Latest KFF Health News Stories
Los Angeles County Launches Ambitious Plan To Tackle Medical Debt. Hospitals Groan.
Los Angeles County, the nation’s most populous county, is spearheading a comprehensive plan to tackle a $2.9 billion medical debt crisis. Hospitals are still getting on board with the project, which is helmed by the public health department.
4 Ways Vaccine Skeptics Mislead You on Measles and More
Vaccine scare tactics haven’t shifted, but more parents are falling for them. Here’s what the rhetoric gets wrong and how it endangers children.
Medical Residents Are Increasingly Avoiding States With Abortion Restrictions
A new analysis shows that students graduating from U.S. medical schools were less likely to apply this year for residency positions in states with abortion bans and other significant abortion restrictions.
AC, Power Banks, Mini Fridges: Oregon Equips Medicaid Patients for Climate Change
Oregon is giving Medicaid patients air conditioners and other equipment to help them cope with soaring heat, smoky skies, and other dangers of climate change. Oregon health officials hope to show other states and the federal government that they can save lives and money.
Tire Toxicity Faces Fresh Scrutiny After Salmon Die-Offs
Tires emit huge volumes of particles and chemicals as they roll along the highway, and researchers are only beginning to understand the threat. One byproduct of tire use, 6PPD-q, is in regulators’ crosshairs after it was found to be killing fish.
He Thinks His Wife Died in an Understaffed Hospital. Now He’s Trying to Change the Industry.
Nurses are telling lawmakers that there are not enough of them working in hospitals and that it risks patients’ lives. California and Oregon legally limit the number of patients under a nurse’s care. Other states trying to do the same were blocked by the hospital industry. Now patients’ relatives are joining the fight.
Your Doctor or Your Insurer? Little-Known Rules May Ease the Choice in Medicare Advantage
Disputes between hospitals and Medicare Advantage plans are leading to entire hospital systems suddenly leaving insurance networks. Patients are left stuck in the middle, choosing between their doctors and their insurance plan. There’s a way out.
Why Even Public Health Experts Have Limited Insight Into Stopping Gun Violence in America
After the 1996 Dickey Amendment halted federal spending on research into firearms risks, a small group of academics pressed on, with little money or political support, to document the nation’s growing gun violence problem and start to understand what can be done to curb the public health crisis.
Whistleblower Accuses Aledade, Largest US Independent Primary Care Network, of Medicare Fraud
A recently unsealed lawsuit alleges Aledade Inc. developed billing software that boosted revenues by making patients appear sicker than they were.
The Powerful Constraints on Medical Care in Catholic Hospitals Across America
The expansion of Catholic hospitals nationwide leaves patients at the mercy of the church’s religious directives, which are often at odds with accepted medical standards.
Colorado Legal Settlement Would Up Care and Housing Standards for Trans Women Inmates
A soon-to-be-finalized legal settlement would offer transgender women in Colorado prisons new housing options, including a pipeline to the Denver Women’s Correctional Facility. The change comes amid a growing number of lawsuits across the country aimed at improving health care access and safety for incarcerated trans people.
Ouch. That ‘Free’ Annual Checkup Might Cost You. Here’s Why.
The designers of the Affordable Care Act might have assumed that they spelled out with sufficient clarity that millions of Americans would no longer have to pay for certain types of preventive care. But they didn’t reckon with America’s ever-creative medical billing juggernaut.
Native American Communities Have the Highest Suicide Rates, Yet Interventions Are Scarce
Native Americans die by suicide at a higher rate than any other racial or ethnic group, yet research into effective and culturally appropriate interventions is uncommon.
Insurance Doesn’t Always Cover Hearing Aids for Kids
California’s governor vetoed a bill extending insurance coverage for kids with hearing loss, but most states now require it.
Adultos mayores se sienten “atrapados” en planes de Medicare Advantage
Al parecer el programa de planes privados para adultos mayores comienza a presentar obstáculos cuando surgen enfermedades.
Older Americans Say They Feel Trapped in Medicare Advantage Plans
As enrollment in private Medicare Advantage plans grows, so do concerns about how well the insurance works, including from those who say they have become trapped in the private plans as their health declines.
States Expand Health Coverage for Immigrants as GOP Hits Biden Over Border Crossings
More than 1 million immigrants, most lacking permanent legal status, are covered by state health programs. Several states, including GOP-led Utah, will soon add or expand such coverage.
La mayoría de los adultos sin papeles trabajan, representan aproximadamente el 5% de la fuerza laboral nacional, según el Pew Research Center.
As Foundation for ‘Excited Delirium’ Diagnosis Cracks, Fallout Spreads
Major policy changes and disavowals have made this a watershed year for curbing the use of the discredited “excited delirium” diagnosis to explain deaths in police custody. Now the ripple effects are spreading across the country into court cases, state legislation, and police training classes.
Dodging the Medicare Enrollment Deadline Can Be Costly
As open enrollment ends, many people are tuning out. They could wind up with a surprise next year: higher costs and less access to health care providers.
