Latest KFF Health News Stories
For Many Workers, It’s Time To Consider Insurance Options
Fall is generally the time when many people who get insurance through their job re-enroll. Higher deductibles and dependent care costs, and financial incentives for wellness activities, lead trends.
N.Y. Hospital Group Turns The Tables On Hospital Graders
Judge not, that ye be not judged. Irked by the growing number of report cards assessing the quality of hospitals, a New York state hospital association has taken this biblical admonition to heart by putting out a report card grading the quality of hospital graders. Five of the 10 report cards that were evaluated were given […]
So You Found An Exchange Plan. But Can You Find A Provider?
Many health plans being offered on the New York State insurance marketplace do not include some of New York City’s biggest hospitals in their networks. And across the state, many doctors say they are not yet participating in exchange plans at all.
Doctors Treat New Condition: Questions About Health Law
Health officials are counting on physicians to help educate patients about new insurance options under the health law. But like everyone else, doctors have differing opinions about Obamacare.
In Alabama, Lack Of Competition May Be Behind Insurance Premium Costs
The health law is being blamed for policy cancellations and replacement rate shock. But in Alabama, some say a lack of competition among insurance companies is a big part of the problem.
Adding To Health Insurance Confusion, Other Groups Try To Cash In
With the federal exchanges still not working well, some uninsured people are turning to local groups to figure what to do. In Florida, a lack of coordination among different agencies is leaving room for dubious outfits to enter the scene.
Health Insurance Sign Ups Are New Service At Annual Free Clinic In L.A.
LOS ANGELES — Drawn by the promise of free health care, residents from throughout Southern California flocked to the L.A. Sports Arena beginning Thursday to get their cavities filled, blood pressure checked and eyes tested. The Care Harbor L.A. event, in its fifth year, expects to treat about 3,750 people over four days. But this […]
Healthcare.gov Troubles Don’t Change Public’s View Of Health Law, Poll Finds
The public has a dim view of how the government has rolled out the health care law so far, but those stumbles have not changed people’s overall opinions of the law itself, a new poll finds. The Kaiser Family Foundation poll found that 48 percent of people think the federal government has done a poor […]
IHS services don’t meet the requirements of the law, but many Native Americans and Alaska natives are exempted from the individual mandate.
As Robot-Assisted Surgery Expands, Are Patients And Providers Getting Enough Information?
A study finds missing and inadequately reported information about adverse events.
Why State Exchange Sites Worked While The Federal Site Faltered
What accounts for the different experiences of the state and federally managed exchanges? Why are the exchanges that the federal government runs so bug-ridden, subjecting users to long delays and possibly even more serious problems?
Florida Insurer Says It Didn’t Drop Customers, Just Insurance Plans
After 300,000 Floridians receive notices that their plans will expire, Florida Blue, the state’s largest insurance company, assures customers they will be eligible for new, ACA compliant plans.
Key Senate, House Committee Chairmen Offer Plan To Fix Medicare Doctor Payments
The proposal would keep physician pay at current levels but offer them incentives for quality improvements.
Help Flies In For Troubled Hospital In Estes Park, Colo.
Fires, floods, and a government shutdown have plagued the town at the gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park. With roads still closed, medical staff commutes via helicopter to Estes Park Medical Center.
Sebelius Says Healthcare.gov Problems Are Her Responsibility
The Health and Human Services secretary also said she couldn’t give firm numbers on how many people have enrolled for health insurance using the website because the data are not yet trustworthy. KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey and CQ Roll Call’s Emily Ethridge discuss.
Rep. Ryan And CMS Chief Tavenner’s Exchange Muddles Subsidies For Young Adults
In a contentious House Ways and Means Committee hearing Tuesday about the problem-plagued launch of the federal health insurance exchange, Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., and Marilyn Tavenner, the administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, managed to agree about one thing: Young adults who have access to their parents’ health insurance can’t get subsidies if […]
Health Law Requirements Squeeze Some Part Time Workers
This story was produced in partnership with Some school districts and state and local governments are limiting part-time workers’ hours or letting them go to comply with the Affordable Care Act. And it’s not all political. This month in Delaware, which has embraced the health law, officials decided to limit all casual and seasonal employees, […]
Why Insurers Cancel Policies, And What You Can Do When It Happens
Many people are receiving cancellation notices as the health law transforms the individual insurance market.
After Sexual Trauma, Soldiers Search For Better Care, Peace
Only about 13 percent of “military sexual trauma” victims report their assault, and once they do, they face a system some believe has fallen well behind in caring for — or even talking about — the problems they face.
Wellness Apps And Websites Go For New Clients: Insurance Companies
Cigna’s partnership with MyFitnessPal is part of a trend, as insurers pair up with online weight-loss and wellness platforms to try to encourage healthy behavior.