Weekly Edition: June 5-9, 2017
If Insurance Market Crashes, Can Lawmakers Put The Pieces Back Together?
By Julie Rovner
Actions by the Trump administration are putting pressure on the fragile market for individuals who buy their own coverage, but analysts say it should be able to rebound.
As Insurance Options Shrink, Families Are ‘Holding Our Breath’
By Steven Findlay
One of two insurers in this tiny state has announced it will not be back in the marketplaces next year, leaving customers concerned about the prices they will pay.
Protected But Priced Out: Patients Worry About Health Law’s Future In Arizona
By Will Stone, KJZZ
Corinne Bobbie has a love-hate relationship with the Affordable Care Act. As the GOP tries to repeal the law, the experiences and fears of voters like Bobbie could determine a politician's fate.
‘My Life Is Very Full’: People With Disabilities Worry About GOP Medicaid Cuts
By Elly Yu, WABE
The Obamacare replacement bill passed by House Republicans would cut Medicaid by $834 billion over a decade. That has people with disabilities scared that services that allow them to live independently, such as job training and transportation, will disappear.
GOP Medicaid Cuts Hit Rural America Hardest, Report Finds
By Phil Galewitz
Medicaid covers more children and adults in rural counties and small towns than in urban areas and rural America would be affected most by changes in Medicaid.
A Community Seeks Answers, Assurances About Health Care — In 10 Languages
By Ana B. Ibarra and Kellen Browning
A forum for Asian immigrants in Oakland draws a crowd so large some attendees had to be seated in an overflow room. Many immigrants are eager for information relevant to them as changes to the health care system are debated in Washington.
Former Pharma Reps’ New Mission: To School Docs On High Drug Costs
By Jay Hancock
One insurer is turning the tables on drugmakers with what may be a new job category: a sales force for cost-effective medicine.
Daylight On Diabetes Drugs: Nevada Bill Would Track Insulin Makers’ Profits
By Emily Kopp
With the cost of medications up 300 percent in the past decade, supporters see this as a first step to rein in prices.
Many COPD Patients Struggle To Pay For Each Medicinal Breath
By Sarah Jane Tribble
One in 9 Medicare enrollees have COPD and many of them can’t afford the inhalers that keep them out of the emergency room.
Capitol Hill Dems, HHS Secretary Price Trade Jabs On HHS Budget
By Rachel Bluth
Tom Price defends proposed spending reductions in Medicaid and other HHS programs while demurring on questions about cost-sharing subsidies for the 2018 Obamacare marketplace.
Feds To Waive Penalties For Some Who Signed Up Late For Medicare
By Susan Jaffe
People who were using marketplace plans instead of Medicare may qualify for the reprieve. They have until Sept. 30 to apply.
Cuts In Federal Housing Help Would Hurt People’s Health, Research Suggests
By Shefali Luthra
A study in Health Affairs shows that people who receive federal housing vouchers and other forms of public housing assistance are more likely to have health insurance and get regular medical care.
When An Insurer Balks And Treatment Stops
By Anna Gorman
A 22-year old man from Orange County, Calif., alleges in a lawsuit that his health insurer stopped paying for a crucial — and expensive — immunotherapy drug, leading him to become seriously ill. Treatments for patients with similar conditions are increasingly denied or interrupted, experts and patient advocates say.
They’ve Still Got Bucket Lists — In Their 90s
By Bruce Horovitz
One flew a plane at 97; the other went to college at 92. But these two friends are proudest of their legacies of kindness.
Quantity Over Quality? Minorities Shown To Get An Excess Of Ineffective Care
By Michelle Andrews
The researchers looked at 11 services that medical groups have said are often unnecessary and found that Hispanics and blacks got them at higher rates than whites.
California’s Aid-In-Dying Law Turns 1, But Not All Doctors Have Adopted It
By Stephanie O'Neill
At least 500 terminally ill Californians have asked for the medicine that allows them to end their lives, and nearly 500 health organizations have signed on to help.
Recovery On The Reservation: Montana Sisters Help Peers Stop Using Drugs
By Nora Saks, Montana Public Radio
A grass-roots effort to corral Montana's meth crisis hinges on the idea that people who are successful in conquering addiction are uniquely qualified to coach others.
Hospitals Now Tap Lawyers To Fulfill Patients’ Legal Needs
By Michelle Andrews
About 300 health care systems around the country have set up medical-legal partnerships to help patients who are dealing with legal problems that affect their health.