers and insurers are balking at a Covered California proposal to eject hospitals with inordinately high costs and low quality from its networks.
It’s Not Just Doctors And Nurses, Patients Need To Wash Their Hands, Too
New research indicates that patients who leave the hospital for post-acute care facilities carry superbugs with them.
Back From The Brink, A Rural Texas Hospital Shines
One family’s tragedy inspired a radical change at a struggling rural hospital in Texas.
Hospital Closures Rattle Small Towns
More than 50 shuttered rural hospitals mean a loss of jobs and other commerce for municipalities and uncertain care for residents.
For Parents Of Preemies, Life Starts With A Complex Fight For Survival
KHN’s Jenny Gold joins The Takeaway to discuss the challenges faced by parents of premature babies in the NICU.
EHRs In The ER: As Doctors Adapt, Concerns Emerge About Medical Errors
As hospitals adopt electronic health record systems, some emergency rooms are experiencing new patterns of medical errors.
R2D2’s Next Assignment: Hospital Orderly
A gleaming new hospital in San Francisco has a fleet of robots dropping off meals, picking up trash and saving some money in a very 21st century way.
The Agonizing Limbo Of Abandoned Nursing Home Residents
Even when the state orders nursing homes to readmit residents who have been in the hospital, its orders have no teeth.
Women Increasingly Having Outpatient Mastectomies, New Federal Data Show
Agency For Healthcare Research and Quality data show that more women with breast cancer are opting for mastectomies over less-invasive options, and more are having the procedure in outpatient facilities where they don’t spend even one night in the hospital.
Urging Openness About Superbug Infections, Doctor Omits Cases In Own Hospital
In a respected medical journal, a specialist advises colleagues on protecting patients but doesn’t mention potential infections from a contaminated scope at his Philadelphia cancer center.
Health Reform Roils Downton Abbey
The hospital consolidation plot in the final season of the beloved British series is historically accurate — and has parallels in today’s U.S. health industry.
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.
In Freddie Gray’s Neighborhood, The Best Medical Care Is Close But Elusive
Last year’s Baltimore unrest highlighted deep distrust between police and poor African-Americans. Dozens of interviews and little-seen data show a similar gap between that community and the city’s renowned health system.
Video: Baltimore Hospitals Work To Repair Frayed Trust In Black Communities
The neighborhoods where people live and work often determine their health. Nowhere is that more true than in West Baltimore.
Hospital Trying To Win Community’s Trust
Bon Secours is dealing with patients who are sicker than those in other Baltimore hospitals.
Top Hospitals Likely Are Available On A Marketplace Plan, Study Finds
Many of the hospitals can be found in network on at least one plan, but fewer are participating in more than that, according to the analysis.
Hospitals Employ Email ‘Empathy’ To Help Doctors And Patients Keep In Touch
A better way to communicate with patients and track their progress?
Reforming Federal Oversight Of Medical Devices Won’t Be Easy
Despite dozens of infections from medical scopes, an agreement on how to fix the FDA’s flawed regulation of the device industry remains elusive.
Despite Kvetching, Most Consumers Satisfied With Health Plans: Poll
The survey by the Kaiser Family Foundation shows that 71 percent of people with insurance believe their services are excellent or good.
Check The Fine Print: Some Work-Based Health Plans Exclude Outpatient Surgeries
This new generation of so-called “skinny plans” can save employers money, but it’s not yet clear if they will meet regulatory scrutiny.
