Health Care Costs

Latest KFF Health News Stories

Immigration Crackdowns Disrupt the Caregiving Industry. Families Pay the Price.

KFF Health News Original

Families, nursing facilities, and home health agencies rely on foreign-born workers to fill health care jobs that are demanding and do not attract enough American citizens. The Trump administration’s anti-immigration policies threaten to cut a key source of labor for the industry, which was already predicting a surge in demand.

‘If They Cut Too Much, People Will Die’: Health Coalition Pushes GOP on Medicaid Funding

KFF Health News Original

As House Republicans mull a massive $880 billion cut from federal programs likely including Medicaid, constituents, disability advocates, and health care providers are joining forces to lobby GOP members in California — including those who represent rural, deeply conservative pockets that stand to lose the most.

How Much Will That Surgery Cost? 🤷 Hospital Prices Remain Largely Unhelpful.

KFF Health News Original

Health care price transparency is one of the few bipartisan issues in Washington, D.C. But much of the information that hospitals and health plans have made available to the public is not helpful to patients, and there’s no conclusive evidence yet that it’s lowering costs or increasing competition.

Their Physical Therapy Coverage Ran Out Before They Could Walk Again

KFF Health News Original

Health plans limit physical or occupational therapy sessions to as few as 20 a year, no matter the patient’s infirmities. The limits persist despite federal rules banning insurers from setting annual dollar limits on the care they will provide.

He Had Short-Term Health Insurance. His Colonoscopy Bill: $7,000.

KFF Health News Original

After leaving his job to launch his own business, an Illinois man opted for a six-month health insurance plan. When he needed a colonoscopy, he thought it would cover most of the bill. Then he learned his plan’s limited benefits would cost him plenty.

Many People With Disabilities Risk Losing Their Medicaid if They Work Too Much

KFF Health News Original

As politicians demand that more Medicaid recipients work, many people with disabilities say their state programs’ income and asset caps force them to limit their work hours or turn down promotions.

Bill That Congressman Says Protects Medicaid Doesn’t — And Would Likely Require Cutting It

KFF Health News Original

U.S. Rep. Nick LaLota, a Long Island Republican, told his constituents that he voted for the House-passed GOP budget resolution because it protects Medicaid, Medicare, and Social Security. However, the bill charges a committee with making cuts that likely can’t be attained without slashing Medicaid.

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Federal Health Work in Flux

Podcast

It’s the Trump administration vs. the federal courts, as the Department of Government Efficiency continues to try to cancel federal contracts and programs and fire workers. But in the haste to cut things, jobs and programs are being eliminated even if they align with the new administration’s goal to “Make America Healthy Again.” Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

In New York, Providers Must Put Patient Costs on the Table

KFF Health News Original

The governor’s fiscal year 2026 budget revises a law designed to limit unexpected bills that can put people at risk for unfair medical billing practices and reduce medical debt. Consumer groups say it doesn’t go far enough.

Tribal Health Leaders Say Medicaid Cuts Would Decimate Health Programs

KFF Health News Original

As Congress mulls significant cuts to Medicaid, Native American tribes are bracing for potentially devastating financial fallout. That’s because Medicaid is the largest third-party payer for Native American health programs, funding that has helped address chronic underfunding of the Indian Health Service.

Checking the Facts on Medicaid Use by Latinos

KFF Health News Original

Republicans’ moves to scale back Medicaid are leading to more misinformation about immigrants, especially Latinos, circulating on social media platforms. The misconceptions include the myths that Latinos covered by Medicaid don’t work and that they use Medicaid significantly more than others.

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': The Cutting Continues

Podcast

The Trump administration’s efforts to downsize the federal government continue, with both personnel and programs being cut at the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Veterans Affairs, and the Social Security Administration. Meanwhile, the fight over cuts to the Medicaid program for those with low incomes heats up, as Republicans worry that more of their voters than ever before are Medicaid beneficiaries. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Anna Edney of Bloomberg News join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Jeff Grant, who recently retired from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services after 41 years in government service.

California Borrows $3.4 Billion for Medicaid Overrun as Congress Eyes Steep Cuts

KFF Health News Original

Medi-Cal, California’s Medicaid program, borrowed $3.4 billion from the state — and will likely need even more — due to higher prescription costs and increased eligibility for seniors and immigrants. The top Republican in the state Senate is demanding a hearing “so the public knows exactly where their tax dollars are going.”

Can House Republicans Cut $880 Billion Without Slashing Medicaid? It’s Likely Impossible.

KFF Health News Original

A Republican House resolution, which needs the Senate’s buy-in, directed a committee to propose ways to reduce the deficit by at least $880 billion over a decade. Lawmakers have taken Medicare off the table for cuts, which makes it impossible to reach $880 billion without cutting Medicaid.