Latest KFF Health News Stories
Victory In Mass. Health Costs May Be Temporary
This story is part of a partnership that includes WBUR, NPR and Kaiser Health News. It can be republished for free. (details) Two years ago, Massachusetts set what was considered an ambitious goal: The state would not let that persistent monster, rising health care costs, increase faster than the economy as a whole. Today, […]
Indiana, Several Other States Look To Expand Medicaid Next Year
This KHN story can be republished for free. (details) Who’s next? With the long-awaited deal to expand Medicaid finally struck last week between Pennsylvania and the Obama administration, 27 states and the District of Columbia have adopted a key coverage plank of the Affordable Care Act. And the momentum continues to grow in Republican-led states […]
Putting Teeth In Health Reform
Many North Carolina dentists refuse to treat Medicaid patients because of the low reimbursements, while the federal health law defines children’s dental insurance as an essential benefit” but doesn’t require parents to buy it.
States To Help Pay Obamacare Tax On Insurers
Some say the government is taxing itself as states, federal government cover fees for Medicaid health plans.
Infertility Patients Finding Creative Financing Help
Some clinics offer shared-risk programs that offer a set price and sometimes a money-back guarantee.
Federal Judge Blocks Texas Restriction On Abortion Clinics
This story is part of a partnership that includes Houston Public Media, NPR and Kaiser Health News. It can be republished for free. (details) In a highly anticipated ruling, a federal judge in Austin struck down part of a Texas law that would have required all abortion clinics in the state to meet the same standards as […]
Another Audit Finds Fault With Nursing Home Inspections In Los Angeles County
This KHN story can be republished for free. (details) Los Angeles County public health officials inappropriately closed nursing home investigations and failed to follow state guidelines on prioritizing complaints, according to an audit released this week. The Los Angeles County auditor-controller also found that even after nursing home inspectors found serious problems, their supervisors downgraded […]
Consumers Will Owe Uncle Sam If They Got Health Insurance Subsidies Mistakenly
The Treasury Department has clarified its rules as a deadline looms for people asked to confirm their citizenship or immigration status.
Beware Of Higher Charges If You Go To An Out-Of-Network Emergency Room
The Affordable Care Act prohibits insurers from charging more for out-of-network emergency care, but your bill could be higher if you’re admitted to the hospital.
In Texas, New Doctor-Restrictive Abortion Law Could Kick In Monday
This story is part of a partnership that includes Houston Public Media, NPR and Kaiser Health News. It can be republished for free. (details) A federal judge in Austin, Texas, will issue a decision in the next few days about whether clinics that perform abortion in the state must become outpatient surgery centers. The Texas […]
Calif. Bill Would Protect Estates Of Many Who Received Medicaid
Federal law allows states to seize assets, such as homes, after a Medicaid enrollee has died to help cover the costs of the program’s spending on basic health services for people 55 years and older.
Low-Income Patients Face Hurdles To Care At Public Hospital In Miami
Jackson Health System offers free and reduced-cost treatment for those who qualify, but advocacy groups complain it fails to meet requirements for charity care.
Health Law May Benefit More Small Businesses In The Fall
Special online markets weren’t widely available in Obamacare’s first year.
Urgent Care Centers Opening For People With Mental lllness
LOS ANGELES, Calif. — Hoping to keep more people with mental illness out of jails and emergency rooms, county health officials opened a mental health urgent care center Wednesday in South Los Angeles. The goal of The Martin Luther King, Jr. Mental Health Urgent Care Center is to stabilize and treat people in immediate crisis […]
Freestanding ERs Target Suburbs, Rural Panel Told
Freestanding emergency departments have been proposed in Georgia as a potential solution for struggling rural hospitals.
Health Law Spurs Focus On Faster Drug Development
The Cures Acceleration Network’s mission is to fund research that can be speedily transformed into treatments and to streamline the drug-approval process.
CBO Projects Lower Medicare and Medicaid Costs
Reduced costs for medical services and labor have trimmed the 10-year projected cost of Medicare and Medicaid by $89 billion, the Congressional Budget Office said Wednesday. Medicare spending is projected to drop by $49 billion — or less than 1 percent — from 2015 and 2024, while Medicaid spending is expected to drop by $40 […]
One-Third Of Georgia’s Medicaid Applicants Still In Limbo
The state has one of the largest numbers of children who are Medicaid-eligible but still uninsured.
Report: Health Law Ups Taxes On Insurers With Big Pay Packages
While average compensation for top health insurance executives hit $5.4 million each last year, a little-noticed provision in the federal health law sharply reduced insurers’ ability to shield much of that pay from corporate taxes, says a report out today. As a result, insurers owed at least $72 million more to the U.S. Treasury last […]
Operator? Business, Insurer Take On End-of-Life Issues By Phone
Fear keeps many patients and doctors from talking to each other about end-of-life care. One company, hired by insurers, has made a rather unusual business fostering those conversations.