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Berwick Calls Republicans ‘The True Rationers’

By Phil Galewitz December 8, 2011 KFF Health News Original

Don Berwick, who left his job last week as head of the Medicare and Medicaid programs after sustained opposition from Senate Republicans who accused him of supporting rationing, struck back Wednesday with a blistering attack on his critics. “The true rationers are those who impede improvement, who stand in the way of change, and who […]

Study: Florida Leads Nation In Getting More Kids Insured

By Phil Galewitz November 29, 2011 KFF Health News Original

Florida leads the nation in reducing the number and rate of uninsured children, according to a study released Tuesday. From 2008 to 2010, the number of uninsured children in Florida fell by more than 160,000 to 506,934, says the report by researchers at the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families. The state’s rate of […]

Medicare Cuts Home Health Pay

By Phil Galewitz November 1, 2011 KFF Health News Original

Medicare will cut payment rates to home health agencies by 2.3 percent in 2012 — the sixth consecutive annual decrease in fees to the industry. The decision, which will lop off an estimated $430 million from the program next year, follows concerns by a congressional advisory panel that the agencies are overpaid. Home health advocates […]

Nixon’s HMOs Hold Lessons For Obama’s ACOs

By Phil Galewitz October 21, 2011 KFF Health News Original

The Obama administration acknowledges its highly touted accountable care organization program will have a modest early impact on the U.S. health system — with only 4 percent of Medicare beneficiaries affected by 2015 Perhaps the Obama White House is taking a lesson from the last time a U.S. president kicked off a major new program designed […]

No Health Help for NGA Dues Shirkers

By Phil Galewitz October 11, 2011 KFF Health News Original

The National Governors Association is a bit of a misnomer these days. Sure, it still represents the interests of governors from all 50 states, but it no longer provides “technical assistance” to four states that have failed to pay their annual dues. Those states — all of which have Republican governors — are Florida, Texas, Idaho and […]

16 States Fall Short On Health Plan Appeal Systems

By Phil Galewitz October 10, 2011 KFF Health News Original

Sixteen states and the District of Columbia don’t meet new requirements under the federal health law for consumers to appeal health plans’ decisions to a third party, according to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. As a result, by 2012, these states will have to contract with three “independent review organizations” to handle consumers’ […]

Washington Shuffle: John Rother And Ralph Neas

By Marilyn Werber Serafini September 8, 2011 KFF Health News Original

Updated at 10:30 a.m. John Rother, who around Washington is considered the heart of the seniors group AARP, is moving on. After 27 years there, Rother, who has been a key advocacy strategist at AARP, will become president and CEO of the National Coalition for Health Care. Ironically, he’s changing jobs just months before he […]

Potato Fight In The Capital

By Phil Galewitz October 5, 2011 KFF Health News Original

When the potato lobby speaks, it always puts its best spuds forward. Today, at a National Press Club lunchtime briefing to promote the nutritional value of the vegetable, that meant a full bar of baked potatoes, french fries (baked, not fried) and all the requiste trimmings — sour cream, cheddar cheese, chopped tomatoes, spinach and broccoli. Yes, according […]

Forget HMOs And ACOs, Oregon Is Pushing CCOs To Save Medicaid

By Phil Galewitz October 4, 2011 KFF Health News Original

Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber, a Democrat, wants to prove his state can contain soaring Medicaid costs without reducing services to recipients or slashing fees to doctors and hospitals. And when he’s done, he wants to apply this same strategy to saving Medicare. Kitzhaber is in Washington this week meeting with top federal health officials about his state’s […]