Weekly Edition: February 23, 2018
Pain Hits After Surgery When A Doctor’s Daughter Is Stunned By $17,850 Urine Test
By Fred Schulte
Elizabeth Moreno got hit with a $17,850 bill from a Texas lab after leaving a urine sample at her doctor’s office.
Bill Of The Month: A College Student’s $17,850 Drug Test
By Fred Schulte
Kaiser Health News, in collaboration with NPR, kicks off a series that will examine and decode your perplexing medical bills.
Listen: Got A Sky-High Bill? Don’t Write The Check.
Have you gotten a medical bill that sounds way too expensive or is just downright confusing? Send it to us. KHN Editor-in-Chief Elisabeth Rosenthal talks with NPR Morning Edition Host Steve Inskeep about the launch of “Bill Of The Month,” KHN and NPR's new crowdsourced investigation.
Trump Administration Proposes Rule To Loosen Curbs On Short-Term Health Plans
By Julie Appleby
The policy change is likely to entice younger and healthier people from the general insurance pool by allowing a range of lower-cost options that don’t include all the benefits required by the federal health law.
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ The Long Wait Ends For Short-Term Plan Rules
In this episode of KHN’s “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal and Julie Appleby of Kaiser Health News discuss the Trump administration’s proposed regulation that would allow the expansion of short-term health insurance policies that do not comply with all the requirements of the Affordable Care Act. The panelists also talk about federal funding (or not) of public health research around guns.
Evaluations Of Medicaid Experiments By States, CMS Are Weak, GAO Says
By Phil Galewitz
States often get federal approval to test new approaches to improve Medicaid services or expand coverage. But the GAO study found that too often these efforts are not adequately evaluated or the results are not available in a timely manner.
Couple Makes Millions Off Medicaid Managed Care As Oversight Lags
By Chad Terhune
How a California health plan’s CEO and her husband, an executive consultant, got rich off the taxpayer-funded program for the poor. Critics see a conflict of interest, the plan doesn’t, and the state has no rules either way.
After Shooting, ‘Honor How Kids Want To Deal With Their Feelings’
By Phil Galewitz
Christine Sylvest, a child psychologist who now works in Maryland, for three years attended the Parkland, Fla., high school where a shooting attack left 17 people dead last week. She says the tragedy affects the entire community.
Bad Bedside Manna: Bank Loans Signed In The Hospital Leave Patients Vulnerable
By Shefali Luthra
Hospitals increasingly team up with lending institutions to offer low- or no-interest loans to patients to make sure their bills get paid. But critics say the complexity of hospital pricing means consumers should be cautious.
In An Effort To Curb Drug Costs, States Advance Bills To Prod Feds On Importation
By Shefali Luthra
Legislatures in blue and red states alike are considering proposals that would allow them to import prescription drugs from Canada.
Reducing Red Tape For Traveling Nurses
By Anna Gorman
A multistate nursing agreement allows nurses to work in numerous states without the hassle and expense of obtaining licenses in each one. More than half of states have signed onto an upgraded version of the agreement — but not California.
Anthem Calls On Eye Surgeons To Monitor Anesthesia During Cataract Surgery
By Michelle Andrews
The insurer says it is not usually medically necessary to have an anesthesiologist or nurse anesthetist on hand during the common surgery.
Ten ERs In Colorado Tried To Curtail Opioids And Did Better Than Expected
By John Daley, Colorado Public Radio
The collaboration known as ALTO, Alternatives to Opioids, set out to reduce opioid doses in the emergency room by 15 percent. It managed a 36 percent reduction instead.