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The Families First Coronavirus Response Act requires private insurers to pay for certain services related to coronavirus testing at no cost to the patient. But gaps in the protections expose patients to unexpected medical bills.
The U.S. government spent $36 billion computerizing health records, yet they’re of limited help in the COVID-19 crisis.
Increasing evidence suggests people who smoke are more likely to become severely ill and die from COVID-19 than nonsmokers. Some people are using that as inspiration to quit.
Repurposing one N95 mask 20 times is not the same as having 20 new ones.
Her doctor worried she had COVID-19 but couldn’t test her for it until she ruled out other things. That test cost a bundle.
Even while playing the role of quarantine enforcer for your teens and 20-somethings, recognize that they are as anxious and worried as you are — and with good reason.
Because high-end N95 masks are scarce, medical centers are using surgical masks that have been linked to considerably higher infection rates.
As the coronavirus threatens the finances of thousands of hospitals, wealthy ones that can draw on millions — and even billions — of dollars in savings are in competition with near-insolvent hospitals for limited pots of financial relief.
Gov. Gavin Newsom has asked lawmakers to pare down their legislative wish lists and focus on the state’s coronavirus response. But state Sen. Jim Beall plans to forge ahead with his mental health care proposals, including a measure to create a state mental health parity requirement.
With most nonemergency procedures shelved for now, many health insurers are expected to see profits in the near term, but the longer view of how the coronavirus will affect them is far more complicated and could well impact what people pay for coverage next year.
Public officials are putting high hopes on new blood tests as a means of determining who has developed antibodies to COVID-19, and with those antibodies, presumed immunity. But experts caution the tests are largely unreliable and the science is still catching up.
This week on “An Arm and a Leg,” a front-line physician wonders if the health care industry’s drive for “efficiency” has robbed the system of surge capacity, leaving the nation underprepared to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Politicians pledged to stop providers from charging for video appointments or telephone calls, but some patients are being charged $70 or $80 per virtual visit.
Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health care policy stories each week, so you don’t have to.
COVID-19 is changing medical care, not only for vulnerable elders but also for pregnant women and their babies entering the world.
Dr. Nora Volkow, who heads the National Institute on Drug Abuse, details how emerging science points to added challenges for these patient populations and the public health system.
Older bodies respond to infection in different ways. Seniors may sleep more or stop eating. They may be confused or dizzy. They might simply collapse.
Activists failed to convince state legislators that diseases like measles aren’t serious enough to require vaccination. Now they’re joining with conservatives and other anti-lockdown demonstrators who contend the coronavirus isn’t dangerous enough to justify staying home.
HHS said this test would “save personal protective equipment.” But Abbott’s very design ― devised for mobile testing — means those working with specimens need even more protection, experts warn.
The messaging from the White House coronavirus press briefings is becoming more confusing as President Donald Trump and his science advisers appear to not see eye to eye. Meanwhile, Congress is ready to approve more money to address both the health and economic fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic. And the virus is taking an almost unimaginable toll on the nation’s nursing homes and putting strain on patients and health care providers with non-COVID ailments. Joanne Kenen of Politico, Jennifer Haberkorn of the Los Angeles Times and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these topics and more.
