InsuranceCoverage&Costs040721

Her Doctor’s Office Moved One Floor Up. Her Bill Was 10 Times Higher.
By Lauren Weber Same building. Same procedure. Same doctor. But now you’re charged a hospital facility fee. For one Ohio Medicare patient, the copay for a shot that used to cost her about $30 went up to more than $300.

Under New Cost-Cutting Medicare Rule, Same Surgery, Same Place, Different Bill
By Susan Jaffe A Trump administration Medicare rule will push some hospital patients into a Catch-22: The government says several hundred procedures no longer need to be done in a hospital, but it did not approve them to be performed elsewhere. So patients will still need to use a hospital while not officially admitted — and may be charged more out-of-pocket for the care.

The Boom in Out-of-State Telehealth Threatens In-State Providers
By Matt Volz Health provider conflicts, fraud and access disparity temper the covid telehealth revolution.

Analysis: The Trump Health Care Policies That Deserve to Stick Around
By Elisabeth Rosenthal President Joe Biden may want to continue the previous administration’s efforts to lower drug prices and make medical costs transparent.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: ACA Packs More Benefits — And More Confusion
The covid relief bill signed by President Joe Biden includes a long list of new health benefits for consumers. But many eligible people may have difficulty taking advantage of them because of the interaction with the income tax system and a lack of expert guidance. Meanwhile, Democrats are debating internally about what should come next on the health agenda. Joanne Kenen of Politico, Mary Ellen McIntire of CQ Roll Call and Rachana Pradhan of KHN join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.

Covid-Inspired Montana Health Insurance Proposal Wouldn’t Kick In for 2 Years
By Sara Reardon Montana is looking to join most other states in requiring small businesses to offer laid-off employees temporary continuity of their health care plans. But the bill, if it passes, likely won’t take effect in time to help people directly affected by the pandemic.

Blue Shield Spent Years Cultivating a Relationship with Newsom. It Got the State Vaccine Contract.
By Samantha Young and Angela Hart Insurance giant Blue Shield of California has made millions in charitable and political donations to Gov. Gavin Newsom over nearly two decades, largely to his dearly held homeless initiatives. In turn, Newsom has rewarded the insurer with a $15 million no-bid contract to lead the state’s covid vaccination distribution.

Democrats Gave Americans a Big Boost Buying Health Insurance. It Didn’t Come Cheap.
By Noam N. Levey The $1.9 trillion covid relief bill expands subsidies for private insurance plans. That will lighten the burden on consumers, but it locks taxpayers into yet more support for the health care industry.

Journalists Analyze the Covid Relief Bill
KHN and California Healthline staff made the rounds on national and local media this week to discuss their stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Getting Down to Work at HHS
After a bruising confirmation process, Xavier Becerra was sworn in as secretary of Health and Human Services this week. The Senate also confirmed the nominations of former U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy to return to the post he held in the Obama administration, and former Pennsylvania health secretary Rachel Levine as assistant secretary for health. Levine is the first openly transgender person to receive Senate confirmation. Meanwhile, questions continue to swirl around the AstraZeneca covid vaccine, which some public health experts worry will create more hesitancy toward other vaccines.

How Much of Trump’s Health Agenda Has Biden Undone?
By Julie Rovner In his campaign, President Joe Biden promised to undo policies, particularly health policies, implemented by former President Donald Trump. Yet, despite immense executive power, reversing four years of action takes time and resources.

Journalists Dish on Vaccination Loopholes and Alliances
KHN and California Healthline staff made the rounds on national and local media this week to discuss their stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.

Indiana’s Medicaid Expansion — Designed by Pence and Verma — Panned in Federal Report
By Phil Galewitz Indiana’s program seeks to give expansion enrollees “skin in the game,” requiring that they pay small monthly premiums and manage health savings accounts.

