Latest KFF Health News Stories
For Opioid Victims, Payouts Fall Short While Governments Reap Millions
Pharmaceutical companies accused of fueling the nation’s opioid crisis are paying state and local governments billions of dollars in legal settlements. But how much are victims who suffered addiction and overdoses getting?
Rural Hospitals Question Whether They Can Afford Medicare Advantage Contracts
Some rural hospitals have canceled — or are considering ending — contracts with insurance companies that offer Medicare Advantage plans, saying the private policies jeopardize their finances and impede patient care.
Public Health Risks of Urban Wildfire Smoke Prompt Push for More Monitoring
As the fires burned in Los Angeles, scientists and local air regulators deployed monitors to measure the levels of heavy metals, carcinogens, and other toxic substances released into the air when homes, buildings, and cars burned. They hope their efforts will inform ongoing cleanup efforts and protect the public in future fires.
Firings at Federal Health Agencies Decimate Offices That Release Public Records
The Department of Health and Human Services’ mass firings included people who fulfill Freedom of Information Act requests for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Institutes of Health, and FDA, which result in the release of records about government handling of infectious diseases, medical products, and safety problems in health facilities.
The House Speaker’s Eyeing Big Cuts to Medicaid. In His Louisiana District, It’s a Lifeline.
The GOP-controlled Congress is weighing cuts to Medicaid, the government health program that covers millions of Americans — including nearly 40% of Louisianans represented in the House by Speaker Mike Johnson.
Blockbuster Deal Will Wipe Out $30 Billion in Medical Debt. Even Backers Say It’s Not Enough.
Undue Medical Debt is retiring unpaid medical bills for 20 million people. The debt trading company that owned them is leaving the market.
Un acuerdo exitoso eliminará $30 mil millones de deuda médica. ¿Es suficiente?
Solo el año pasado, los estadounidenses pidieron prestado aproximadamente $74 mil millones para pagar la atención médica, según una encuesta nacional de West Health-Gallup.
Trump’s Health Fraud Focus at Odds With Past Pardons
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Immigration Crackdowns Disrupt the Caregiving Industry. Families Pay the Price.
Families, nursing facilities, and home health agencies rely on foreign-born workers to fill health care jobs that are demanding and do not attract enough American citizens. The Trump administration’s anti-immigration policies threaten to cut a key source of labor for the industry, which was already predicting a surge in demand.
DOGE Job Cuts Hit Federal Workers’ Finances and Mental Health
President Donald Trump’s rapid downsizing of the federal government and attacks on the character of public workers have taken a toll on the mental health of some employees. That’s been felt especially in Washington, D.C., where nearly 50,000 people work for the federal government.
Redadas contra inmigrantes afectan a la industria del cuidado. Las familias pagan el precio.
Los estadounidenses dependen de muchos trabajadores nacidos en el extranjero para cuidar a sus familiares mayores, lesionados o discapacitados que no pueden valerse por sí mismos.
What’s Lost: Trump Whacks Tiny Agency That Works To Make the Nation’s Health Care Safer
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality has helped improve health care safety in a country where thousands die of medical errors each year. It was effectively dissolved Tuesday.
Trump’s DEI Undoing Undermines Hard-Won Accommodations for Disabled People
From halting diversity programs that benefit disabled workers to making federal staffing cuts, the Trump administration has taken a slew of actions that harm people with disabilities.
‘If They Cut Too Much, People Will Die’: Health Coalition Pushes GOP on Medicaid Funding
As House Republicans mull a massive $880 billion cut from federal programs likely including Medicaid, constituents, disability advocates, and health care providers are joining forces to lobby GOP members in California — including those who represent rural, deeply conservative pockets that stand to lose the most.
How Much Will That Surgery Cost? 🤷 Hospital Prices Remain Largely Unhelpful.
Health care price transparency is one of the few bipartisan issues in Washington, D.C. But much of the information that hospitals and health plans have made available to the public is not helpful to patients, and there’s no conclusive evidence yet that it’s lowering costs or increasing competition.
Hit Hard by Opioid Crisis, Black Patients Further Hurt by Barriers to Care
The rate of overdose deaths from opioids has grown significantly among Black people. Yet, even after a nonfatal overdose, this group is half as likely to be referred to or get treatment compared with white people. Advocates and researchers cite implicit bias, insurance denials, and other systemic issues.
Montana May Start Collecting Immunization Data Again Amid US Measles Outbreak
Montana is the only state that doesn’t collect immunization reports from schools, creating a data gap for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and community health officials. With more than 480 measles cases reported in the U.S., state lawmakers are considering a bill to restart the data collection.
Trump Says He’ll Stop Health Care Fraudsters. Last Time, He Let Them Walk.
In his first term, President Donald Trump granted pardons or clemency to more than 60 convicted fraudsters, including health care executives who defrauded Medicare out of hundreds of millions of dollars, courts and juries found. Now, Trump says cracking down on fraud is a priority.
Montana’s Small Pharmacies Behind Bill To Corral Pharmacy Benefit Managers
A bill designed to force PBMs to pay higher fees to independent drugstores sailed through the state House, but lobbyists are marshaling their forces to kill the measure in the Senate.
‘They Won’t Help Me’: Sickest Patients Face Insurance Denials Despite Policy Fixes
The fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson prompted both grief and public outrage about the ways insurers deny treatment. Republicans and Democrats agree prior authorization needs fixing, but patients are growing impatient.
