Misleading Ads Driving People To Sign Up For Medicare Advantage Plans
November 7, 2022
Morning Briefing
Medicare beneficiaries are being warned to look out for deceptive Medicare Advantage marketing — some of which provides misleading information on savings or doctor networks and may not fit patients’ needs.
Big Health Insurers Plan Legal Battle Over Biden Medicare Advantage Audits
January 11, 2023
Morning Briefing
Stat reports that at the J.P. Morgan Healthcare Conference, Humana, Centene, and CVS Health-Aetna executives explained concerns over upcoming final rules on audits, also known as risk adjustment data validation. Meanwhile, the New York nurses strike entered a second day, among other news.
Why Doesn’t Medicare Cover Services So Many Seniors Need?
By Julie Rovner
August 11, 2021
KFF Health News Original
When the program began half a century ago, backers believed the benefits would expand over time, but politics and concerns about money have stymied most efforts. Now congressional Democrats are looking to add vision, dental and hearing care.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Compromise Is Coming — Maybe
November 4, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Democratic negotiators on Capitol Hill appear to be nearing a compromise on President Joe Biden’s social spending agenda, spurred partly by Democratic losses on Election Day in Virginia. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court hints it might allow abortion providers to sue Texas over its restrictive new ban. But the relief, if it comes, could be short-lived if the court uses a second case, challenging a law in Mississippi, to weaken or overturn Roe v. Wade. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times and Mary Ellen McIntire of CQ Roll Call join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KHN’s Rae Ellen Bichell, who reported and wrote the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month” feature about an emergency bill for a nonemergency birth.
Readers and Tweeters Remain Vigilant on Masking and Billing
By Terry Byrne
March 16, 2022
KFF Health News Original
KHN gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
No Changes To Alzheimer’s Drug Restrictions Planned: CMS
February 23, 2023
Morning Briefing
Reuters reports that a request from the Alzheimer’s Association to reduce coverage limits on Alzheimer’s treatments has been turned down by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Separately, the debt ceiling fight is being used to “fend off” changes to private Medicare Advantage plans.
UnitedHealthcare Will Ax Around 20% Of Existing Prior Authorizations
March 30, 2023
Morning Briefing
The changed policy, which will affect commercial, Medicare Advantage, and Medicaid members, will begin in the third quarter and will mean providers merely have to notify the insurer about pending care. Among other news, a debate over how to fund the 988 crisis line amid growing demand.
¿Por qué Medicare no paga por las pruebas caseras para covid?
By Michelle Andrews
January 24, 2022
KFF Health News Original
Las mismas leyes del programa para los adultos mayores previenen que puedan comprar medicamentos de venta libre y obtener este tipo de pruebas sin una orden médica.
Insurers Say Medicare Advantage Saves Money. Experts Say No
September 26, 2022
Morning Briefing
Stat says while the insurance industry is still trying to convince the public Medicare Advantage saves taxpayer money, experts point to federal data proving the opposite. Also: CommonSpirit Health’s loss of $2 billion, a hospital chain making money off a poor neighborhood, more.
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Maybe It’s a Health Care Election After All
March 14, 2024
Podcast
Health care wasn’t expected to be a major theme for this year’s elections. But as President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump secured their respective party nominations this week, the future of both Medicare and the Affordable Care Act appears to be up for debate. Meanwhile, the cyberattack of the UnitedHealth Group subsidiary Change Healthcare continues to do damage to the companies’ finances with no quick end in sight. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, and Joanne Kenen of Johns Hopkins University and Politico Magazine join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Kelly Henning of Bloomberg Philanthropies about a new, four-part documentary series on the history of public health, “The Invisible Shield.” Plus, for “extra credit” the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week that they think you should read, too.
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': All About the (Government) Funding
January 11, 2024
Podcast
With days to go until a large chunk of the federal government runs out of money needed to keep it operating, Congress is still struggling to find a compromise spending plan. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court agreed to hear — this year — a case that pits federal requirements for emergency treatment against state abortion bans. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Tami Luhby of CNN join KFF Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews American Medical Association President Jesse Ehrenfeld about the choppy waters facing the nation’s physicians in 2024.
Despite Seniors’ Strong Desire to Age in Place, the Village Model Remains a Boutique Option
By Judith Graham
March 14, 2022
KFF Health News Original
Membership-based villages help arrange services for seniors — such as handyman help or transportation to appointments — and provide social connections through classes, leisure opportunities, or community events. Despite great promise, they have been slow to expand because of difficulties raising funding and keeping people interested.
Trump Says He’ll Stop Health Care Fraudsters. Last Time, He Let Them Walk.
By Brett Kelman
April 1, 2025
KFF Health News Original
In his first term, President Donald Trump granted pardons or clemency to more than 60 convicted fraudsters, including health care executives who defrauded Medicare out of hundreds of millions of dollars, courts and juries found. Now, Trump says cracking down on fraud is a priority.
Walmart Health To Nearly Double Its In-Store Clinics In 2024
March 3, 2023
Morning Briefing
The big retailer is “eyeing more Medicare Advantage business,” Axios says, with 28 additional health clinics to go into select Walmart stores — including in Missouri and Arizona. Reuters reports that electronics retailer Best Buy also has its eye on the health care market.
House Speaker Says Medicare Cuts Off The Table In Debt Ceiling Negotiations
January 27, 2023
Morning Briefing
House Speaker Kevin McCarthy has assured that Medicare and Social Security will no longer be Republican targets in talks to strike a debt ceiling deal. In related news, a Republican study group eyes potential Medicare changes. And secret audits found millions in Medicare Advantage plan overpayments.
West Virginia Sen. Manchin Takes the Teeth Out of Democrats’ Plan for Seniors’ Dental Care
By Phil Galewitz
December 10, 2021
KFF Health News Original
In West Virginia, older residents often go without dental care, and a quarter of people 65 and older have no natural teeth, the highest rate of any state in the country. But a powerful senator from West Virginia, Joe Manchin, has rebuffed efforts to add a dental benefit to Medicare.
Humana Reveals Plans To Exit Employer-Based Insurance Market
February 24, 2023
Morning Briefing
News outlets report on a new strategy from health insurer Humana: it will take up to two years to exit the employer-based insurance business, and instead focus on government-backed programs like Medicare Advantage. Amazon, SimpliFed, DaVita, Teledoc, and more are also in the news.
Consejos para inscribirse bien en Medicare durante la complicada inscripción abierta
By Bernard J. Wolfson
November 24, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Medicare se reduce fundamentalmente a dos alternativas: la tarifa por servicio del Medicare Tradicional o el enfoque de atención administrada de Medicare Advantage.
Bright Health Pulls Insurance, Medicare Advantage Plans From 9 States
October 12, 2022
Morning Briefing
The insurtech company says it will only operate in Florida and California in order to reduce costs and settle medical liabilities.
House Passes Medicare Advantage Reform Bill; It Now Heads To Senate
September 15, 2022
Morning Briefing
The Improving Seniors’ Timely Access to Care Act strives to make it easier for seniors to get care and to modernize the process of prior authorizations. For example, the current process often still requires using fax machines to send documents to insurance companies.
