Medicare Archives - Page 2 of 80

A Headless CDC

Episode 439

March 26, 2026

The Trump administration faces the challenge of naming a new director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention who can both satisfy the Make America Healthy Again movement and get confirmed by the Senate. Meanwhile, a new Senate bill to rescind the approval of the abortion pill mifepristone is again elevating the abortion debate, which some Republicans would prefer to stay on the back burner until after the midterms. Shefali Luthra of The 19th, Lizzy Lawrence of Stat, and Rachel Cohrs Zhang of Bloomberg News join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss the news. Also this week, Rovner interviews Georgetown University Law Center’s Katie Keith about the state of the Affordable Care Act on its 16th anniversary.

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A man at a doctor's office hands over a credit card to a receptionist at the front desk.

Priced Out

Rising Health Costs Push Some Middle-Aged Adults To Skip the Doc Until Medicare

Adults ages 50 through 64 faced some of the steepest increases in out-of-pocket costs for Obamacare plans after a set of federal subsidies expired at the end of December. Some say they are putting off care or considering dropping health insurance coverage until Medicare picks up the bill.

By Sam Whitehead

March 23, 2026

How Would You Fix It?

Watch: Affordability Plagues Health Care in Its Shift From Nonprofit to Profit Machine

On “What the Health? From KFF Health News,” distributed by WAMU, chief Washington correspondent and host Julie Rovner sat down with Drew Altman, president and CEO of KFF, to talk about the likelihood of a national health care debate.

By Julie Rovner

March 19, 2026

A photo of Mehmet Oz speaking at a podium at the White House. American flags are seen behind him.

Oz Says California’s Not Fighting Health Care Fraud, but Data Shows It’s Part of a Larger Battle

Trump administration officials say the state allows rampant fraud and have promised to investigate, blaming the “Russian, Armenian mafia” in the hospice and home health care industry. But data shows hotbeds of health care fraud throughout the country, with California outperforming most other states in recovering fraud dollars.

By Don Thompson

March 19, 2026

A man holds a copy of his Medicare card. Orange pill bottles and medical forms are seen behind it.

In Switching to Original Medicare, Beware of Medigap Plan Refusals

Open enrollment season lasts until March 31 for people enrolled in Medicare Advantage who want to switch to original Medicare, but there’s a potential hitch.

By Michelle Andrews

March 16, 2026

The Week in Brief

‘Dark Money’ Group Angles for Higher Medicare Advantage Payments

Get our weekly newsletter, The Week in Brief, featuring a roundup of our original coverage, Fridays at 2 p.m. ET.

By Fred Schulte, Maia Rosenfeld, and David Hilzenrath

March 13, 2026

A photo of a laptop screen with Facebook Ad Library open. It shows three ads by Medicare Advantage Majority.

Medicare Advantage ‘Dark Money’ Group Attempts To Win Higher Payments for Insurance Companies

Medicare Advantage insurers say a proposal by the Trump administration to keep their payments nearly flat next year may lead to service cuts that harm seniors struggling to afford health care. A decision is due by early next month.

By Fred Schulte, Maia Rosenfeld, and David Hilzenrath

March 13, 2026

What the Health? From KFF Health News

RFK Jr.’s Very Bad Week

Episode 437

March 12, 2026

HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had another tough week. In addition to Kennedy having rotator cuff surgery, the nomination of his ally to become surgeon general is teetering, the controversial head of the FDA's vaccine center is resigning next month, and a new survey shows Americans trust government health officials less than they do former Biden official Anthony Fauci. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine, and Shefali Luthra of The 19th join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

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What the Health? From KFF Health News

40 Years of Health Policy

Episode 436

March 5, 2026

This month is 40 years since host Julie Rovner, chief Washington correspondent for KFF Health News, began reporting on health policy in Washington. To mark the anniversary, Rovner is joined by two longtime sources to discuss what has — and has not — changed since 1986.

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A man and woman seated at a table with papers, bills, receipts, and a calculator in front of them

Bill of the Month

Even Patients Are Shocked by the Prices Their Insurers Will Pay — And It Costs All of Us

Health care prices are on the rise, and patients are flummoxed that even insurance companies aren’t doing more to control costs.