In California, Blue Shield’s Vaccination Takeover Fixes What Wasn’t Broken
By Rachel Bluth Rural Mendocino County had finally figured out its vaccination program. But now the community clinics that helped make it happen are changing course as Blue Shield of California takes over the state vaccine program.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Planning for Round Two
The ink is barely dry on the recent covid relief bill, but Democrats in Congress and President Joe Biden are wasting no time gearing up for their next big legislative package. Meanwhile, predictions of more states expanding Medicaid have proved premature. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Rachel Cohrs of Stat and Kimberly Leonard of Business Insider join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, Rovner interviews KHN’s Lauren Weber, who reported the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month” episode.

‘Painless’ Glucose Monitors Pushed Despite Little Evidence They Help Most Diabetes Patients
By Phil Galewitz The numbers of people wearing these monitors are soaring as prices have fallen and device-makers promote them to doctors and patients. But few studies show the devices lead to better outcomes for the nearly 25 million Americans with Type 2 diabetes who don’t inject insulin to regulate their blood sugar.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Expanding the ACA in an Unpredicted Way
Beyond the billions of dollars aimed squarely at the pandemic, the covid relief bill cleared by Congress this week includes significant changes to health policy. Among them are the first major expansions to the Affordable Care Act since its enactment 11 years ago and changes that could expand coverage for the Medicaid program. Tami Luhby of CNN, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too.

Impulsan monitores de glucosa aunque no ayudarían a muchos pacientes con diabetes
By Phil Galewitz Aunque algunos médicos y las aseguradoras dicen que son útiles, expertos aseguran que no ayudan a la mayoría de las personas que viven con diabetes tipo 2.

Military Exposed to Toxic Fumes From Burn Pits Set to Get Bipartisan Boost
By Michael McAuliff Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and Republican Sen. Marco Rubio were set to roll out a bill Friday that could help unknown thousands of service members who are sick from toxic substances they were exposed to from burning garbage in Afghanistan, Iraq and other war zones.

‘An Arm and a Leg’: In Vaccinating Philadelphia, A Mix of the Good, the Bad and the Ugly
By Dan Weissmann Covid vaccinations are ramping up, so “An Arm and a Leg” checked in on the effort in Philadelphia, where capitalism and compassion have clashed.

Doctors Found Jet Fuel in Veteran’s Lungs. He Can’t Get Full Benefits.
By Michael McAuliff Sick with ailments similar to those suffered by 9/11 first responders, military service members exposed to toxic burning garbage in Iraq and Afghanistan may finally see Congress address their plight. President Joe Biden believes his son Beau’s brain cancer may have been caused by such exposure.

Democrats Eye Medicare Negotiations to Lower Drug Prices
By Emmarie Huetteman Progressive and conservative Democratic lawmakers, as well as President Joe Biden, are in favor of authorizing federal officials to negotiate with drugmakers over what Medicare pays for at least some of the most expensive brand-name drugs and to base those prices on the drugs’ clinical benefits. Such a measure could put Republicans in the uncomfortable position of opposing an idea that most voters from both parties generally support.

Lots of Health Insurance Help in Covid Relief Law — But Do Your Homework First
By Michelle Andrews Democrats’ $1.9 trillion covid relief package will offer some of the most significant help for Americans to pay for health insurance in a decade. But the temporary provisions are complicated. KHN offers tips for consumers.

‘Incredibly Concerning’ Lawsuit Threatens No-Charge Preventive Care for Millions
By Harris Meyer A Texas federal judge, who previously ruled the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional, has signaled his openness to ending the law’s popular coverage requirement for preventive services.

How One State’s Public Health Defunding Led to Vaccination Chaos
By Lauren Weber The underfunding of public health and political backlash destabilized Missouri’s vaccine rollout, creating racial inequity and forcing some residents to drive hours to get shots.

Scientists Seek Covid Treatment Answers in Cheap, Older Drugs
By Esther Landhuis Philanthropies are funding studies of cheap, existing medications like the antidepressant fluvoxamine as covid treatments. But early hype about hydroxychloroquine and other repurposed drugs leaves researchers leery of hasty conclusions.

Medicamentos ya conocidos, y baratos, podrían ser clave para tratar covid
By Esther Landhuis Hay medicamentos aprobados hace años que podrían investigarse en profundidad para tratar covid. Pero no hay interés porque no generarían grandes ganancias.