Latest KFF Health News Stories
Hit Hard by Opioid Crisis, Black Patients Further Hurt by Barriers to Care
The rate of overdose deaths from opioids has grown significantly among Black people. Yet, even after a nonfatal overdose, this group is half as likely to be referred to or get treatment compared with white people. Advocates and researchers cite implicit bias, insurance denials, and other systemic issues.
How Much Will That Surgery Cost? đ€· Hospital Prices Remain Largely Unhelpful.
Health care price transparency is one of the few bipartisan issues in Washington, D.C. But much of the information that hospitals and health plans have made available to the public is not helpful to patients, and thereâs no conclusive evidence yet that itâs lowering costs or increasing competition.
Trump Says Heâll Stop Health Care Fraudsters. Last Time, He Let Them Walk.
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.
Montana May Start Collecting Immunization Data Again Amid US Measles Outbreak
Montana is the only state that doesnât collect immunization reports from schools, creating a data gap for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and community health officials. With more than 480 measles cases reported in the U.S., state lawmakers are considering a bill to restart the data collection.
Readers Shop for Nutritional Information and Weigh Radiation and Cancer Risks
KFF Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
âThey Wonât Help Meâ: Sickest Patients Face Insurance Denials Despite Policy Fixes
The fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson prompted both grief and public outrage about the ways insurers deny treatment. Republicans and Democrats agree prior authorization needs fixing, but patients are growing impatient.
Montanaâs Small Pharmacies Behind Bill To Corral Pharmacy Benefit Managers
A bill designed to force PBMs to pay higher fees to independent drugstores sailed through the state House, but lobbyists are marshaling their forces to kill the measure in the Senate.
Journalists Talk Public Health Data Under Trump, Therapists’ Discontent With Insurers
KFF Health News journalists made the rounds on national and local media this week to discuss topical stories. Hereâs a collection of their appearances.
Treatment Tops Housing in Trump Homeless Policy
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Their Physical Therapy Coverage Ran Out Before They Could Walk Again
Health plans limit physical or occupational therapy sessions to as few as 20 a year, no matter the patientâs infirmities. The limits persist despite federal rules banning insurers from setting annual dollar limits on the care they will provide.
He Had Short-Term Health Insurance. His Colonoscopy Bill: $7,000.
After leaving his job to launch his own business, an Illinois man opted for a six-month health insurance plan. When he needed a colonoscopy, he thought it would cover most of the bill. Then he learned his planâs limited benefits would cost him plenty.
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': The Ax Falls at HHS
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has announced a proposed reorganization for the department â which, counting those who already have left the agency, amounts to about a 25% cut in its workforce. And its planned âAdministration for a Healthy Americaâ will collapse several existing HHS agencies into one. Meanwhile, the department continues to cut billions in health spending while the nation faces measles outbreaks in several states and the continuing possibility of another pandemic, such as bird flu. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico join KFF Health Newsâ Julie Rovner to discuss the news.
With Few Dentists and Fluoride Under Siege, Rural America Risks New Surge of Tooth Decay
The anti-fluoride movement has more momentum than ever. In rural counties with few dentists, tooth decay could surge to levels that have not been seen in decades, experts warn.
Trump Turns Homelessness Response Away From Housing, Toward Forced Treatment
The Trump administration is moving to end the âHousing Firstâ approach despite warnings from providers and homelessness experts that the shift wonât work. But with homelessness rising, President Donald Trump could find allies in blue cities and states as the public clamors for streets to be cleaned up.
Plan de Trump para las personas sin hogar: internar a la fuerza y menos fondos para viviendas
Es un cambio agresivo en la principal polĂtica nacional contra el desamparo, que durante dĂ©cadas ha dado prioridad al acceso a una vivienda como la forma mĂĄs eficaz de combatir esta crisis.
Decenas de comunidades han decidido dejar de fluorar su agua en los Ășltimos meses. Eso, sumado a la escasez de dentistas, puede crear una tormenta perfecta para las caries, dicen expertos.
Montana Examines Ways To Ease Health Care Workforce Shortages
Bills before the legislature would license community health workers and make it easier for some other health professionals licensed in other states to do business in Montana.
âI Am Going Through Hellâ: Job Loss, Mental Health, and the Fate of Federal Workers
Since the Trump administration began firing federal workers, they say they feel overwhelmed, have obtained or considered seeking psychiatric care and medication, and are anxious about paying their bills. And soon, their health insurance will run out.
Many People With Disabilities Risk Losing Their Medicaid if They Work Too Much
As politicians demand that more Medicaid recipients work, many people with disabilities say their state programsâ income and asset caps force them to limit their work hours or turn down promotions.
Bill That Congressman Says Protects Medicaid Doesnât â And Would Likely Require Cutting It
U.S. Rep. Nick LaLota, a Long Island Republican, told his constituents that he voted for the House-passed GOP budget resolution because it protects Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security. However, the bill charges a committee with making cuts that likely canât be attained without slashing Medicaid.