Latest KFF Health News Stories
California Hospitals And Nursing Homes Brace For Wildfire Blackouts
Facing billions of dollars in legal claims for the role its equipment has played in a spate of deadly wildfires, California utility giant Pacific Gas & Electric plans to step up efforts to cut power to broad regions of the state during high-risk weather conditions. The potential for prolonged blackouts has prompted disaster preparations by hospitals, nursing homes and home care providers.
Investors’ Deep-Pocket Push To Defend Surprise Medical Bills
As lobbyists purporting to represent doctors and hospitals fight attempts to control surprise medical bills, it has become increasingly clear that the force behind the effort is not just medical professionals, but also investors from private equity firms.
Virginia Governor And UVA Vow To Revamp Practice Of Suing Patients As CEO Exits
A Kaiser Health News investigation, which first appeared in The Washington Post, showed that the University of Virginia Health System has sued patients 36,000 times for more than $106 million.
Breaking A 10-Year Streak, The Number Of Uninsured Americans Rises
Census officials said most of the drop in health coverage was related to a 0.7% decline in Medicaid. The number of people with private insurance remained steady.
Por primera vez en una década, aumenta el número de personas sin seguro médico
El Censo halló que el 8.5% de la población se quedó sin seguro médico el año pasado, en comparación con el 7.9% en 2017. Nuevas reglas han impactado en la comunidad hispana.
‘UVA Has Ruined Us’: Health System Sues Thousands Of Patients, Seizing Paychecks And Claiming Homes
Over six years, the state institution filed 36,000 lawsuits against patients seeking a total of more than $106 million in unpaid bills, a KHN analysis finds.
Hospital Giant Sutter Health Faces Legal Reckoning Over Medical Pricing
A long-awaited class-action lawsuit against Sutter is set to open this month in San Francisco Superior Court. The hospital giant stands accused of violating California’s antitrust laws by leveraging its market power to drive out competition and overcharge patients.
Listen: Health Officials Warn People To Stop Vaping
California Healthline reporter Ana Ibarra appeared Monday on WNYC to discuss the recent outbreak of mysterious lung diseases related to vaping, including 60 possible cases in California.
Estados promulgan leyes para frenar los precios de los medicamentos
En lo que va del año, 33 han promulgado un récord de 51 leyes para confrontar los precios, la accesibilidad y el acceso a los medicamentos.
Millions Of Diabetes Patients Are Missing Out On Medicare’s Nutrition Help
Health experts say the little-used benefit represents a lost opportunity for older adults to improve their health — and for the program to save money by preventing costly complications from diabetes and chronic kidney disease.
States Pass Record Number Of Laws To Reel In Drug Prices
So far this year, 33 states have enacted more than 50 measures to address drug prices, affordability and access. Congress is eyeing the efforts to see what works.
‘Crackhouse’ Or ‘Safehouse’? U.S. Officials Try To Block Philly’s Supervised Injection Site
An average of three people a day died of opioid overdose in Philadelphia in 2018. But efforts to combat the crisis with a supervised injection site could be stymied by “the crackhouse statute,” a portion of federal law meant to protect neighborhoods during the crack epidemic of the 1980s.
Millones con diabetes no aprovechan programa nutricional de Medicare
Hay unos 15 millones de beneficiarios de Medicare que viven con diabetes, pero solo unos 100,000 se han inscripto para usar este beneficio que, al parecer, tiene buenos resultados.
Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes
Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health care policy stories each week, so you don’t have to.
California, ¿firmará el gobernador una controversial ley sobre vacunas?
La totalidad de los senadores republicanos votaron en contra de la medida y todos los demócratas votaron a favor, excepto uno que no votó.
Groupons For Medical Treatment? Welcome To Today’s U.S. Health Care
Groupon and other deal sites are the latest marketing tactic in medicine, offering bargain prices but potentially unnecessary, duplicative services.
Watch: Five Things To Know About Hunger Among America’s Aging
One out of every 13 seniors in America struggles to get enough food to eat while the federal program intended to help hasn’t kept pace with the graying population. KHN Midwest editor/correspondent Laura Ungar explains what you need to know about this largely hidden problem.
California Lawmakers Send Contested Vaccine Bill To Governor. Will He Sign It?
The state Senate on Wednesday sent a measure to Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom that would tighten the rules for children’s medical exemptions from vaccines. Newsom, who said in June that he would sign the measure after amendments had been made at his request, now wants more changes.
How Political Maneuvering Derailed A Red State’s Path To Medicaid Expansion
When Kansas elected Laura Kelly as governor, Medicaid expansion looked like a shoo-in, with seemingly broad support across state government. It didn’t happen. A look at conservatives’ new health care playbook and the politics of obstruction. Health care for 130,000 Kansans hangs in the balance.
Listen: India Gives Opioid Makers A Huge And Growing New Market
KHN’s Sarah Varney discussed opioid painkillers in India with NPR’s Rachel Martin on “Morning Edition” Thursday.