Latest KFF Health News Stories
Letters to the Editor is a periodic KHN feature. We welcome all comments and will publish a selection. We will edit for space, and we require full names.
San Diego Hospice Files For Bankruptcy
After a federal investigation and the prospect of having to return Medicare reimbursements, the hospice
Obama: ‘I’ve Offered Sensible Reforms To Medicare’
In a statement to the press Tuesday, the president emphasized the need to reduce the cost of health care in the U.S.
Research Finds Link Between Poor Health And Seniors Switching Out Of Private Medicare Plans
Some advocates are concerned that the Medicare Advantage plans have incentives to skim off the lowest-maintenance customers and leave the expensive patients to the traditional program.
Fed Economist Steps Into Dispute On Geographic Differences In Health Spending
A new analysis concludes that things like the prevalence of smoking, obesity and diabetes best explain why Medicare spending in some regions of the country is higher, instead of how medicine is practiced, as other researchers believe.
Long Waits For Consumers When Medicare Is ‘Secondary Payer’
A new law sets schedules for providing details about medical claims in cases where a beneficiary suffers a personal injury due to someone else’s negligence.
Retiring Medicare Actuary Reflects On The Politics Of Health Care Spending And Why He Almost Quit
Richard Foster talks about the travails of trying to provide objective information to Congress and the White House.
Obama: ‘Medicare and Medicaid … Strengthen Us’
Video: In his second inaugural speech Monday, President Barack Obama discussed the need to reduce health costs — but also defended the importance of Medicare and Medicaid.
Hospices, Wary Of Costs, May Be Discouraging Patients With High Expenses
A survey finds that more than three-quarters of hospices have restrictive enrollment policies designed to keep away patients with high-cost medical needs.
Slowly Dying Patients, An Audit And A Hospice’s Undoing
For one San Diego Hospice, the trouble began with a federal audit.
Obama: ‘Our Commitment To Medicare
At a White House news conference Monday, President Obama discusses how he sees Medicare, Medicaid and other health care spending factoring into the looming conflict over raising the federal debt ceiling.
Behind The Fiscal Cliff Deal, A Prolonged Hospital Finance Fight
Hospitals complain they are bearing the brunt of sustaining payment levels for doctors but the changes in Medicare were a long time coming.
Letters to the Editor is a periodic KHN feature. We welcome all comments and will publish a selection.
Medicare Discloses Hospitals’ Bonuses, Penalties Based On Quality
Under a program set up by the health law, payments to 1,557 hospitals will be increased, while 1,427 will drop.
Interactive Chart: Bonuses And Penalties For U.S. Hospitals
This chart shows the effect, by hospital, of Medicare bonuses and penalties based on how well they performed on quality measures.
By State: Hospital Quality Bonuses and Penalties
This chart shows the average effect by state of the value-based purchasing program on hospitals’ Medicare reimbursements per hospital stay for the federal spending year that runs from last October through September 2013.
‘If I’d Had To Wait Until 67 For Medicare, I’d Be Dead’
Those approaching retirement, employers pan proposals to raise the Medicare eligibility age.
A basic guide and resources if you want to get Medicare to reverse a coverage decision.
Seniors Need To Be Tenacious In Appeals To Medicare
Consumer advocates say that efforts to get Medicare to reverse a decision denying coverage of care are frequently rejected at first, but the chances of success are much better for beneficiaries who keep appealing until they reach the level handled by an administrative law judge.
Medicare Silver Bullets: What’s The Best Way To Control Costs?
KHN asked a range of health policy experts the following question: If you could make only one change to Medicare to control costs, what would it be and why?
