Latest KFF Health News Stories
Red State Idaho Embraces Obamacare Insurance Exchange — Reluctantly
Gov. “Butch” Otter and employer groups fought to keep control of their health insurance marketplace — the only GOP-controlled state to run a state-based exchange –
Sebelius: We’re Open to ‘Uniquely Texan’ Approach
The federal government is open to allowing Texas to expand Medicaid coverage under Obamacare in a way that is “uniquely Texan,” HHS Sec. Kathleen Sebelius said Thursday in Austin.
Fuzzy Math Behind Florida’s Health Insurance Projections, Group Says
After the Florida Office of Insurance Regulation released a chart and related information last week projecting that individual monthly health insurance premiums would rise 30 to 40 percent next year thanks to Obamacare, some critics cried “fuzzy math!” This week, the Florida Center for Fiscal and Economic Policy, a left-leaning nonprofit research and education group, issued a […]
Anti-Obamacare Forces Ramp Up Campaign To Stop Implementation
This story comes from our partner ‘s Shots blog. With less than eight weeks to go before the official launch of the new health care marketplaces under the federal health law, backers of the law are ramping up to encourage people to sign up. But there’s another effort gearing up this month as well. Opponents […]
Health Insurers Tune In To Twitter For Customer Service
Companies are amping up their social media presence in an effort to help patients and do quick damage control on complaints aired in this public sphere.
A Conservative Re-Envisioning Of The Health Care Overhaul
Tired of hearing policy experts and politicians debate the 2010 health care law? What if you took the Affordable Care Act out of the conversation? If you could scrap the nation’s current health care system and build a new one, what would it look like? A group of health care experts from Stanford University, the Harvard Kennedy […]
Connecticut Department of Social Services’ Dawn Lambert discusses the state’s efforts to address residents’ long-term care needs while minimizing the strain on the state’s Medicaid budget.
Farzad Mostashari To Leave Federal Health IT Office
The charismatic head of health information technology at the Department of Health and Human Services will step down this fall. In an e-mail to staff, Dr. Farzad Mostashari didn’t divulge why he was departing after serving for two years in that position and four years at the agency. “It is difficult for me to announce that […]
Transforming Prenatal Care To Lower Infant Mortality
Einstein Medical Center hopes a program funded by the health law and geared to women with high-risk pregnancies will reduce North Philadelphia’s high infant mortality rate.
St. Louis’ Busiest Safety Net Hospital Braces For Health Law Challenges
Christian Hospital’s struggle to serve the disadvantaged is not likely to get easier under the Affordable Care Act.
Many Consumers With High-Deductible Plans Are Concerned About Health Law Changes
Many policy holders are not aware that the plans, which generally have low premiums and can have high out-of-pocket costs, don’t meet the standards set in the health overhaul.
Consumers Can Take First Step To Enrolling In New Insurance Options Today
Consumers in most states can start the process of enrolling in Obamacare today — but they won’t be able to compare health insurance prices or buy coverage in the new federally run insurance online marketplaces until Oct. 1, administration officials said Monday. People in the 34 states relying on a federal insurance exchange can go to […]
Making Sense Of Premium Rates In Insurance Marketplaces
KHN Reporter Phil Galewitz was on C-SPAN’s Washington Journal Monday where he talked about health insurance rates in states’ health law marketplaces. Read more: State Premium Watch: Pricing In The New Insurance Marketplaces KHN reporters will be returning to C-SPAN’s Washington Journal each Monday throughout the summer. Tune in each week to stay informed about the […]
Cascading Hospital Closures Loom Over Brooklyn
The New York City borough is close to losing two hospitals, prompting fears that their shuttering could overwhelm nearby facilities and hurt care for residents — and that other closures may not be far behind.
Physician Payments Sunshine Act Goes Into Effect Without Initial Concerns
The Physician Payments Sunshine Act, an Affordable Care Act provision requiring doctors and medical companies to disclose their financial relationships, went into effect Aug. 1. Physicians say they are now working to find a balance between necessary transparency and what some perceive to be burdensome filing. “We want to spend our time seeing patients, not doing paperwork,” said […]
State Premium Watch: Pricing In The New Insurance Marketplaces
KHN is gathering the data from states that have approved and published premiums for the online marketplaces that will open Oct. 1 under the federal health law.
Armed With Bigger Fines, Medicare To Punish 2,225 Hospitals For Excess Readmissions
Penalties will total $227 million, but many hospitals will see their fines go down in October in the second year of the program.
Sources and Methodology: A Guide To Medicare’s Readmissions Data And KHN’s Analysis
Kaiser Health News’ data on hospital readmissions penalties comes from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Readmissions Penalties By State: Year Two
This chart lists state averages of readmission rates and the number of hospitals in each state that will be penalized.
Obamacare: What It Will Cost In Washington State
Four companies to offer 31 health plans on new state exchange at a variety of prices.