Latest KFF Health News Stories
Long Waits For Consumers When Medicare Is ‘Secondary Payer’
A new law sets schedules for providing details about medical claims in cases where a beneficiary suffers a personal injury due to someone else’s negligence.
Long-Term Care Ombudsmen Face Challenges To Independence
The advocates for elderly and disabled people living in nursing homes or assisted living centers responded to 204,000 complaints nationwide in 2011.
TurboTax, Not Travelocity, May Be Better Analogy For Health Exchanges
Consumers in Colorado focus groups said they know very little about insurance and will need a lot of customer support to purchase coverage online.
HMO-Like Plans May Be Poised To Make Comeback In Online Insurance Markets
Insurers bet some consumers will choose cheaper plans that restrict their choice of doctors, despite worries about skimpy care and huge bills for out-of-network providers.
Obama: ‘Medicare and Medicaid … Strengthen Us’
Video: In his second inaugural speech Monday, President Barack Obama discussed the need to reduce health costs — but also defended the importance of Medicare and Medicaid.
Insurers Prod Doctors, Hospitals To Stop Elective Early Deliveries
Medicaid and private insurers seek to reduce deliveries before 39 weeks to reduce complications and costs.
Hospices, Wary Of Costs, May Be Discouraging Patients With High Expenses
A survey finds that more than three-quarters of hospices have restrictive enrollment policies designed to keep away patients with high-cost medical needs.
Slowly Dying Patients, An Audit And A Hospice’s Undoing
For one San Diego Hospice, the trouble began with a federal audit.
Health Law Offers Dental Coverage Guarantee For Some Children
The requirement is only for individual and small-group health plans, and some advocates worry that the new benefits may not be sufficiently comprehensive or affordable.
Obama: ‘Our Commitment To Medicare
At a White House news conference Monday, President Obama discusses how he sees Medicare, Medicaid and other health care spending factoring into the looming conflict over raising the federal debt ceiling.
As ‘Bodega Clinicas’ Fill Void, Officials Are Torn on Embracing Them
The storefront doctor’s offices serve a vast number of uninsured Latino residents, in a kind of parallel, cash-only health system. But officials have little information on the quality of health care the clinicas provide, and whether they might be able to help fill persistent and profound gaps in Los Angeles’ strained safety net.
‘The Matrix’ Meets Medicine: Surveillance Swoops Into Health Care
The Evangelical Lutheran Good Samaritan Society is testing how using technology to monitor seniors’ health can save money on medical costs and help seniors feel secure enough to “age in place.”
Doctors And Dentists Lure Patients With Money-Saving Deals Online
Dollar-conscious consumers are turning to websites like Groupon for price breaks on medical, dental and vision care.
When An Employer Drops Coverage, Workers Lose Their Tax Advantages
Insurance columnist answers readers’ questions, including how alternative medicine might be treated under the health law, and offers more details about coverage for adult children.
Behind The Fiscal Cliff Deal, A Prolonged Hospital Finance Fight
Hospitals complain they are bearing the brunt of sustaining payment levels for doctors but the changes in Medicare were a long time coming.
When Employers’ Health Plans Disappear, Workers Often Have Few Options
Unexpected events, such as a corporate bankruptcy or sale or a decision by an employer to discontinue insurance, can undermine the security of on-the-job coverage.
Senior Correspondent Sarah Varney Discusses What 2013 Will Hold For Health Care
KHN reporters preview some of the big issues coming in the new year: KHN Senior Correspondent Sarah Varney says she will follow the stories of people who will be affected the most by implementation of the health law.
Web Reporter Alvin Tran Discusses What 2013 Will Hold For Health Care
KHN reporters preview some of the big issues coming in the new year: KHN Web Reporter Alvin Tran discusses how important the coming year will be for health exchanges and addressing health disparities and barriers to care.
Senior Correspondent Jordan Rau Discusses What 2013 Will Hold For Health Care
KHN reporters preview some of the big issues coming in the new year: KHN Senior Correspondent Jordan Rau says he’ll be watching for changes in how hospitals and doctors are paid — away from “fee-for-service” and toward paying for better quality.
Web Reporter Ankita Rao Discusses What 2013 Will Hold For Health Care
KHN reporters preview some of the big issues coming in the new year: KHN Web Reporter Ankita Rao says that in 2013 she will follow new models of health care delivery designed to counter health care system inefficiencies.
