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Hospitals Gobble Up More Doctors

By Jenny Gold August 18, 2011 KFF Health News Original

The race among hospitals to hire local physicians is heating up, even though the consequences for the cost and quality of health care are still unclear. The trend isn’t new, but hospitals in metropolitan areas across the country are quickening their pace, “driven largely by hospitals’ quest to increase market share and revenue,” according a […]

Kids Health Coverage At Risk, Advocates Worry

By Jenny Gold August 5, 2011 KFF Health News Original

Lawmakers largely spared Medicaid and Medicare in the debt deal signed by President Barack Obama Tuesday. But activists say health programs aren’t yet out of the woods, and low-income children may be at risk. An initial cap on discretionary spending, expected to save $917 billion over 10 years, does not include cuts to the government’s […]

Antidepressants Often Prescribed Without A Diagnosis

By Jenny Gold August 4, 2011 KFF Health News Original

Antidepressants are the third most common type of medication prescribed in the U.S., with $10 billion a year in sales.  Nearly three out of four of those prescriptions are written by non-psychiatric providers (many of them primary care physicians). A study in the journal Health Affairs reports that a growing number of patients receiving antidepressants from […]

Free Birth Control For Many, Courtesy of HHS

By Jenny Gold August 1, 2011 KFF Health News Original

With co-payments of $10 to $35 a month, birth control pills can add up to an expensive precaution for American women, even those with private insurance. But a new rule issued today by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services makes those fees a worry of the past for many insured women. Under the health […]

IOM Recommends Free Birth Control For All

By Jenny Gold July 19, 2011 KFF Health News Original

American women ought to be able to get their birth control for free, according to a new report from the Institute of Medicine (IOM).  The group is the latest to weigh in on which preventive services health insurers should have to offer at no cost under the new health law. Officials at the Department of Health […]

Give Teeth A Chance, Says New IOM Report

By Jenny Gold July 13, 2011 KFF Health News Original

Millions of people each year are skipping out on their annual trip to the dentist. And it’s not because they’re afraid of the drill. Many people just can’t find a dentist or can’t pay for a visit:  33.3 million Americans live in a region with a shortage of dental professionals; kids, seniors and minorities are particularly […]

The Secret Lives of Docs-In-Training

By Jenny Gold July 1, 2011 KFF Health News Original

Ever wonder what hospital doctors do during their short breaks? Or how they manage to make it through a 28-hour shift? Look no further than hospital call rooms.  During a recent trip to the Washington Hospital Center, Dr. Emil S. Oweis, a second-year resident, took me to a place where patients are not invited: resident […]