Latest KFF Health News Stories
Texas’ Struggling Rio Grande Valley Presses for Medicaid Expansion
Health providers and patients in Brownsville make do with one of the nation’s highest uninsured rates. With billions in federal funding on the line, Texas counties along the border with Mexico plead their case to Gov. Rick Perry.
Some Individual Policies Offer A Way To Shrink Deductibles
Under these plans, if a policyholder’s health costs don’t exceed the deductible, that deductible is trimmed the following year. But consumer advocates warn this may discriminate against sick people and run afoul of the health law.
How Will The ‘Unbanked’ Buy Insurance On The Exchanges?
One in five households in the United States has only a tenuous relationship with a traditional bank, and many of these people are also uninsured. It’s still an open question how the unbanked will buy insurance on the exchanges.
GOP Fears About IRS’ Access To Medical Records Disputed
Listening to recent statements from some congressional Republicans, you might think that the 2010 health law allows the Internal Revenue Service to have access to your medical records. Not so, says the Department of Health and Human Services. “The Affordable Care Act maintains strict privacy controls to safeguard personal information. The IRS will not have […]
With High Deductible Health Plans, It Pays To Shop Around For Care
An increasing number of consumers have these plans with lower premiums, but they must cover the first $1,000, $5,000 or even $10,000 of care before insurance kicks in, providing an incentive to haggle with doctors and hospitals.
Feds Make It Easier For States To Enroll Poor Under Health Law
States will have the option to use data from food stamps, other programs, to enroll adults in Medicaid. Officials say the changes are geared to states that are expanding the program next year, but they may also be adopted by others.
Audio: 42 Percent Of Americans Unaware Health Law Exists
A new poll from the Kaiser Family Foundation says 42 percent of Americans don’t know that the Affordable Care Act actually still stands. (Kaiser Health News is an editorially independent program of the Foundation.) Mary Agnes Carey joined NPR’s “Tell Me More” Friday afternoon to discuss the state of the health law and other health policy […]
The IRS’ Role In The Health Law Comes Under Scrutiny
As Republicans raise new questions about the IRS’ responsibilities in implementing and enforcing the health law, KHN’S Mary Agnes Carey talks to Joanna Kerpen, a partner at the law firm McDermott Will & Emery, about the job ahead for the agency.
My Insurer Says It Paid Too Much. Do I Have To Reimburse Them?
Michelle Andrews answers a reader question about having to repay an insurer that says it reimbursed too much after the patient received care from an out-of-network provider.
CDC Takes A Closer Look At Kids’ Mental Health
Somewhere between 13 and 20 percent of kids in the United States experience some sort of mental illness, according to a new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That adds up to millions of children suffering from disorders like ADHD, depression, autism and illicit drug use. The total annual cost of the […]
Cloning, Stem Cells Long Mired In Legislative Gridlock
This story comes from our partner ‘s Shots blog. The news that U.S. scientists have successfully cloned a human embryo seems almost certain to rekindle a political fight that has raged, on and off, since the announcement of the creation of Dolly the sheep in 1997. “The issue of legislation on human cloning is about to […]
Oklahoma Law Reflects Divide Over End-Of-Life Issues
A new law passed this year says Oklahoma patients who are disabled, elderly or terminally ill cannot be denied life-preserving treatments if they or their health proxies want it.
Docs, Nurses Disagree Over Expanded Nurse Roles
As nurse practitioners lobby to expand their authority and scope of practice in many states, a New England Journal of Medicine study released Wednesday documents a deep chasm between how doctors and nurses regard the issue. The study found the two groups overwhelmingly agreed that nurse practitioners should be able to practice to the full extent of […]
Senate Confirms Tavenner To Head CMS
KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey talks with Jennifer Haberkorn of Politico Pro about the Senate’s confirmation Wednesday of Marilyn Tavenner to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services and the challenges she faces.
How A Florida Medical School Cares For Communities In Need
In places where medical care is scare, medical schools — like Florida International University — are connecting students with people who need to see a doctor, and making it a major part of their curriculum.
GOP Raises Concerns About ‘Sebelius Shakedown’
As the GOP-controlled House of Representatives prepares again to vote this week on a repeal of the 2010 health law, some key Republican senators have seized on recent news developments to show their ire. Senate GOP leaders Tuesday took issue with Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius for soliciting money from private groups to implement the […]
Doctors Transform How They Practice Medicine
Physicians are experimenting with new business models and practice techniques in response to financial and lifestyle pressures.
Most Doctors Still Waiting On Medicaid Pay Raise
Five months after primary care doctors who treat Medicaid patients were supposed get a big pay raise, most physicians have yet to see it. Only three states have implemented the pay raise — Nevada, Michigan and Massachusetts, according to the American Academy of Family Physicians. The two-year pay hike is intended to entice more doctors to treat […]
Angelina Jolie, Genetic Testing, And The ACA
Dr. Otis Brawley, the chief medical officer of the American Cancer Society, is on the record with a quick post on Angelina Jolie’s startling announcement in a New York Times op-ed that she has had a prophylactic double mastectomy to cut her inherited risk of breast cancer. Jolie’s mother, actress Marcheline Bertrand, died of cancer at […]
CMS Won’t Penalize Hospitals In States Slow To Expand Medicaid
That sigh of relief you heard Monday was from hospital administrators in nearly two dozen states, including Florida and Texas. That’s because the Obama administration announced that for the next two years, it doesn’t plan to penalize states that have yet to expand Medicaid coverage under the federal health law by targeting them for reduced Medicaid funding, according […]