The Week in Brief: Friday, April 24, 2026
In Connecticut, Doctors Now Sue Patients Most Over Medical Bills, Surpassing Hospitals
By Noam N. Levey and Katy Golvala, CT Mirror and Jenna Carlesso, CT Mirror
Physicians, dentists, and other nonhospital providers account for more than 80% of health care debt collection cases in Connecticut courts, a CT Mirror-KFF Health News investigation finds.
They’re in Remission, but Their Medical Bills Aren’t: Cancer Survivors Navigate Soaring Costs
By Renuka Rayasam
The costs of posttreatment care are forcing cancer survivors to make tough choices. GOP proposals to bring down health insurance costs won’t help people who need constant care and monitoring, health policy researchers and patient advocates say.
Listen: Cheap Health Insurance Isn’t Always Cheap
By Jackie Fortiér
Across the country, people are choosing lower monthly premiums in exchange for higher out-of-pocket risk. Reporter Jackie Fortiér explains what the shift means for Americans’ health and wallets.
‘What the Health?’ Podcast: RFK Jr. vs. Congress
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. completed his tour of House and Senate committees this week, ostensibly to promote President Donald Trump’s budget proposal for his department but also to answer for some of his more controversial positions, particularly on vaccines. Meanwhile, Trump signed an order to facilitate the use of hallucinogens to treat mental health conditions. Victoria Knight of Bloomberg Government, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Sheryl Gay Stolberg of The New York Times join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, as part of our “How Would You Fix It?” series, Rovner interviews Harvard public health professor David Blumenthal.
RFK Jr. vs. Congress
HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. completed his tour of House and Senate committees this week, ostensibly to promote President Donald Trump’s budget proposal for his department but also to answer for some of his more controversial positions, particularly on vaccines. Meanwhile, Trump signed an order to facilitate the use of hallucinogens to treat mental health conditions. Victoria Knight of Bloomberg Government, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Sheryl Gay Stolberg of The New York Times join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, as part of our “How Would You Fix It?” series, Rovner interviews Harvard public health professor David Blumenthal.
Watch: Acknowledging Health Care’s Great Divide
By Hannah Norman and Julie Rovner
As part of her "How Would You Fix It?" series, podcast host Julie Rovner chats with health policy expert David Blumenthal about how politics can gum up health policy progress.
A ‘Barbaric’ Problem in American Hospitals Is Only Getting Bigger
By Elisabeth Rosenthal
Patients are getting stuck in the emergency department for days while waiting for a spot in an inpatient ward.
Real Estate Investors Profit From Long-Term Care While Residents Languish
By Jordan Rau
Real estate investment trusts are landlords for thousands of nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and hospitals. Some select the managers and keep close watch over their performance but deny responsibility for bad care.
Medigap Premiums Leap, and Consumers Have Few Alternatives
By Julie Appleby
Millions of people rely on the supplemental insurance to offset the deductibles, copayments, and other costs faced by enrollees in the traditional Medicare program.
The Accidental Architect of America’s Drug Patent Problem
By Dan Weissmann
An Arm and a Leg launches its “101” series with the story of Alfred Engelberg, a lawyer who’s been crusading to improve access to generic drugs by fixing loopholes in a law he helped draft more than 40 years ago.
California Lawmakers Seek Protections for Patients in ICE Custody
By Claudia Boyd-Barrett
Moving through the California Senate are two bills, informed by KFF Health News reporting, that would strengthen protections for patients brought to health facilities by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
Montana Moves Ahead With Doula Pay but Warns Medicaid Cuts Still May Come
By Katheryn Houghton
Montana health officials say they’re seeking to add doula services to the state’s Medicaid program, reversing a previous statement that they would “not be moving forward” amid a budget shortfall.
Democrats Demand Trump Administration Halt Plan To Collect Federal Workers’ Health Data
By Amanda Seitz and Maia Rosenfeld
After KFF Health News reported that the Trump administration is seeking federal workers’ medical records, Democratic lawmakers are insisting that the Office of Personnel Management drop its request.
Food Stamp Work Rules Don’t Increase Employment, Researchers Say
By Taylor Sisk
Work requirements will encourage people who are able to work to seek and maintain jobs, proponents say. But researchers haven’t found that they lower the unemployment rate.
Listen to the Latest ‘KFF Health News Minute’
The "KFF Health News Minute” brings original health care and health policy reporting from our newsroom to the airwaves each week.
Journalists Talk Hot Health Topics: Urgent Care Clinics Performing Abortions and Doulas’ Pay
KFF Health News journalists made the rounds on national and local media recently to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
Readers Chime In on Reproductive Rights, Therapy Chatbots, Medical Debt, and More
KFF Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.