Latest KFF Health News Stories
What The Health Law’s Future Holds: Fixing The Website And Everything After
News outlets report on the various ways the website issues and sign-up woes could be addressed, as well as what a variety of experts say about the global outlook for the health law.
HHS Health Insurance Enrollment Figures Far Below Targets
Only about a fourth of the enrollees signed up through the federal health exchange. The low initial sign up could set up a steep challenge for the health law.
California Beating All Other States In Health Law Exchange Enrollment
California is the bright spot in enrolling people in the health law’s insurance exchanges — beating even the federal Healthcare.gov in how many have signed up. Still, California’s enrollment figures — representing about a third of all signups around the nation — mean less than 1 percent of uninsured Californians have signed up for plans.
A selection of editorials and opinions on health care from around the country.
First Edition: November 14, 2013
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including details about the online health insurance enrollment numbers released yesterday by the Obama administration and examinations of what might happen next.
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced enrollment numbers today for the federal and state online health insurance marketplaces that opened Oct. 1.
Bill Clinton Says Health Law Should Be Changed
Comments by the former president piled pressure on to the White House’s efforts to find a solution to the policy cancellations that may affect several million consumers who buy their own insurance. His statements were immediately pounced upon by Republicans.
Issa Panel To Grill Top Tech Official About Health Law Rollout
Rep. Darrell Issa, R-California, who heads the House oversight committee, plans to put the nation’s chief technology officer, Todd Park, on the hot seat today about the flawed rollout of the government website where consumers are supposed to be able to buy health insurance. The New York Times writes that Issa has long been one of the most aggressive thorns in the side of the Obama administration.
Swept Up In Healthcare.gov’s Troubled Launch, The ‘Mona Lisa Of Health Care’ Speaks
Identified only as “Adriana,” the woman whose face appeared on the federal online insurance website says she does not understand the reasons behind the mockery and speculation of which she became the focus.
Will Healthcare.gov Troubles Slow Medicaid Expansion Too?
Medicaid sign-ups, part of the health law working the way many officials thought it should, could also be hurt by technological malfunctions. But one state is finding the opposite to be true. In the meantime, states consider new Medicaid expansions or report on how many new Medicaid enrollees are signing up.
State Marketplaces Still Plagued By Technical Problems
The New York Times examines how states running their own insurance exchange websites are doing. Meanwhile, USA Today looks at how insurance choices vary across the country.
Health Law Outreach Efforts Try New Enrollment Tactics, Controversial Ads
Colorado officials launch controversial ads geared toward women and Enroll America changes how it tries to get people to sign up for health coverage. In the meantime, Republicans are releasing their own set of ads mocking the law.
Healthcare.gov Troubles Continue To Claim Headlines
The Washington Post offers a not-so-rosy progress report on repairs to the federal online health insurance marketplace. Other news outlets examine what went wrong in terms of the project management and what might be gleaned from the soon-to-be released enrollment numbers.
Some Democrats Supporting GOP Bill Allowing Americans To Keep Canceled Health Plans
Democrats consider or profess their support for a Republican plan that would allow Americans to keep their canceled health insurance plans. In the meantime, fights continue to rage over the health law’s navigators, and in political races.
Policy Developments: SCOTUS Won’t Hear Appeal Of Ruling Striking Down Okla. Abortion Law
The Supreme Court won’t hear an appeal of a ruling striking down an Oklahoma abortion law that would have required pregnant women to have an ultrasound before having an abortion. In the meantime, The Washington Post fact-checks an insurance premium claim by HHS Secretary Sebelius.
News outlets report on the pressure coming from both Democrats and Republicans regarding what some are calling President Barack Obama’s “broken promise.”
A selection of editorials and opinions on health care from around the country.
State Regulators Explore Options On Insurance Plan Cancellations
Oregon regulators rejected calls to push back the cancellation dates of 140,000 health insurance policies in the state, even as momentum to delay the cancellations builds among California officials and some national Democratic figures. Meanwhile, PBS NewsHour explores the reasons for the cancellations of policies which are sold directly to individuals.
JAMA Asks Experts To Examine ‘Critical Issues’ In Health Care
The latest edition of the Journal of the American Medical Association, published Tuesday, invited well-known health policy experts to comment on some of the big questions in their fields.
First Edition: November 13, 2013
Today’s early morning highlights from the major news organizations, including not-so-positive predictions about whether healthcare.gov will be fully functional by the end of November.
