Insurance

Latest KFF Health News Stories

Washington’s Homeless Hide in Plain Sight, Growing Sicker and Costing Taxpayers More

KFF Health News Original

The White House says encampment sweeps have enhanced the capital, but city leaders estimate nearly 700 homeless people roam by day and bed down outdoors by night. Some have scattered to the suburbs while others avoid detection, making it hard for medical providers to care for them.

Worried About Health Insurance Costs? There May Be Cheaper Options — But With Trade-Offs

KFF Health News Original

As the clock ticks down on the 2026 Obamacare open enrollment season, frustrated consumers may have to make sacrifices on coverage to get a price they can stomach. But cheaper alternatives come with risks.

Disability Rights Lawyers Threatened With Budget Cuts, Reassignments

KFF Health News Original

The Trump administration wants deep funding cuts for state-based legal services for disabled people, as rights advocates say the Justice Department pushed out many of its lawyers who worked on such issues.

One Big Beautiful Bill Act Complicates State Health Care Affordability Efforts

KFF Health News Original

The federal budget bill President Donald Trump signed into law in July is creating uncertainty for states trying to rein in health care spending. In California, a lawsuit by the hospital industry challenging state spending caps cites the law, which will slash Medicaid spending, as one of many financial pressures.

Seguros con deducibles altos ponen en aprietos a pacientes con afecciones crónicas

KFF Health News Original

os planes con deducibles altos —es decir, la cantidad que los pacientes deben abonar por la mayoría de los servicios médicos antes que el seguro se haga cargo— se han vuelto cada vez más comunes.

Sticker Shock: Obamacare Customers Confront Premium Spikes as Congress Dithers

KFF Health News Original

With subsidies that give consumers extra help paying their health insurance premiums set to expire, lawmakers are again debating the Affordable Care Act. The difference this time: It’s happening in the middle of ACA open enrollment.

What the Health? From KFF Health News: Crunch Time for ACA Tax Credits

Podcast

Dec. 15 is the deadline to sign up for Affordable Care Act plans that begin Jan. 1, and Congress remains at odds over letting expanded tax credits for the plans’ premiums expire and increasing the cost of insurance for millions of Americans. Meanwhile, HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. continues to remake vaccine policy to reflect ideology rather than science. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Maya Goldman of Axios, and Sheryl Gay Stolberg of The New York Times join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Georgetown professor Linda Blumberg about the GOP’s health plans.

Health Care Consolidation and Rising Costs Happen, but Obamacare Is Not the Key Culprit

KFF Health News Original

The debate over expiring Affordable Care Act tax credits has given Republicans room to resurface old criticisms — such as blaming the ACA for mergers and consolidation within the health care industry.

Plan-Switching, Sign-Up Impersonations: Obamacare Enrollment Fraud Persists

KFF Health News Original

Investigators from the Government Accountability Office were able to register nearly 20 fake ACA enrollments in a probe of healthcare.gov. The federal government paid subsidies to insurers for some of the fake customers.

Out-of-Pocket Pain From High-Deductible Plans Means Skimping on Care

KFF Health News Original

High-deductible health insurance plans are increasingly common, and many more enrollees will likely need to choose such plans for the coming year. For those with chronic conditions like diabetes, the gamble can mean compromised care and long-term consequences.

Trump’s Idea for Health Accounts Has Been Tried. Millions of Patients Have Ended Up in Debt.

KFF Health News Original

Republican calls to give Americans cash instead of health insurance subsidies double down on a decades-old strategy of moving people into high-deductible plans with health savings accounts.

Watch: What Do Republicans Really Want on Health Care?

KFF Health News Original

On “What the Health? From KFF Health News,” distributed by WAMU, chief Washington correspondent and podcast host Julie Rovner sat down with Avik Roy, a GOP health policy adviser, to talk about how health care has evolved as a Republican Party issue.

They Need a Ventilator To Stay Alive. Getting One Can Be a Nightmare.

KFF Health News Original

Few nursing homes are set up to care for people needing help breathing with a ventilator because of ALS or other infirmities. Insurers often resist paying for ventilators at home, and innovative programs are now endangered by Medicaid cuts.