By Elisabeth Rosenthal

March 3, 2026

A husband sits in a chair conversing with his wife, who is in a wheelchair.

Priced Out

‘Kind of Morbid’: Health Premiums Threaten Their Nest Egg. A Terminal Diagnosis May Spare It.

Chaz and Jean Franklin were facing a sevenfold increase in their health premium payments with the expiration of enhanced federal subsidies for Affordable Care Act plans at the end of 2025. Then Jean received a crushing diagnosis that will claim her life but save the couple money.

By Christine Mai-Duc

Feb. 26, 2026

Photo of the exterior of a stone building with a sign that says "Internal Revenue Service" along with a traffic light next to it

Priced Out

When It Comes to Health Insurance, Federal Dollars Support More Than ACA Plans

Questions of fairness came up in last year’s congressional debate about extending Obamacare’s enhanced subsidies. Critics wondered why the federal government should underwrite coverage costs for people with ACA coverage. In truth, though, almost all health insurance in the U.S. comes with some federal help.

By Julie Appleby

Feb. 20, 2026

A vector illustration of a "$" symbol between two hands.

Trump Required Hospitals To Post Their Prices for Patients. Mostly It’s the Industry Using the Data.

Politicians have pushed for price transparency in health care. But instead of patients shopping for services, it’s mostly health systems and insurers that are using the information, as fodder for negotiations over pay.

By Darius Tahir

Feb. 17, 2026

New Medicaid Work Rules Likely To Hit Middle-Aged Adults Hard

Republicans have said new rules requiring many Medicaid participants to work 80 hours a month will pinpoint unemployed young people who should have jobs. Policy researchers say the rules are more likely to disrupt coverage for middle-aged adults, harming their physical and financial health.

By Samantha Liss and Sam Whitehead

Feb. 11, 2026

An older woman wearing glasses stands in her kitchen.

Bill of the Month

Blurry Line Between Medical and Vision Insurance Leaves Patient With Unexpected Bill

A Wisconsin retiree with glaucoma needed her eyes examined. Her Medicare Advantage plan from UnitedHealthcare listed her optometrist’s clinic as in-network, but she learned the hard way that a clinic can be in-network and out-of-network at the same time.

By Tony Leys

Jan. 30, 2026

What the Health? From KFF Health News

The Hazards of ICE for Public Health

Episode 431

Jan. 29, 2026

The Trump administration’s immigration crackdown is not just roiling politics but also directly affecting the provision of health care, medical groups say. Meanwhile, in Washington, federal spending bills have been stalled by the fight over immigration enforcement funding after the shooting death of a second person in Minneapolis this month. Maya Goldman of Axios, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss those stories and more.

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The emblem of the Department of Health & Human Services is shown on the side of a building

Medicare Advantage Insurers Face New Curbs on Overcharges in Trump Plan That Reins in Payments

Proposed Trump administration changes to federal Medicare Advantage payments would stop health insurers from mining patient data for extra medical diagnoses that generate more bills to taxpayers even without treatment.

By Fred Schulte

Jan. 29, 2026

A green clipboard with a Medicare Part C form. A pen rests on top of the form.

Sick of Fighting Insurers, Hospitals Offer Their Own Medicare Advantage Plans

Breakups between insurers and health systems, on top of plan cuts, left more than 3.7 million Medicare Advantage enrollees facing a tough choice last year: find new insurance or new doctors. But hospital systems say their Advantage plans can avert such upheaval, giving patients peace of mind.

By Susan Jaffe

Jan. 26, 2026

A senior man stands in a hallway with a walker. His reflection is visible, slightly blurred, in a mirror across from him.

THE NEW OLD AGE

These 3 Policy Moves Are Likely To Change Health Care for Older People

Two Trump administration regulatory rollbacks affect nursing home staffing and home care workers, and a new AI experiment in Medicare has alarmed eldercare advocates and congressional Democrats.

By Paula Span

Jan. 23, 2026