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ER Visit Times Stretch Longer As Hospitals Face Staffing Crunch

September 15, 2023 Morning Briefing

Axios reports that hospitals in Washington, D.C., logged the longest median ER visit times in 2022, clocking in at 5 hours and 29 minutes. Other health care industry news is on union membership, rural nursing home staffing, out-of-network ambulance claims, and more.

Mental Health Therapists Seek Exemption From Part of Law to Ban Surprise Billing

By Julie Appleby February 3, 2022 KFF Health News Original

Some practitioners object to the way upfront cost estimates are designed, saying they could affect access to care and are burdensome. Other experts disagree.

Headaches Over the Health System?

August 20, 2025 Page

Pre-authorization delay? No in-network specialists? Dispute over costs? Confusion after a hospital discharge? Long wait times in the ER? Share your story. Health Care Helpline helps you navigate the hurdles between you and good care. Send us your tricky question and we may tap a policy sleuth to puzzle it out. This crowdsourced project is […]

Health Insurance Price Data: It’s Out There, but It’s Not for the Faint of Heart

By Julie Appleby July 27, 2022 KFF Health News Original

Health insurers and self-insured employer plans are now required to post their negotiated rates for almost every type of medical service. But navigating through the trove of information is no easy task.

What the Federal ‘No Surprises Act’ Means in California

By Bernard J. Wolfson January 26, 2022 KFF Health News Original

The new federal law will provide protection against surprise medical bills for between 6 million and 7 million Californians who are not covered under state law.

Olympic Dream Dashed After Bike Crash and Nightmare Medical Bill Over $200K

By Samantha Young July 29, 2021 KFF Health News Original

A bicyclist from California competed in a Pennsylvania race that could have landed him in this month’s Tokyo Olympics. Instead, a crash on the velodrome track landed him in two hospitals where his out-of-state, out-of-network surgeries garnered huge bills.

Shattered Dreams and Bills in the Millions: Losing a Baby in America

By Lauren Weber September 23, 2022 KFF Health News Original

On top of fearing for their children’s lives, new parents of very fragile, very sick infants can face exorbitant hospital bills — even if they have insurance. Medical bills don’t go away if a child dies.

Public Health Risks of Urban Wildfire Smoke Prompt Push for More Monitoring

By Katharine Gammon April 8, 2025 KFF Health News Original

As the fires burned in Los Angeles, scientists and local air regulators deployed monitors to measure the levels of heavy metals, carcinogens, and other toxic substances released into the air when homes, buildings, and cars burned. They hope their efforts will inform ongoing cleanup efforts and protect the public in future fires.

Kaiser Permanente Back in the Hot Seat Over Mental Health Care, but It’s Not Only a KP Issue

By Bernard J. Wolfson February 11, 2025 KFF Health News Original

Mental health workers on strike in Southern California say Kaiser Permanente is woefully understaffed, its therapists are burned out, and patients are often denied timely access to care. The insurer says it has largely fixed the problem. But across California and the nation, mental health parity is still not a reality.

Betting on ‘Golden Age’ of Colonoscopies, Private Equity Invests in Gastro Docs

By Emily Pisacreta and Emmarie Huetteman May 27, 2022 KFF Health News Original

An aging population in need of regular cancer screenings has driven private equity companies, seeking profits, to invest in many gastroenterology practices and set up aggressive billing practices. Steep prices on routine tests are one consequence for patients.

Listen: How the New ‘No Surprises’ Law Tackles Unexpected Medical Bills

January 5, 2022 KFF Health News Original

Years in the making, a new federal law against surprise medical bills took effect Jan. 1.

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': The Open Enrollment Mixing Bowl

October 19, 2023 Podcast

Open enrollment for Medicare beneficiaries with private health plans began Oct. 15, to be followed Nov. 1 by open enrollment for Affordable Care Act plans. The selection for both is large — often too large to be navigated easily alone. And people who choose incorrectly can end up with unaffordable medical bills. Meanwhile, those on both sides of the abortion issue are looking to Ohio’s November ballot measure on abortion to see whether anti-abortion forces can break their losing streak in statewide ballot questions since the overturn of Roe v. Wade in 2022.

A Billing Expert Saved Big After Finding an Incorrect Charge in Her Husband’s ER Bill

By Bram Sable-Smith October 25, 2022 KFF Health News Original

A medical billing specialist investigated her husband’s ER bill. Her sleuthing took over a year but knocked thousands of dollars off the hospital’s charges — and provides a playbook for other consumers.

Older Americans Living Alone Often Rely on Neighbors or Others Willing To Help

By Judith Graham November 12, 2024 KFF Health News Original

Diverse networks of friends, former co-workers, neighbors, and extended family are often essential sources of support for older adults living alone. Often it is the elderly caring for the elderly.

HealthSherpa and Insurers Team Up To Curb Unauthorized ACA Enrollment Schemes

By Julie Appleby July 16, 2024 KFF Health News Original

The initiative targets the biggest incentive driving fraudulent sign-ups and plan switches: the commissions that rogue agents or large call centers seek.

What RFK Jr. Isn’t Talking About: How To Make Vaccines Safer

By Arthur Allen June 25, 2025 KFF Health News Original

Vaccines are under fire from the top of the Trump administration. Federal programs to monitor them and make them safer have always been underfunded.

Montana Creates Emergency ‘Drive-Thru’ Blood Pickup Service for Rural Ambulances

By Arielle Zionts June 17, 2024 KFF Health News Original

The network is aimed at helping rural patients, who face higher rates of traumatic injuries and death but may not live near a hospital with a stockpile of blood.

Billing Arbitration Comes To An End After Changes To No Surprises Act

August 8, 2023 Morning Briefing

Last week, a court ruling saw parts of the surprise billing law vacated, and this has now resulted in the federal government stopping processing payment disputes between providers and insurers over out-of-network bills, Modern Healthcare reports. Axios notes insurers sometimes pay double for the same procedure versus Medicare Advantage prices.

Kids’ Mental Health Care Leaves Parents in Debt and in the Shadows

By Yuki Noguchi, NPR News October 19, 2022 KFF Health News Original

A youth mental health crisis and a shortage of therapists and other care providers who take insurance are pushing many families into financial ruin. But it’s rarely acknowledged as medical debt.

Beyond Ivy League, RFK Jr.’s NIH Slashed Science Funding Across States That Backed Trump

By Rae Ellen Bichell and Rachana Pradhan April 17, 2025 KFF Health News Original

A KFF Health News analysis underscores how the terminations have spared no part of the country, politically or geographically. Of the organizations that had grants cut in the first month, about 40% are in states President Donald Trump won in November.

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