Latest KFF Health News Stories
Today’s Headlines – February 15, 2012
Good morning! Hope you had a great mid-week Valentine’s Day. Here are your headlines to get you going this morning: Los Angeles Times: Deal Would Extend Jobless Benefits, Prevent Medicare Cut One day after House Republican leaders made a major concession on the payroll tax cut, congressional negotiators struck a tentative deal that also would […]
Autoworkers’ Health Claims Offer Clues To Regional Spending Variations
Why does health care cost more in some areas of the country than others? It’s a question researchers have struggled with for decades, because the potential answers — unnecessary surgeries, generally bad health of patients or high prices charged by providers — each carry different prescriptions for how to hold down medical costs. Now a […]
Despite Best Intentions, Californians Don’t Talk About End-Of-Life Wishes
Most Californians say it is important to plan for end-of-life care but far fewer have done so, a gap that means they may not spend their dying days the way they wish. According to a survey released Tuesday by the California HealthCare Foundation, 70 percent of Californians said they would prefer to die at home, […]
Alaska Takes Biggest Step Yet Toward Health Insurance Exchange
Alaska has opposed the federal health law so adamantly that it is the only state that chose not to even apply for a $1 million grant the federal government was passing out to states to plan a health insurance exchange. But that doesn’t necessarily mean there won’t be an online marketplace to buy insurance in Alaska.
Candidates Court Seniors On Medicare
The top contenders are casting themselves as protectors of the program, even as they embrace ways to cut spending growth that have proven radioactive in past elections.
Today’s Headlines – February 14, 2012
Good morning! Happy Valentine’s Day! ♥ The New York Times: House Republicans Yield On Extending Payroll Tax Cut Congressional Republicans backed down on Monday from a demand that a payroll tax rollback be paid for with reductions in other programs, clearing the way for an extension of the tax cut for 160 million Americans through […]
Despite Doctors’ Concerns, Home Births Are Increasing
The numbers are still small but some women opt to have their babies at home because of the convenience and to save money.
Updated at 8:50 a.m. Feb. 14. If it’s the middle of February, and it’s time for the yearly Washington ritual: A president proposes Medicare and Medicaid cuts, and then nursing homes and hospitals complain that those cuts will destroy the quality of care. Today was no different: President Barack Obama released his fiscal 2013 budget plan. Since many of the about […]
A New Way To Carry KHN In Your Pocket
Can’t get enough Kaiser Health News? Now there’s a new way to take KHN with you everywhere you go. KHN is available on Google Currents, a mobile news app for smartphones and tablets. It works on any iPhone or Android phone, plus any iPad or Android tablet. The Google Currents edition of Kaiser Health News […]
Today’s Headlines – February 13, 2012
Good Monday morning! Here’s your headlines to start the week: The Wall Street Journal: Budget Sets Stage For Year-End Clash President Barack Obama’s budget plan, to be released Monday, will serve both as an outline of his re-election campaign message and a blueprint of the White House strategy for another clash looming after the November […]
Health Care In Massachusetts: ‘Abject Failure’ Or Work In Progress?
GOP Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney’s health care reform in Massachusetts is denigrated by his fellow GOP contenders and some others, but the law isn’t nearly as controversial in his home state, where it remains to be seen just how the law will transform the health care system there.
Experts Question Medicare’s Effort To Rate Hospitals’ Patient Safety Records
The new data identify many major teaching institutions as having high rates of serious complications. But officials say the measures are faulty.
FAQ: The Obama Administration’s Compromise On Contraception Benefits
The Obama administration, stung by fierce opposition from Catholic leaders to a new rule requiring that insurance plans offer free contraception, announced revised regulations Friday. Kaiser Health News summarizes common questions and answers to explain the new policy.
Every week, Jessica Marcy searches for interesting in-depth reading. The Daily Beast: How Karen Handel’s Komen Resignation Boosts Her Political Prospects Even if you put politics and ideology completely aside, Karen Handel had to resign from Susan G. Komen for the Cure. It’s hard to think of the last time an employee did so much […]
Video: President Obama On New Contraception Rules
The president was joined by HHS Secretary Sebelius as he announced a revision of the rule requiring that insurance plans offer free contraception, so that religious-affiliated groups don’t have to take responsibility for the coverage.
Today’s Headlines – February 10, 2012
Happy Friday. Here are your end-of-the-week headlines: The New York Times: Pessimism High, Republicans Warn Of Possible Expiration Of Payroll Tax Cuts Congressional Republicans said Thursday that negotiations over extending a payroll tax cut were going so poorly that it was possible the tax break — along with added unemployment benefits — could expire at […]
The White House Fact Sheet On The Contraception Compromise
This fact sheet was released by the White House in advance of President Barack Obama’s Feb. 10 comments about mandated health insurance coverage for contraception.
Will We Get The Biggest Bang From Health Law’s Prevention Grants?
Backers of the health law’s provision of $15 billion for prevention efforts believe it has the potential to improve health and reduce costs. But some question the administration’s decision to sprinkle money for community programs among dozens of groups testing different approaches, rather than channeling it to proven programs. Ken Thorpe, who chairs the Department of Health Policy […]
Rules Requiring Contraceptive Coverage Have Been In Force For Years
Employers have pretty much been required to provide contraceptive coverage as part of their health plans since December 2000. That’s when the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission ruled that failure to provide such coverage violates the 1978 Pregnancy Discrimination Act. But controversy over a new rule requiring even religious employers to cover contraception remains.
Coakley v. Cuccinelli: Attorneys General Debate The Health Law
http://c.brightcove.com/services/viewer/federated_f9?isVid=1 State attorneys general Martha Coakley and Ken Cuccinelli won’t be arguing the constitutionality of the 2010 health law before the Supreme Court in late March, but they brought their opposing cases before the National Press Club in Washington on Thursday.