Latest KFF Health News Stories
Covered California’s Insurance Deals Range From ‘No-Brainer’ to Sticker Shock
Families of four with incomes of less than about $40,000 a year can pay no premiums and have low deductibles. For some others, health insurance in 2022 will cost more than in 2021 — in some cases, significantly more.
‘An Arm and a Leg’: She Fights Health Insurers for Fun — And Wins
Law professor Jackie Fox looks at health insurance policies like any other contract, and she has spent 30 years making sound legal arguments to help patients get the care they need.
Post-Pandemic, What’s a Phone Call From Your Physician Worth?
Medicare billing codes for audio-only follow-up check-ins lead to new reimbursement battles.
A Tale of Two Medicaid Expansions: Oklahoma Jumps In, While Missouri Lags
Voters in Missouri and Oklahoma approved Medicaid expansion to begin in 2021. But while Oklahoma has enrolled over 200,000 people so far, Missouri has enrolled fewer than 20,000. Why are two such similar states handling the public insurance rollout so differently?
‘An Arm and a Leg’: How to Avoid the Worst Health Insurance
Listen to a journalist’s first-person horror story on shopping for health insurance — and learn how to avoid the pitfalls.
‘An Arm and a Leg’: The Insurance Warrior’s Battle Plan
Health care — and how much it costs — is scary. But knowledge is power. Take a master class in winning insurance appeals. In the case of Matthew Lientz, taking on his insurance also meant going up against his employer.
Stranded by the Pandemic, He Had Only Travel Insurance. It Left Him With a $38,000 Bill.
Although it’s possible to buy travel insurance that provides some health coverage, the devil is in the fine print. Obama-era laws that prevent refusal of payment for preexisting conditions don’t apply to travel insurance.
Patients Get Stranded Out of Network as Insurer-Hospital Contract Talks Fall Apart
As hospital systems and insurers adjust to the pandemic, their contract negotiations grow increasingly fraught. Contracts for in-network care are ending without a new deal, leaving patients suddenly with out-of-network bills or scrambling to find new in-network providers.
Missouri’s Thin Dental Safety Net Stretched Amid Medicaid Expansion
An estimated 275,000 Missouri adults can get dental insurance now as the state has expanded who is eligible for Medicaid. But with so few dentists participating in the program, the state’s already-backlogged dental clinics are facing a glut of new clients.
Tu gasto de bolsillo en atención médica no debe ser un misterio
Una ley de California firmada por el gobernador Gavin Newsom en octubre puede ayudar a clasificar una maraña de facturas médicas para entender qué cubre el plan de salud y cuándo comenzará la cobertura.
Your Out-of-Pocket Health Care Costs Need Not Be a Mystery
A new California law requires health insurance companies to notify consumers how much remains on their deductibles and how close they are to their annual out-of-pocket spending limits.
La inscripción de Medicare es temporada abierta para estafadores
Funcionarios federales dicen que están aumentando las quejas de personas mayores engañadas para que compren pólizas sin su consentimiento, o atraídas por información cuestionable, que pueden no cubrir sus medicamentos ni incluir a sus médicos.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Why Health Care Is So Expensive, Chapter $22K
Congress is making slow progress toward completing its ambitious social spending bill, although its Thanksgiving deadline looks optimistic. Meanwhile, a new survey finds the average cost of an employer-provided family plan has risen to more than $22,000. That’s about the cost of a new Toyota Corolla. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News and Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Rebecca Love, a nurse academic and entrepreneur, about the impending crisis in nursing.
Medicare’s Open Enrollment Is Open Season for Scammers
Medicare officials say complaints are rising from seniors lured into private plans with misleading information or enrolled without their consent. In response, officials have threatened to penalize the private companies selling Medicare Advantage and drug plans if they or agents working on their behalf mislead consumers.
Researcher: Medicare Advantage Plans Costing Billions More Than They Should
Some insurers pocketed ‘eye-popping’ overpayments, billing records show.
Muchos empleadores informaron que desde que comenzó la pandemia han realizado cambios en sus beneficios de salud mental y adicciones. La principal forma fue extender el uso de la telemedicina.
As Workers Struggle With Pandemic’s Impact, Employers Expand Mental Health Benefits
Many job-based health plans broadened their mental health and substance use coverage to make sure workers had the support they needed this year as pandemic stress lingered, the annual KFF survey finds. Also, the proportion of employers offering health insurance to their workers remained steady, and increases for premiums and out-of-pocket health expenses were moderate.
La catarata de información sobre la inscripción a Medicare no explica bien las opciones de Medigap
En parte porque las políticas sobre el acceso y los costos de Medigap cambian dependiendo del estado, o por la información confusa, muchos beneficiarios no eligen lo que más les conviene.
Medicare Enrollment Blitz Doesn’t Include Options to Move Into Medigap
TV ads and mailings targeting seniors tout Medicare Advantage plans this time of year, but millions choosing traditional Medicare make a costly and difficult decision about Medigap coverage, which gets much less attention.
New Health Plans Offer Twists on Existing Options, With a Dose of ‘Buyer Beware’
Fueled by consumer frustration with high premiums and deductibles, two new offerings promise a means for consumers to take control of their health care costs. But experts say they pose risks.
