The Medicare Episode
On this episode of “An Arm and a Leg,” host Dan Weissmann breaks down the complicated and expensive world of Medicare with practical tips to pick the right plan and avoid penalties.
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On this episode of “An Arm and a Leg,” host Dan Weissmann breaks down the complicated and expensive world of Medicare with practical tips to pick the right plan and avoid penalties.
President Joe Biden used his roughly 68-minute address to Congress to counter lackluster public approval ratings and draw clear contrasts between his administration’s policies and those of Donald Trump and some congressional Republicans. Abortion and health care were in the spotlight.
The historically troubled White House Medical Unit is just one part of a government health system that gives VIP care to top officials, military officers, military retirees, and families. Pentagon investigators say some were prioritized over rank-and-file soldiers.
The cyberattack on a unit of UnitedHealth Group’s Optum division is the worst on the health care industry in U.S. history, hospitals say. Providers struggling to get paid for care say the response by the insurer and the Biden administration has been inadequate.
A court expert reported that California prisons continue to lag on 14 of 15 suicide prevention measures, and even regressed in some areas. The state could face more than $40 million in fines after a federal judge warned more than a year ago that she would impose penalties for each violation.
At last, Congress is getting half of its annual spending bills across the finish line, albeit five months after the start of the fiscal year. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden delivers his annual State of the Union address, an over-the-counter birth control pill is (finally) available, and controversy erupts over new public health guidelines for covid-19 isolation. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Neera Tanden, the White House domestic policy adviser, about Biden’s health agenda. Plus, for “extra credit,” the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week that they think you should read, too.
A recent report finds half of America’s rural hospitals are losing money, and many are struggling to stay open. Researchers and advocates worry the hospitals’ financial spiral will have immediate and long-term health effects on their communities.
Despite growing awareness that the party drug is dangerous, the social media company is open to promotion of the drug in treating mental health.
After the 1996 Dickey Amendment halted federal spending on research into firearms risks, a small group of academics pressed on, with little money or political support, to document the nation’s growing gun violence problem and start to understand what can be done to curb the public health crisis.
Research has consistently found that, overall, U.S. prescription drug prices are significantly higher, sometimes two to four times as high, compared with prices in other high-income industrialized countries. However, some market factors can obscure actual prices, making comparisons harder.
A mathematical model designed to direct spending of opioid settlement funds is at the center of a debate over whether to invest in technology to guide long-term decisions or focus on the immediate needs of people in addiction.
A recently unsealed lawsuit alleges Aledade Inc. developed billing software that boosted revenues by making patients appear sicker than they were.
The presidential election is likely to turn on the simple question of whether Americans want Donald Trump back in the White House. But health care tops the list of household financial worries for adults from both parties.
A new California law allows trained physician assistants, also called physician associates, to perform first-trimester abortions without the presence of a supervising doctor. The legislation is part of a broader effort by the state to expand access to abortion care, especially in rural areas. Some doctor groups are wary.
KFF Health News and California Healthline staff made the rounds on national and local media this week to discuss their stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
High school students in Colorado are pushing for a change they say is necessary to combat fentanyl poisoning: ensuring students can't get in trouble for carrying the overdose reversal drug naloxone wherever they go, including at school.
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