Latest KFF Health News Stories
Excerpts: President Obama On The Deficit And Health Care Spending
President Obama on Wednesday spoke about reining in health care spending in Medicare and Medicaid as part of his proposal to reduce the federal deficit. Here are excerpts:
Document: Obama’s Proposal On Deficit Reduction – Health Care Section
Obama proposes holding Medicare cost growth down by strengthening the Independent Payment Advisory Board and making Medicaid more flexible without using block grants.
Federal Medicaid Teams Deployed To Help States Cut Costs Get Mixed Reviews
Nearly half of the states have received some type of help, including 11 states with Republican governors.
Letter To The Editor: Setting The Record Straight On RAND’s Findings
RAND Health Vice President and Director Arthur Kellermann, M.D., disputes the way his organization’s research was depicted in a recent column by John Goodman about Medicaid. Kellerman notes the study in question was designed to examine health care quality, not to determine the value of different types of insurance.
Medicaid To Offer Rewards For Healthy Behavior
The $100 million program, part of the federal health overhaul, seeks to help Medicaid enrollees quit smoking or keep weight, blood pressure and cholesterol levels in check. But there is limited evidence that these reward programs work.
CBO Outlines ‘Key Features’ Of Ryan Budget Proposal: ‘Substantial’ Changes To Medicare, Medicaid
The Congressional Budget Office analyzed Rep. Paul Ryan’s 2012 budget proposal and revealed some additional details not in the Republicans’ news conference Tuesday.
Analysis: Medicare And Medicaid Get Squeezed In Ryan Plan
The House Budget Committee chairman’s alternative budget would provide Medicare beneficiaries with “premium support” and turn Medicaid into a capped block grant.
Ryan Budget: A Huge Opportunity To Improve Health Care
This week, House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., will release a budget blueprint that tackles the three big health care challenges facing the budget
GOP Proposals On Medicare Could Shift Costs To Beneficiaries
Despite the political risks of changing the popular program, Republicans – including Budget Comm. Chairman Paul Ryan – will offer overhaul plans soon.
As Medicaid Budgets Squeezed, States Consider Eccentric Ideas On Cutting Costs
Interest groups, businesses and other policy proponents are pushing to capitalize on states’ dire Medicaid shortfalls.
As governors across the land pepper the federal government with requests to scale back Medicaid
Doctor Shortages Under Health Law May Depend On Geography
Study suggests that areas with low rates of primary care physicians, such as the South and Mountain West, could struggle as they see a surge in Medicaid enrollments and federal incentives for doctors may not be much help.
Healthy Indiana: Conservatives’ Reform Poster Child Or Another Costly Program?
The Healthy Indiana Plan is the Hoosier state’s alternative to traditional Medicaid. It’s boosters also consider it a viable alternative to the dreaded Affordable Care Act. But do they really have a case?
Haley Barbour Draws Fire For Medicaid Changes In Mississippi
Mississippi Gov. Barbour’s ways to control the rising costs of Medicaid are sometimes controversial, but he maintains that states need more freedom to run the program.
A Guide To GOP Proposals On Family Planning Funds
House Republicans cut federal funding for Planned Parenthood and other Title X programs, and Senate Democrats tried to restore it. But the Senate Wednesday failed to pass either bill and so the programs, which once had strong bipartisan support, remain a point of contention.
To Cap Medicaid, Florida Looks To Managed Care
Florida’s annual Medicaid bill runs in the billions – it’s nearly one-third of the state’s budget. As Florida struggles to close a budget shortfall of $4.5 billion, Medicaid is a target for cuts. Often, that means moving Medicaid recipients into managed care.
Ariz. Medicaid Cuts Spur Debate Over Impact On Providers
Doctors and hospitals raise concerns that reducing eligibility may spur ER crowding and premium increases, but experience in Missouri shows less dire consequences.
A Message To Health Law Critics: It’s Not About A Lack Of Flexibility
What truly undermines the arguments offered by conservative critics is their lack of workable alternative ideas that would achieve the health insurance coverage expansion goals set by the health law.
Miss. Gov. Barbour: ‘We Shouldn’t Have To Kowtow’ To Feds On Medicaid Rules
Gov. Haley Barbour, R-Miss., renewed GOP calls for block grants to states to pay for Medicaid costs.
Obama Rejects Governors’ Plan to Overhaul Medicaid
The recession-fueled state budget crisis has turned Medicaid into the next battleground in the ongoing war over President Obama’s signature health care reform law.
