Latest KFF Health News Stories
Insured But Still In Debt: 5 Jobs Pulling In $100K A Year No Match For Medical Bills
An Arizona couple played by the rules and bought employer-provided health insurance. But after they had a baby this year, their out-of-pocket hospital costs and doctors’ bills climbed to more than $12,000 — and medical debt now threatens their new family.
Massachusetts Stroke Patient Receives ‘Outrageous’ $474,725 Medical Flight Bill
After a 34-year-old woman suffered a stroke in Kansas, doctors there arranged for her to be transferred to a Boston hospital, via an Angel MedFlight Learjet. The woman and her father believed the cost of the medical flight would be covered by her private insurance. Then they got the bill.
Refund On The Way To Latest ‘Bill Of The Month’ Patient
Ski buff Sarah Witter will get $6,358.26 back from her hospital and insurer after a careful review of her bill following the KHN-NPR story on her case.
Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes
Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health articles from the week so you don’t have to.
Short-Term Health Plans Hold Savings For Consumers, Profits For Brokers And Insurers
Trump administration efforts to undo Obama-era rules have helped create the buzz around this type of health coverage.
Year One Of KHN’s ‘Bill Of The Month’: A Kaleidoscope Of Financial Challenges
A crowdsourced investigation in which we dissect, investigate and explain medical bills you send us.
The fallout continues from that Texas court decision that ruled Congress’ 2017 elimination of the tax penalty for failing to have insurance rendered the entire Affordable Care Act unconstitutional. Meanwhile, enrollment for 2019 at healthcare.gov was down, but far less than many predicted. KHN’s Julie Rovner, along with panelists Joanne Kenen of Politico, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner, discuss this, plus the best, most overhyped and nerdiest stories of 2018. Also, Rovner interviews GOP strategist and pollster Frank Luntz.
5 formas en las que el sistema colapsaría si se eliminara la ley de salud
No solo las disposiciones más prominentes del Obamacare se verían afectadas si se considera a la ley inconstitucional.
Judge Who Invalidated Obamacare Has Been A ‘Go-To Judge’ For Republicans, Critics Say
Court watchers weren’t shocked when Reed O’Connor, a U.S. district judge in Texas, ruled the Affordable Care Act invalid. Critics say he usually sides with Republicans on ideological cases.
5 Ways Nixing The Affordable Care Act Could Upend The Entire Health System
There could be a long legal struggle ahead over the decision by a judge in Texas to invalidate the federal health law. But if his decision stands, it would have long-lasting effects on health care from insurance coverage to Medicare payments to privacy protections.
Taking Surprise Medical Bills To Court
Some legal experts say contract law could provide consumers another avenue to challenge unexpected hospital bills.
After Her Skiing Accident, An Uphill Battle Over Snowballing Bills
She took a bad fall on the slopes and her surgeon used a metal plate to put the splintered bones of her leg back together. When that device failed less than four months later, she and her insurer had to pay full price for the replacement plate.
A federal district judge in Texas ruled Friday that Congress’ 2017 elimination of the tax penalty for failing to have insurance rendered the entire Affordable Care Act unconstitutional. What happens now? KHN’s Julie Rovner, along with panelists Joanne Kenen of Politico, Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal and Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post, discuss the bombshell decision and its potential fallout.
Health Care Industry ‘Pays Tribute’ To California’s Influential Lawmakers
The leaders of California’s legislative health committees who wield power over state health policy have been showered with money from the health care sector, with drug companies, health plans, hospitals and doctors providing nearly 40 percent of their 2017-18 campaign funds.
Judge Strikes Down ACA Putting Law In Legal Peril — Again
The case is not expected to have an immediate effect on coverage for people who buy plans on the federal health law marketplaces because the case is likely to go to the Supreme Court — the third time that the justices will decide the fate of the landmark health law.
Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes
Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health articles from the week so you don’t have to.
Health Insurance Costs Crushing Many People Who Don’t Get Federal Subsidies
The rising costs of premiums, deductibles and copayments have driven millions who don’t get a subsidy to drop their coverage or turn to cheaper, less comprehensive — and sometimes inadequate — insurance.
Sign-ups for insurance under the Affordable Care Act are still well behind last year’s mark with just a week until the end of open enrollment in most states. The Supreme Court declines a case that could have allowed states to defund Planned Parenthood. And the Trump administration gets hundreds of thousands of comments about its proposed changes to immigration rules that could penalize people who use government-funded health care and other social service programs. Alice 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, for “extra credit,” provide their favorite health policy stories of the week.
For The Asking, A Check Is In The Mail To Help Pay For Costly Drugs
It’s a little-known secret that patients can get thousands of dollars directly from a drugmaker.
Blue Shield’s Trims To Out-Of-State Coverage Give Some Californians The Blues
To keep costs down, Blue Shield of California next year will scale back on a program allowing members to receive a wide range of care beyond the state’s borders. Customers with individual plans mostly won’t be able to get coverage out of state except for emergencies or other exceptional circumstances.
