Latest KFF Health News Stories
Medicare Targets Health Plans With Low Ratings
Medicare officials are encouraging 525,000 beneficiaries to switch out of these 26 Medicare Advantage and drug plans that have received low ratings for three consecutive years.
Medicare Trying To Nudge Seniors Out Of Plans With Low Ratings
Government is sending letters to a half million beneficiaries to alert them to their plans’ poor performance.
Halvorson: Premium Costs In The Exchanges Will ‘Depend Entirely’ On Participation
The Kaiser Permanente chairman and CEO offers his take on a wide variety of health care issues insurers face in the current marketplace.
Q&A: Does The Health Law Require Me To Cover My Adult Child?
Michelle Andrews answers a reader question about the obligations of insurers — and parents — under the 2010 health law.
Insurance Policies Favoring Compounded Drugs For High-Risk Pregnancies Draw Scrutiny
Meningitis outbreak puts spotlight on rules favoring cheaper, but potentially riskier versions of drug to help prevent premature births.
How The Individual Mandate Penalty Will Be Calculated
Michelle Andrews answers a reader question about the requirement to carry health insurance in 2014 and the options for subsidized coverage.
Three Major Themes In U.S. Health Care Spending
Kaiser Health News senior correspondent Julie Appleby examines the factors driving the $2.6 trillion in annual health care spending in the U.S.
Seven Factors Driving Up Your Health Care Costs
The United States spends more on health care services than any other country, exceeding $2.6 trillion, or about 18 percent of gross domestic product. Here are seven ways you or your medical providers play a role.
Accountable Care Explained: An Experiment in State Health Policy
ACOs are among the most ambitious of the new Medicaid cost containment and quality improvement schemes that have arisen in response to the federal health law and state fiscal pressures.
As More Employers Drop Coverage, Retirees Turn To Specialized Insurance Exchanges
Counselors help consumers who are eligible for Medicare enroll in plans that replace their old workplace benefits.
Study Finds Premium Support Plan Could Raise Medicare Premiums In Many Parts of Country
Seniors in both traditional Medicare and Medicare Advantage plans would be affected by the change, according to research that looks at how a voucher system would have worked in 2010.
Chemo IV Vs. Pill Decision Can Come Down To Cost
KHN’s Insuring Your Health columnist Michelle Andrews answers a reader’s question about whether insurance companies cover chemotherapy pills at a lower rate — if at all — compared to intravenous treatment.
In New Health Exchange, Human Element Of Customer Service Is Up For Debate
Health insurance exchanges are supposed to make it easy to compare plans side-by-side, but concerns persist that without human assistance, buying coverage in them could prove daunting.
Denver Debate: The Candidates Discuss Medicare
Medicare and how to rein in its rapidly growning costs was a major focus of Wednesday night’s presidential debate in Denver between President Barack Obama and former Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney.
Denver Debate: Obama And Romney On ‘Obamacare’
The bulk of Wednesday night’s presidential debate in Denver focused on the topic of health care. In this segment, President Barack Obama and former Mass. Gov. Mitt Romney discuss the 2010 health law.
Maine Seeks To Cut Medicaid Eligibility
Gov. Paul LePage is seeking cuts to the rolls of MaineCare, the state’s Medicaid program, by more than 23,000 people and reduced benefits for nearly 3,800 others.
Medicare Revises Hospitals’ Readmissions Penalties
Federal officials made small errors in calculating how much hospitals will be docked for having too many patients return within 30 days. Many hospitals will lose a bit more money under revised calculations.
Drug Coupons: A Good Deal For The Patient, But Not The Insurer
Makers of brand-name prescription drugs often offer discounts to help defray patients’ co-pay costs, but insurers say that drives up their overall health spending.
Eyes Turn To Arkansas’ Bold Effort To Cut Medicaid Costs, Add Transparency
Arkansas hopes a unique collaboration with the state’s big insurers can help them and the state.
Analysis: Access To Health Care Beginning To Look Like Airline Travel
This metaphor may be useful in decoding the gradations and complexities of insurance coverage and access to care.
