Latest KFF Health News Stories
Can I Stop My Health Reimbursement Account From Being Drained?
Michelle Andrews answers a question from a reader about who pays first when there is coverage from two insurance plans.
Study: Consumers Saved $2.1B On Individual Coverage Under Health Law
People who bought their own health insurance last year saved $2.1 billion because of the federal health law, mainly because of a provision that limits how much of their premium can go to insurers’ administration and profits, says a report out today from the Kaiser Family Foundation. (KHN is an editorially independent program of the […]
Of ACOs And Proton Beams: Why Hospitals ‘Live In Two Worlds’
For the past several years, hospital CEOs have been talking a big game about accountable care—the latest health care model, which pays doctors and hospitals for quality, rather than the volume of services they provide. ACOs make providers jointly accountable for the health of their patients, giving them financial incentives to cooperate and to save […]
Entrepreneurs At Health ‘Datapalooza’ Ask Feds For More Data
The White House is trying to spur innovation by releasing more of its data from Medicare, Medicaid and other sources. But technology business leaders gathered in Washington, D.C. this week said the federal government could be a lot more forthcoming with information.
Advocacy Group Seeks To Force Employers To Give Pregnancy Coverage To Dependents
The National Women’s Law Center files complaints with HHS alleging that five institutions discriminate against women by excluding pregnancy coverage from the health insurance benefits that they provide to employees’ daughters.
FAQ: Insurance Pricing Will Vary On Online Marketplaces
Consumers want to know: Will health insurance cost more, less, or about the same on the new health insurance exchanges?
GOP Lawmakers Press Sebelius To Help Child Awaiting Transplant
A child in desperate need of a lung transplant clinging to life. Long waiting lists of patients who need organs and too few donors to meet the demand. Rules that govern who gets what life-saving organs – and when. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius had to confront all those issues on […]
Sebelius Faces Questions About Calls To Outside Groups
Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius defended herself Tuesday against Republican criticisms of calls she made to outside organizations asking them to support a nonprofit group promoting outreach to consumers about their insurance options under the health law.
Fewer U.S. Families Report Having Difficulty Paying Medical Bills
Fewer American families are having problems paying medical bills, according to a study released Tuesday by the National Center for Health Statistics. Still, nearly a fifth off families still struggle with that financial responsibility. The report found that 20.3 percent of families headed by someone under the age of 65 — 54.2 million people — […]
‘Will My Family Be Eligible For Subsidized Coverage?’
Health insurance columnist answers questions about coverage subsidies for families in the health law, Medigap and rules for workers whose companies operate in more than one state.
California Law Likely Resulted In Lower Bills, Free Care For Uninsured
A California law limiting how much hospitals can charge the uninsured likely resulted in lower bills for many patients – and free care for most of the state’s poorest uninsured residents, according to a study published today in the journal Health Affairs. While some hospitals around the country have voluntarily agreed to reduce how much they […]
Miss. To Require Cord Blood Testing On Babies Born To Some Teenage Moms
The law is designed to identify older men who had sex with underage women.
Medicare Data Show Wide Divide In What Hospitals Bill For Outpatient Services
Medicare released average bill charges for 30 hospital outpatient procedures Monday, showing big differences from hospital to hospital in how much they bill patients for the same service. The data come a month after the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services garnered front-page attention for its release of similar information about 100 common hospital inpatient procedures. […]
PSA Screening: New Round Of Guidelines Emphasizes Importance Of Weighing Harms And Benefits
Physicians’ and patients’ thoughts on the prostate cancer screening test are changing, with many taking a more cautious approach to the test and what it might mean.
Will Consumers Sign On For Health Law’s Co-Ops?
Created by the health law to boost competition among insurers, co-ops in 24 states emphasize primary care and treating consumers as partners, but can they compete with the big guys?
Slowdown In Medicare Spending Extends Trust Fund
Slower growth in spending is helping extend the life of Medicare’s hospital trust fund to 2026, two years beyond last year’s estimate, officials said Friday. They also reported, however, that Social Security’s disability trust fund, which pays monthly benefits to disabled workers and their families, is expected to be exhausted by 2016. Social Security will begin to […]
D.C. Approves Two New Proton Therapy Centers
After months of heated debate, two of Washington’s biggest hospital systems won approval Friday to build proton treatment facilities that will cost a total of $153 million despite questions about whether the treatment is any more effective than less expensive options. Johns Hopkins Medicine will be allowed to build a two-room proton center at Sibley […]
Boston Marathon Survivor Has Long Road Ahead
Marc Fucarile is one of the last two survivors of the Boston Marathon bombing to be released from the hospital. He knows he will get some compensation from Boston’s One Fund, but he wonders if it will be enough.
White House: There Will Be Competition In Insurance Exchanges
This story comes from our partner ‘s Shots blog. The Obama administration is countering criticism that the new health insurance exchanges will be lacking in competition, though it’s doing so a bit quietly. At a White House briefing Thursday for health reporters, in which senior administration health officials spoke on the condition that they not […]
Proton Beam Therapy Heats Up Hospital Arms Race
Washington, D.C., is on the verge of approving two high-tech radiation facilities at a total cost of $153 million. The treatment costs twice as much as standard radiation but hasn’t been shown to work any better for most cancers.