Latest KFF Health News Stories
Medical Research, FDA And Mental Health Programs Face Budget Bite
Federal funding for Medicaid is untouched but doctors, hospitals and other Medicare providers will see a 2 percent reduction.
Hospital Executive Bracing For Budget Cuts Says ‘We Need To Deal With Medicare’
David Blom, the president of OhioHealth, talks about the effects of sequestration and the need to find a long-term fiscal remedy.
Key Long-Term-Care Insurer To Raise Women’s Premiums
Although the Affordable Care Act seeks to end health plans’ use of gender to set prices, the new rules don’t apply to policies for long-term care.
Plans To Expand Florida Medicaid Welcomed And Feared
Doctors, consumer groups cheer expansion, worry that for-profit health plans may cut corners.
Activist Ignites A Movement For Patients Through Art And Story
The experience of her husband’s death transformed artist Regina Holliday into a patient advocate. Now, she’s galvanizing others with the common goal of improving health care to make it better, cheaper and safer.
D.C. Hospitals And Nurses Fight Over Staffing Ratios
Hospitals say a proposal requiring minimum nurse-to-patient ratios would put them out of business. Nurses say the ratios are needed to ensure quality care.
Hospitals Clamp Down On Dangerous Early Elective Deliveries
Pressure from insurers, employers and advocacy groups is finally reducing rates of elective deliveries before 39 weeks.
Pressure Rising To Avoid Federal Spending Cuts That Will Impact Health Programs
Although Medicare and Medicaid will be largely unscathed in the March 1 sequestration, other health-related efforts including medical research, mental health treatments and drug approvals face reductions.
Walmart Health Screening Stations Touted As Part Of ‘Self-Service Revolution’
The kiosks are part of a technology boom targeted at consumers seeking instant health data and cheaper, more convenient care.
New Coverage May Spur Younger Women To Use Long-Acting Contraceptives
The health law specifies that birth control is a covered service in many plans ending the burden of a high up-front cost for IUDs and hormonal implants.
Cancer Rehab Begins To Bridge A Gap For Patients
STAR, a program designed to offer cancer survivors rehabilitation therapy after treatment, is growing, as is research showing that many of the quality-of-life problems cancer survivors have are physical and can be helped with rehab.
Health Technology’s ‘Essential Critic’ Warns Of Medical Mistakes
“We’re in the midst of a mania right now,” Dr. Scot Silverstein warns, speaking of the race to adopt electronic health records. “We know it causes harm, and we don’t even know the level of magnitude. That statement alone should be the basis for the greatest of caution and slowing down.”
Federal Government To Run Insurance Marketplaces In Half The States
Friday deadline passes and states largely bypass the option to work with the federal government in setting up new online health insurance marketplaces that open for business Oct. 1.
Medicaid Expansion Puts Spotlight On Access To Primary Care
The Affordable Care Act will usher at least seven million more Americans into Medicaid next year, but the question of whether enough doctors will be there to welcome them is keeping some state health policymakers up at night.
California Health Chief Looks Within For Solution To Rising Health Costs
Ex-cop-turned-Scripps Health CEO Chris Van Gorder roots out ‘unnecessary variation’ to make care more cost-effective.
Higher Hospital Readmissions Aren’t Linked To Fewer Deaths, Study Finds
The research bolsters Medicare’s efforts to prompt hospitals to reduce the number of patients who return quickly even though some experts assert that might be a sign of good care.
Observation Units Can Improve Care But May Be Costly For Patients
Sometimes patients who are kept in the hospital to monitor their condition are not formally admitted and must pick up a bigger share of the cost.
Letters to the Editor is a periodic KHN feature. We welcome all comments and will publish a selection. We will edit for space, and we require full names.
Kansas’ Great Hope: Managed Care Will Tame Medicaid Costs
Starting this year, the state — hoping to control costs and improve quality — has moved almost all of its Medicaid recipients into managed care plans.
Obama: ‘I’ve Offered Sensible Reforms To Medicare’
In a statement to the press Tuesday, the president emphasized the need to reduce the cost of health care in the U.S.
