Latest KFF Health News Stories
Make Tax Day Also Enrollment Deadline, One Health Expert Says
With one small fix, the administration could satisfy calls from some members of Congress to extend the time people have to enroll in new health insurance through online marketplaces, a health policy expert says. The fix would not create problems in the industry and would move the deadline to a point when many people have […]
Retail Clinics Boom, But Still Small Part Of Overall Market
Convenience. Accessibility. Peace of mind. Those were the things Reza Marashi was looking for a year ago when he was searching for a new medical provider. As the 32-year-old sat in the One Medical Group waiting room in Washington, D.C., for his annual check-up, he said that the ease of making appointments and communicating with […]
Humana Exec Predicts Obamacare Open Enrollment Extension
Humana, one of nation’s largest health insurers, said Wednesday that it expects the Obama administration to extend open enrollment for its troubled online marketplaces beyond March 31. But a spokeswoman for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Julie Bataille, said, “Consumers still have ample time to enroll in the six-month open enrollment period.” Millions […]
Democrats’ Frustrations With Health Law Grow Amid Website Problems
HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said at a Senate hearing Wednesday that officials were advised to keep healthcare.gov open while fixing problems and also fielded criticism of President Obama’s promise that if Americans like their old health plans they can keep it. KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey and CQ HealthBeat’s Rebecca Adams discuss.
Popular Provision Of Obamacare Is Fueling Sticker Shock For Some Consumers
Barring insurers from rejecting people with medical problems or charging them more is the biggest of several factors affecting premiums.
Why New Medicaid Enrollment is Soaring
A Stateline survey indicates at least 1.5 million people have already signed up or have been pre-qualified for expanded Medicaid in the 19 states that have provided counts.
Labor Unions May Get Health Law Tax Relief
Unions want their plans exempted from the reinsurance tax, but the Obama administration may not do so until 2015.
Obama Administration Hoping 800K Enroll By End Of November
About 800,000 people are expected to enroll in the new online health insurance marketplaces by the end of November, Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Marilyn Tavenner said Tuesday at a congressional hearing. A CMS official said later that estimate includes people signing up for Medicaid as well as private insurance. In a testimony […]
17 Million People Eligible For Premium Subsidies, Study Finds
Seventeen million people who are now uninsured or who buy their own health insurance will be eligible for tax credits next year to help purchase coverage on the health law’s online marketplaces or exchanges, according to an analysis released Tuesday. More than a third of those people live in just three states: California with nearly […]
Blue Shield of California Delays Cancellations for Some Individual Policyholders
Threatened with a legal action from the state, company says 80,000 customers can keep their plans through March 31.
Call Centers Got Big Contracts From Health Law, But How Big Is Unclear
The contractor running Connecticut’s call center for its health insurance marketplace doesn’t have to reveal how its pricing works.
Study Points To “Imbalance” In Spending On Doctor Training
Florida and New York have roughly the same population, but New York has five times as many Medicare-sponsored residency training positions and seven times the Medicare funding graduate medical education. The numbers give a glimpse into the “imbalance” in how Medicare distributes its $10 billion a year for graduate medical education (GME), according to a study […]
Oregon’s State Exchange May Be Worse Than Healthcare.gov
Not a single person is enrolled yet in Oregon, where 7,300 applications have been filed, all on paper.
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 […]