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Happy Open Enrollment Eve!

Episode 420

Oct. 30, 2025

A standoff in Congress is keeping much of the government shut down as open enrollment begins in most states for Affordable Care Act plans. Democrats are demanding Republicans agree to extend ACA tax credits, but there has been little negotiating — even as customers are learning what they’ll pay for coverage next year. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is telling states they can’t pass their own laws to keep medical debt off consumers’ credit reports. Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more.

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A photo of protesters holding signs in a crowd.

Massive Kaiser Permanente Strike Looms as Talks Head to the Wire

Both sides, still at loggerheads over pay and staffing, agreed to keep bargaining after unions announced a possible strike Oct. 4-7. If no deal is reached, a walkout by about 75,000 KP workers in five states could disrupt care.

By Bernard J. Wolfson

Sept. 25, 2023

California Offers Lifeline to 17 Troubled Hospitals

California’s new lending program for distressed hospitals will provide Madera Community Hospital with interest-free loans of up to $52 million if it can agree on a viable reopening plan with Adventist Health. The state will offer an additional $240.5 million in interest-free loans to 16 other troubled hospitals.

By Bernard J. Wolfson

Aug. 24, 2023

A photo shows a close-up of a person looking through Covered California paperwork.

Asking Never Hurts

Many Families With Unaffordable Employer Coverage Now Eligible for Covered California Subsidies

If family coverage on an employer-sponsored plan is too expensive, a worker’s spouse and dependents may be eligible for Affordable Care Act subsidies under a new federal rule.

By Bernard J. Wolfson

Jan. 4, 2023

Faces of Medi-Cal

Medi-Cal Covers Gender-Transition Treatment, but Getting It Isn’t Easy

Pasha Wrangell has faced delays getting gender-affirming care because of red tape and limited providers. Over more than two years, Wrangell has received only about half the total electrolysis sessions recommended. Wrangell’s insurer through Medi-Cal, California’s Medicaid program, acknowledges the shortage of practitioners.

By Bernard J. Wolfson

Aug. 10, 2023

After Uphill Battle, Company Is Poised for Takeover of Bankrupt California Hospital

American Advanced Management, a steadily growing operator of small hospitals, is expected to get the green light from a bankruptcy court next week to take over the shuttered Madera Community Hospital. Some community groups worry about the company’s track record.

By Melissa Montalvo, The Fresno Bee and Bernard J. Wolfson

April 11, 2024

A photo of an older man standing outside with a walker.

Faces of Medi-Cal

Medi-Cal’s Fragmented System Can Make Moving a Nightmare

When Medi-Cal beneficiary Lloyd Tennison moved last year from Contra Costa County to San Joaquin County, he was bumped off his managed care plan without notice before his new coverage took effect. His case highlights a chronic issue in California’s fragmented Medicaid program.

By Bernard J. Wolfson

July 7, 2023

A photo of nursing home staff wheeling out an elderly woman as the facility is evacuated due to a wildfire.

Doctors, Nurses Press Ahead as Wildfires Strain Los Angeles’ Health Care

A primary care clinic burned, medical offices closed, and hospitals struggled with possible evacuations. The wildfires that have incinerated large swaths of Los Angeles County are stressing the region’s health care infrastructure. Still, providers continue to find ways to deliver vital care.

By Bernard J. Wolfson, Molly Castle Work, and Emily Alpert Reyes, Los Angeles Times

Jan. 10, 2025

Biden Team, UnitedHealth Struggle to Restore Paralyzed Billing Systems After Cyberattack

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.

By Darius Tahir, Bernard J. Wolfson, and Daniel Chang

March 8, 2024

A photo of a gavel resting next to a stethoscope.

ER Doctors Vow to Pursue Case Against Envision Despite Bankruptcy

The lawyer for an emergency physicians group says its lawsuit against Envision Healthcare should be allowed to proceed even though the company has filed for Chapter 11 protection.

By Bernard J. Wolfson

May 12, 2023

A photo shows a demonstration of a human composting vessel, a horizontal chamber filled with wood chips and other biodegradable materials.

Asking Never Hurts

If You’re Worried About the Environment, Consider Being Composted When You Die

The idea of human composting — to help restore a forest or grow flowers — may be a little off-putting to some, but it has many advantages over traditional-but-toxic methods of burial and cremation.

