As Docs Face Big Cuts In Medicaid Pay, Patients May Pay The Price
The health law offered a two-year pay raise for primary care doctors who see Medicaid patients to entice them to participate, but that expires Dec. 31.
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Can I Keep My Marketplace Plan When I’m Enrolled In Medicare?
KHN’s consumer columnist answers a reader’s question about whether coverage from the health law’s online exchanges is compatible with Medicare and another question on Medicare drug coverage options when seniors move.
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Seniors’ Wait For A Medicare Appeal Is Cut In Half
Federal officials handle most of the requests in 2014 from beneficiaries seeking a hearing before a judge and cut into the heavy backlog. But cases from hospitals, doctors and other providers are still on hold.
By Susan Jaffe -
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Is Your Heart Doctor In? If Not, You Might Be Better Off.
A new study finds that high-risk heart patients in teaching hospitals do better during the times that cardiologists gather for national conventions.
By Jordan Rau -
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Deciding Whether Subsidized Health Insurance Is Worth The Hassle
A California woman had a bad experience with the state’s insurance exchange the first time around and struggled with whether to re-enroll her family.
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Medicare To Offer Help To Some Seniors When Advantage Plans Drop Doctors
In 2015, some seniors enrolled in Medicare Advantage plans will be allowed to switch if they lose their doctors.
By Susan Jaffe -
Hospital-Acquired Condition Penalties By State
Medicare is reducing payments to 721 hospitals with high rates of infections or other medical complications. About 1,400 hospitals, including all in Maryland, are excluded from the program and Medicare did not assess their rates of patient harm.
By Jordan Rau -
721 Hospitals Penalized For Patient Safety
Medicare is penalizing 721 hospitals with high rates of potentially avoidable mistakes that can harm patients, known as "hospital-acquired conditions." Penalized hospitals will have their Medicare payments reduced by 1 percent over the fiscal year that runs from October 2014 through September 2015. To determine penalties, Medicare evaluated three types of HACs. One is central-line associated bloodstream infections, or CLABSIs. The second is catheter-associated urinary tract infections, or CAUTIs. The final one, Serious Complications, is based on eight types of injuries, including blood clots, bed sores and falls. Here are the hospitals that are being penalized:
By Jordan Rau -
For Some Families, Coverage With Separate Deductibles Might Be The Best Choice
Smart shoppers will dig deep to find out if their family coverage has one deductible for the whole family or separate “embedded” deductibles for each family member. The answer could make a big difference in your out-of-pocket costs.
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Medicare Cuts Payments To 721 Hospitals With Highest Rates Of Infections, Injuries
The 1 percent penalty, mandated by the health law, will hit one of every seven hospitals in the country and fall particularly hard on academic medical centers.
By Jordan Rau -
Even With Coverage Expansion, Access To Mental Health Services Poses Challenges
A 50-state analysis details incidence rates of mental illness and access to care across the country.
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Public Easily Swayed On Attitudes About Health Law, Poll Finds
Sixty percent of people generally favor requiring large firms to provide insurance or pay a fine. But support falls when people are told businesses could cut back workers’ hours and it increases when they learn that most businesses already provide coverage.
By Julie Rovner -
Too Little, Too Late For Many New Yorkers Seeking Hospice
Evidence shows hospice care can extend life and save money, but only if patients and doctors dare ask for the help. One New Yorker said hospice gave her back a normal life — at peace, pain subdued.
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NIH Cancels Children’s Study After 10 Years Of Work
The research, which cost $1.3 billion so far, was supposed to follow 100,000 children from birth to age 21 to track biological and environmental effects.
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Nearly 2.5 Million Consumers Have Selected Health Plans On Federal Marketplace
Officials say the online site and consumer call centers were extremely busy over the weekend as people sought to buy insurance before the Dec. 15 deadline to have a policy in place for January.
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Rx For Reform: NC Pharmacists Try To Boost Health And Cut Costs
The federal government has invested $15 million in a North Carolina experiment that gives community pharmacists a new role in patient care.
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Popularity Of Outpatient Surgery Centers Leads To Questions About Safety
The recent death of Joan Rivers, who suffered cardiac arrest at a center in New York, highlights some of the concerns among consumer advocates.
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Alaska’s New Governor Sets Sights On Medicaid Expansion
Gov. Bill Walker, an Independent, campaigned on Medicaid expansion and now he has to pitch it to a reluctant Republican legislature.