Latest KFF Health News Stories
What’s At Stake As Health Law Lands At Supreme Court Again
With a $400 tax credit, Julia Raye of North Carolina has been able to afford health insurance and keep her diabetes under control. She is one of 8.2 million people who could lose that subsidy in a case that goes before the U.S. Supreme Court Wednesday.
When Health Care Is Far From Home
The biggest barrier to treatment for residents of a tiny town in the mountains of Northern California isn’t insurance coverage– it’s distance.
The Extra Cost Of Extra Weight For Older Adults
Obese people are far more likely to become disabled as they age, and researchers say this burgeoning demographic will strain hospitals and nursing homes.
High Costs Of HIV Drugs On Some Illinois Insurance Plans May Be Discriminatory, Say Advocates
The AIDS Foundation of Chicago has warned Coventry, Humana and two other insurers that their pricing of AIDS drugs may violate the health care law’s protections against discrimination.
Internists Get A Break From Controversial Efforts To Bolster Performance
The American Board of Internal Medicine, responding to complaints from doctors, steps back from plans for new standards for physicians’ board recertification, but consumer advocates stress that the board needs to keep focused on patients’ health.
Attention, Shoppers: Prices For 70 Health Care Procedures Now Online!
Guroo.org shows the average local cost of 70 common diagnoses and medical tests in most states. That’s the real cost — not “charges” that often get marked down — based on a giant database of what insurance companies actually pay.
Kaiser Permanente Faulted Again For Mental Health Care Lapses In California
Following up on a critical report in 2013, the California Department of Managed Health Care found Kaiser Permanente had not resolved concerns about providing timely and appropriate access to treatment.
Critics: Medicaid Services Ill. Gov. Rauner Would Cut Save Illinois Money
Some legislators and patient advocates say the targeted services, including dental and mental health services, not only help keep people healthy — they save the state money.
Fancy Flourishes At Hospitals Don’t Impress Patients, Study Finds
A study at Baltimore’s Johns Hopkins finds that patients in older buildings rate their care about the same as those in a sleek new hospital tower.
UCLA Bacteria Outbreak Highlights The Challenges Of Curbing Infections
The lethal infection is one of three that the CDC says urgently require close monitoring and prevention to halt their spread.
Even Insured Consumers Get Hit With Unexpectedly Large Medical Bills
Enrollees may face big charges as a result of lack of transparency and confusion about insurer’s provider networks.
States Add Dental Coverage For Adults On Medicaid But Struggle to Meet Demand
Dentists say they’re reluctant to see Medicaid patients because they’re typically paid about half as much as they get from private patients.
Study: Physicians Report Few Requests By Patients For ‘Unnecessary’ Treatments
These findings call into question the conventional wisdom that suggests doctors often give unnecessary or inappropriate treatments because patients demand them.
Concierge Medicine Firm Found Liable For Doctor’s Negligence
In what may be the first verdict of its kind, a jury found the concierge medical giant MDVIP responsible for physician’s negligent care of a Boca Raton patient.
Low-Income Californians More Satisfied With Their Health Care, Report Finds
A 2014 survey finds low-income California residents are happier with the quality of care they received than in 2011, before many provisions of the Affordable Care Act took effect.
Some Pediatricians Don’t Have Adequate Training With IUDs
Although IUDs — a form of long-acting birth-control — are growing in popularity and recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics, some pediatricians face challenges in offering it to teenage patients who are sexually active.
A Q&A On Achieving Mental Health Parity In Medicaid Managed Care
Emily Feinstein, the director of health law and policy at the substance abuse and addiction center CASAColumbia, discusses her expectations for a proposed mental health parity rule in Medicaid managed care, and outlines some of the issues in play regarding these proposed regulations.
Blue Cross North Carolina’s Price Tool Could Shake Up Medical Industry
The state’s largest insurer is the latest to pull back the veil of secrecy shrouding health care costs by publishing prices for more than 1,200 non-emergency procedures.
Medical Debt Still a Problem Under Health Law — Despite Protections
The health law was supposed to keep people from going broke, but despite limits on how much people will have to pay in the face of a medical catastrophe, many are still struggling to pay their health care bills.
Study: Suffering At The End Of Life Getting Worse, Not Better
The percentage of Americans experiencing pain in the last year of life increased between 1998 and 2010, despite the growth of palliative care programs and hospice use, according to a study released Monday.