By Bernard J. Wolfson

Oct. 11, 2022

California’s Covid Misinformation Law Is Entangled in Lawsuits, Conflicting Rulings

A state law says giving false information to patients about covid-19 constitutes unprofessional conduct for which regulators can discipline doctors. Vaccine skeptics, including Robert F. Kennedy Jr., join civil liberties groups and others in arguing that it violates free speech.

By Bernard J. Wolfson

March 17, 2023

A photo shows a hand typing on a laptop, colored with blue and red light.

Asking Never Hurts

Even Well-Intended Laws Can’t Protect Us From Inaccurate Provider Directories

State and federal laws require health plans to offer accurate lists of participating doctors and facilities, but consumers still struggle to get timely appointments with providers.

By Bernard J. Wolfson

July 26, 2022

What the Health? From KFF Health News

Next on Kennedy’s List? Preventive Care and Vaccine Harm

Episode 408

July 31, 2025

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the secretary of Health and Human Services, is eyeing an overhaul of two more key entities as part of his ongoing effort to reshape health policy. And President Donald Trump signed an executive order last week that would enable localities to force some homeless people into residential treatment. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine, and Shefali Luthra of The 19th join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also, Rovner interviews Sara Rosenbaum, one of the nation’s leading experts on Medicaid, to mark Medicaid’s 60th anniversary this week.

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A photo shows a hospital emergency sign.

Patients for Profit: How Private Equity Hijacked Health Care

ER Doctors Call Private Equity Staffing Practices Illegal and Seek to Ban Them

Doctors, consumer advocates, and some lawmakers are looking forward to a California lawsuit against private equity-backed Envision Healthcare. The case is part of a multistate effort to enforce rules banning corporate ownership of physician practices.

By Bernard J. Wolfson

Dec. 22, 2022

A photo of a woman standing in a vacant hospital as seen through an empty ICU room.

Giant Health System Almost Saved a Community Hospital. Now, It Wants to ‘Extract Every Dollar.’

A bankruptcy judge will soon decide whether a Central Valley hospital needs to liquidate to repay its creditors. Its largest creditor, St. Agnes Medical Center, is the very entity that backed out of purchasing the Madera Community Hospital last December.

By Bernard J. Wolfson and Melissa Montalvo, The Fresno Bee

July 21, 2023

Andrea Veltman poses fo Thr a photo with her son, Merlin. The two are standing under a red umbrella together.

Asking Never Hurts

Computer Glitches and Human Error Still Causing Insurance Headaches for Californians

Covered California and Medi-Cal share a computer system for eligibility and enrollment. Nearly a decade since the Affordable Care Act expanded coverage options in the state, enrollees can be diverted to the wrong program — or dropped altogether — if erroneous information gets into the system.

By Bernard J. Wolfson

June 2, 2022

A line of six people are lined up outside the entrance doors of a building.

‘Worse Than People Can Imagine’: Medicaid ‘Unwinding’ Breeds Chaos in States

As Medicaid programs across the nation review enrollees' status in the wake of the pandemic, patients struggle to navigate the upheaval.

By Phil Galewitz, Katheryn Houghton, Brett Kelman, and Samantha Liss

Nov. 2, 2023

Carolina Morga Tapia stands outside in a park with her five children. Two of the youngest are sitting in a green wagon.

Faces of Medi-Cal

California’s Massive Medicaid Program Works for Some, but Fails Many Others

Medi-Cal serves more than one-third of the state’s population — offering a dizzying range of care to a diverse population. In the new “Faces of Medi-Cal” series, California Healthline will assess the program’s strengths and weaknesses through the lives and experiences of its enrollees.

By Angela Hart and Bernard J. Wolfson

March 2, 2023

A photo shows Jonathan Flores and Robert Blackmon looking at a tablet.

Postcard From California

Election Canvassers Want Latinos to Know Voting Is Good for Their Health

One of the nation’s largest community clinic chains is running a get-out-the-vote campaign in Los Angeles and Orange counties this election, targeting primarily Latino communities, where turnout tends to be low.

By Bernard J. Wolfson

Nov. 7, 2022

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