Latest KFF Health News Stories
‘Virtual’ Consultations: A Physician’s View
Once a month, Dr. Ankush Bansal, an internist, travels to his home in Miami to see patients virtually via computer for three different health care companies. Bansal said he doesn’t think telemedicine will replace practicing traditional medicine.
Insurers Embrace ‘Virtual’ Doctor Visits
The explosion of Web- and telephone-based medical services is transforming the delivery of primary health care, giving consumers access from home for inexpensive, round-the-clock care.
War On Smoking Offers Some Lessons For Obesity Fight
But the scope of the nation’s weight problem is much more extensive than tobacco ever was and public health campaigns must address issues as complex as food and beverage choices, television viewing, exercise routines and even the design of cities.
Rivlin On Medicare And The Debt: ‘We Know What To Do’
Whoever ends up controlling the White House next year – Barack Obama or Mitt Romney — will have to make compromises if they are to solve the nation’s current budget and health care crises. “I think we know what to do,” Alice Rivlin, a former director of the Office of Management and Budget, said Friday afternoon as […]
Massachusetts Lawmakers Unveil Ambitious Plan To Cut Health Care Costs
The proposal for state House lawmakers would control rising medical costs by capping a cap on health-care spending and could include a tax on hospitals.
Health Care Employment Continues Growing Faster Than Other Sectors
Health-care employers continued hiring at a brisk pace last month even as overall employment growth slowed down, today’s jobs report shows. Hospitals, doctor offices and other medical employers added 19,000 jobs in April. That represents a sixth of the total April increase of 115,000 jobs, even though health care makes up only 11 percent of the employment […]
Today’s Headlines – May 4, 2012
Happy Friday! Here are your end-of-week headlines! The Washington Post: Poll: Obama Leads Romney As Campaigns Converge On Virginia The Democratic president has a key advantage in his bid for re¬election: The coalition of Virginians that helped propel him to victory in 2008 — young voters, suburban Washingtonians, women and African Americans — is largely […]
More Doctors On The Way, But Higher Costs To Follow
More doctors are being trained, but some say the move could backfire since too many young doctors are going into high-paid specialties instead of primary care, which could exacerbate rising health care costs.
Today’s Headlines – May 3, 2012
Good morning! You’re over the hump, here’s Thursday’s headlines: The Associated Press/Washington Post: Problems Seen For Medicare Provider Payments If Supreme Court Strikes Down Health Care Law Tossing out President Barack Obama’s health care law would have major unintended consequences for Medicare’s payment systems, unseen but vital plumbing that handles 100 million monthly claims from […]
Caring, Long Term: A Way Of Life For 1 In 8 Connecticut Residents
For some unpaid caregivers, caring for relatives comes with little to no support as well as with a cost to their own health and financial well-being. And the need for them is growing.
200 Years Of Surgery In Eight Pages (With Drawings!)
For the 200th anniversary of the New England Journal of Medicine, Atul Gawande — surgeon, journalist, author, researcher, public speaker, father of three — takes a fun spin through two centuries of surgery by going back to the first volume of the publication, then known by the slightly less succinct name of the New England […]
Report: U.S. Has Comparatively High Rate Of Babies Born Early
The United States has a higher rate of babies born too early – and therefore at greater risk of death or health problems – than more than 125 other countries, including Rwanda, Uzbekistan, China and Latvia, according to a report out today. About 12 percent of U.S. babies are born at 37 weeks or less, […]
Analysis: ACOs Could Have The Medicare Muscle To Transform Health System
Accountable care organizations will confront questions, including whether this new model for delivering medical treatment has the muscle to overcome the system’s entrenched incentives.
Costly Heart Procedures Thrive In Some Places, Michigan Study Finds
Why do some doctors keep doing expensive medical procedures after it becomes apparent there are cheaper and equally safe ways to treat patients? A new study of cardiac procedures in Michigan takes a crack at this question, and while it comes up short on definitive answers, it has some interesting findings. The Center for Healthcare […]
Today’s Headlines – May 2, 2012
Good Wednesday morning! Here are your headlines: Politico: GOP: Cut State Bonuses For Children’s Health Care House Republicans want to stop rewarding states for finding and enrolling low-income children in Medicaid and the Children’s Health Insurance Program, and public health advocates are livid. The Republicans say it’s a smart fiscal move that will better protect […]
When Is A Joint Committee Disjointed?
Over the past two weeks, 18 scathing messages hammering the Obama administration on health care matters have been e-mailed to reporters and congressional staff from an address associated with the congressional Joint Economic Committee – a panel of Democrats and Republicans from the House and Senate. Isn’t the JEC a bipartisan, bicameral panel that alternates […]
Advocates Worry States Are Moving Too Fast On Dual Eligibles
Some states likely will begin testing new ways to care for people who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid early next year—a timeline that has some advocates urging officials to slow down. Finding high-quality, cost-effective ways to care for the 9 million people known as “dual eligibles” is among the brass rings of health policy. […]
Community Health Centers Get $728M Boost To Serve More People
The Obama administration on Tuesday gave out $728 million to expand and modernize 398 community health centers that provide primary care mainly to the poor. The money, made available under the 2010 health law, will help centers in 48 states expand their capacity to serve an additional 900,000 people. Demand for care at the centers […]
Dr. Otis Brawley: ‘The System Really Is Not Failing … Failure Is The System’
The chief medical officer for the American Cancer Society has a powerful message for the country: We’re all responsible for overuse of the health care system.
In Massachusetts, Hope For Higher Salaries If Health Care Inflation Slows
As Massachusetts’ state legislators put the finishing touches on a major health care cost-control bill, there is still one big question: How much could it save employers and fatten employee paychecks?