Latest KFF Health News Stories
Can I Pay Negotiated Rates When I Pay Out Of Pocket?
A reader asks Michelle Andrews how to get the negotiated rates insurers pay even when paying for a medical procedure directly.
D.C. Health Program For Illegal Immigrants Avoids Cuts
A public health insurance program that primarily serves illegal immigrants in the District of Columbia avoided the chopping block Tuesday under a budget compromise approved by the D.C. Council. Mayor Vincent C. Gray (D) earlier this spring recommended cutting hospital-based care from the HealthCare Alliance program to save more than $20 million in the District’s […]
Today’s Headlines – May 16, 2012
The New York Times: Republicans Pledge New Standoff On Debt Limit But Republicans have not been able to unify around an alternative. Instead, they will bring forward four different budgets for the 2013 fiscal year, which begins Oct. 1 — with a budget passed by House Republicans viewed as the most liberal of the lot. […]
Attention Health Care Shoppers: Colorado’s New Price List For Procedures
Colorado is one of 14 states that have or are setting up searchable databases designed to help people shop and compare health care options based on price and quality.
Obama Administration: A Plan To Prevent Alzheimer’s By 2025
http://www.youtube.com/v/QcQ62EhyVEE?version=3&hl=en_US The Obama administration is moving forward with an ambitious, fast-moving agenda to improve the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease and unlock a method to prevent it by 2025. The final draft of the plan, released today, also sets up a wide-ranging effort to improve the care that Alzheimer’s patients receive and support families. As many […]
Today’s Headlines – May 15, 2012
Good morning! Here are your headlines: The Washington Post: Taxmageddon Sparks Rising Anxiety The halls of the U.S. Capitol are already teeming with people warning of disaster if lawmakers fail to defuse a New Year’s budget bomb scheduled to raise taxes for every American taxpayer and slash spending at the Pentagon and most other federal […]
Some States Mandate Better Coverage Of Oral Cancer Drugs
Patients complain that they can spend tens of thousands of dollars because pills are considered a pharmacy benefit by many insurers while traditional IV chemo generally has a a flat copayment and out-of-pocket costs are capped.
How Much Do The Nation’s Pre-Eminent Hospitals Cost Medicare?
Can you cut health care spending without undermining the quality of care? It’s a major concern as Medicare prepares to prod hospitals to provide medical care more efficiently by giving bonuses to those whose patients cost less and taking money away from places that send the government higher bills. Last week, Capsules culled through the […]
Today’s Headlines – May 14, 2012
Good morning and welcome to Monday: The Washington Post: Ryan Budget Still An Issue In Congressional Races The issue in question is the budget proposal issued by House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), and what it does to Medicare in particular. More than a year after the proposal’s initial release, Republican candidates continue to […]
Many Businesses Offer Health Benefits To Same-Sex Couples Ahead Of Laws
The desire to attract top employees is driving a long-term trend toward coverage. Last year, 52 percent of all employers offered domestic partner health benefits, with the percentage varying widely by region and industry. KHN’s Julie Appleby filed this story.
Doctors And Insurers Are Key To Fighting Obesity
IOM report says physicians need to be more rigorous in dealing with patients’ weight, and insurers should reverse stingy reimbursement policies and help develop evidence-based programs that can help curb the epidemic.
Final Rule Issued On Consumer Rebates And Notification
Most health insurers this year must at least inform policyholders that their coverage met the minimum spending threshold under the federal health law, even if they don’t owe consumers a rebate, a final rule out Friday says. The rule splits the difference between industry, which did not want to send any notice to those not owed a […]
More 20-30 Somethings Are Taking Care Of Elderly
Every week, Kaiser Health News reporter Shefali S. Kulkarni selects interesting reading from around the Web. ABC News: Early Burdens: Eldercare Falls on Young Shoulders At 30, Suzette Armijo cares for her widowed 86-year-old grandmother, a retired National Park Service ranger in the final stages of Alzheimer’s disease, while holding down a fulltime job, a […]
Today’s Headlines – May 11, 2012
Happy Friday! Here are your morning headlines! The New York Times: House Approves $310 Billion In Cuts, But Passage In The Senate Very Unlikely Of the savings, $23.5 billion came from Medicaid and children’s health care; $4.2 billion from hospitals that serve the poor and uninsured; and $33.7 billion from supplemental nutrition assistance. In all, […]
Which Hospitals’ Patients Cost Medicare The Most? A Top 10 List
New government data identify which hospitals’ patients cost Medicare the most. Below are the 10 hospitals whose patients cost Medicare the most–both during their stays and for all services in the month afterward. All hospitals are general medical and surgical hospitals unless noted otherwise. Medicare calculates a hospital rate as a ratio to the national […]
What’s In A Name: Health Exchanges, Marketplaces … Or Swap Meets
If a Medicare staff recommendation is approved, health insurance exchanges may be up for a rebranding.
Former CMS Chiefs: Medicare SGR Problem Can Be Fixed
The Senate Finance Committee convened a group of former Medicare administrators Thursday — Gail Wilensky, Bruce Vladeck, Thomas Scully and Mark McClellan — to discuss how they viewed the current crisis on physician fees and the Sustainable Growth Rate formula, the “doc fix” problem.
Reassessing McAllen’s Health Bill
Remember McAllen? It’s the Texas border town that during the health care debate became synonymous with wasteful medical spending. Even Barack Obama was talking about it. In part because of McAllen’s bad reputation, based on studies by the Dartmouth Atlas, Congress ended up instructing Medicare to start rewarding hospitals that provide care efficiently — and taking […]
Letters To The Editor: Readers’ Thoughts On Observational Care, Virtual Doctors, And More
Letters to the Editor is a periodic KHN feature.
Today’s Headlines – May 10, 2012
Today’s headlines detail the fight at the Capitol over the budget and what automatic cuts could mean if allowed to take effect next year. NPR: House To Vote On GOP Bill Favoring Guns Over Butter Republicans who control the House want to block some $55 billion worth of automatic cuts to the Pentagon budget next […]