‘An Arm And A Leg’: Can They Freaking Do That?!?
Introducing a new segment on “An Arm and a Leg” podcast: “Can They Freaking Do That?!?” We take your most vexing medical bill questions and hunt down information and experts who can help.
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Introducing a new segment on “An Arm and a Leg” podcast: “Can They Freaking Do That?!?” We take your most vexing medical bill questions and hunt down information and experts who can help.
Justices from the right and left ask whether Congress needs to keep its promises.
The case revolves around a health law provision designed to help insurers recover some losses because they had an unusually high number of sick and expensive customers. Insurers complain that when Republican lawmakers discontinued funding the program, it was like “Lucy Van Pelt pulling the football away from Charlie Brown.”
It’s open enrollment season for health insurance. And choosing the best plan is tricky whether you have to buy insurance on your own or just figure out which plan to sign up for at work. Here’s what you need to know.
Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health care policy stories each week, so you don’t have to.
In 21st-century US health care, everything is revenue, and so everything is billed.
Members of Congress and others complain Medicare’s revamped Plan Finder had problems. Federal officials say they can help consumers who got bad information change their plans next year. But details about how switching will work are yet to come.
The annual accounting of national health spending is out. And the 2018 health bill for the U.S. was $3.6 trillion, consuming nearly a fifth of the nation’s economy. Meanwhile, Congress is nearing the end of the year without having finished either its annual spending bills or several other high-priority health items. Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner, Joanne Kenen of Politico and Mary Agnes Carey of Kaiser Health News join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss this and more. Also, Rovner interviews KHN’s Markian Hawryluk about the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month.”
Consumers are admonished to be “smart shoppers,” but that’s difficult if health care prices are clear as mud. When Sarah Macsalka’s son needed stitches, she did her best to avoid the ER and still ended up with a $3,000 bill.
A California law, which took effect in July 2017, protects consumers who use an in-network hospital or other facility from surprise bills when cared for by an out-of-network doctor. But physicians say the law has allowed insurers to shrink networks, limiting access to those doctors who have contracted with the patients’ insurance plans.
Anthem Blue Cross has received a disproportionate share of violations and fines from California’s largest health insurance regulator, mostly related to its mishandling of patient grievances.
Polls show that health care is at the top of voters’ issues, but the polls also say Democrats, let alone other Americans, are not ready for “Medicare for All.”
Kvetching about the cost of health care is kind of what we do on the podcast “An Arm and a Leg.” This week’s episode features like-minded storytellers — from the musical troupe Heck No Techo — who have turned their frustrations into art and laughter.
Open enrollment for the Affordable Care Act’s marketplace plans is halfway over and, so far, the number of people signing up is down, but not dramatically. Meanwhile, Congress and President Donald Trump can’t seem to agree on what to do about teen vaping, drug prices or “surprise” medical bills. And Democrats lurch to the left on abortion. Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post, Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss this and more health news.
The term “vast” sets a high bar.
A 3-year-old girl put matching doll shoes up her nose. One came out easily. The second required an emergency department visit ― and generated a bill that is not child’s play.
Texas passed a bipartisan law against surprise medical billing, but advocates warn that a proposed rule could severely weaken it, continuing to allow surprise bills outside of emergencies.
Kaiser Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health care policy stories each week, so you don't have to.
Despite repeated repeal efforts, the ACA is still intact — and with this year’s open enrollment, consumers can get some meaningful savings on coverage.
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