Latest KFF Health News Stories
Stalking the ‘Unknown Enemy’: Doctors Turn Scope On Rare Diseases
An NIH-funded network of hospitals uses advanced genetic science and nationwide collaboration to diagnose rare and sometimes undiscovered diseases.
California Hospitals Lose Ground In Quality Of Care, Report Card Shows
The nonprofit Leapfrog Group shows nearly half of California hospitals got a grade of C, D or F in patient safety measures — an increase from two years ago.
Nonprofit Linked To PhRMA Rolls Out Campaign To Block Drug Imports
The advocacy group behind an expensive media blitz opposing Canadian drug imports has deep ties to the drug industry’s largest trade group.
As California Weighs Soda Warning Labels, Tax In Berkeley Shown To Dilute Sales
Sales of sugary drinks dropped in the city by nearly 10 percent a year after tax took effect in 2015, while bottled water sales rose, researchers report.
Sen. Grassley Demands Scrutiny Of Medicare Advantage Plans
The powerful chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee wants the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services to explain $125 million in overcharges by insurers.
Kids With Hepatitis C Get New Drugs And Coverage May Prove Easier Than For Adults
The drugs, approved by the FDA for children earlier this month, can run $100,000 for a course of treatment.
A New Worry For Smokers’ Families: ‘Thirdhand Smoke’
The chemical residue from cigarette smoke that can cling to walls, clothes and skin may present a danger to children.
Florida Congressman Draws Jeers At Home For Backing Failed GOP Health Care Plan
Rep. Brian Mast, a first-term Republican congressman, defends his party’s push to repeal Obamacare in a meeting with constituents but concedes its health care plan needs more work.
Tax Day Is Zero Hour For Health Insurance, Too
People who don’t have insurance coverage or get federal assistance to pay their insurance premiums need to take a little extra care when completing their tax forms.
Grasping For The Middle Ground On Obamacare
A University of Southern California professor says conservatives and liberals should split the difference: Scrap the exchanges and expand Medicaid.
Can We Tax Away The Opioid Crisis?
Lawmakers in California, like their counterparts in Congress, are considering a tax that would pay for addiction prevention and treatment efforts.
Repeal, Replace … Revise: Your Guide To How A Trump Proposal Might Change ACA Insurance
Even though the GOP health plan is stalled by intraparty negotiations, some big insurance changes are still in the works.
In Remote Idaho, A Tiny Facility Lights The Way For Stressed Rural Hospitals
In a region where bears outnumber people, a small medical facility sets a modern example for rural hospitals on life support.
As Some Holdout States Revisit Medicaid Expansion, New Data Show It Pays Off
Researchers concluded that because the federal government picked up so much of the tab of expanding eligibility for the low-income insurance program, expansion states didn’t have to skimp on other policy priorities to make ends meet.
California Presses Forward In Fight To Regulate Pharma
Such efforts have previously failed in the face of opposition from the drug industry, which questions their effectiveness and contends prices reflect research and development costs.
In ‘Stealth Move,’ Mich. Refines Vaccine Waivers, Improves Rate Among Kids
A whooping cough and measles outbreak prompted lawmakers to require parents to personally meet with health officials before a waiver can be granted.
Tracking Air Quality Block By Block
An environmental advocacy group plans to install 100 pollution sensors at homes, schools and businesses in the congested area near the Port of Oakland to capture variations in the level of diesel contaminants.
GOP Bills To Replace Obamacare Do Not Tinker With Lawmakers’ Coverage
Republicans are hoping to overhaul the federal health law. Among the law’s many provisions is a requirement that members of Congress and their staffs buy their health insurance on the law’s marketplaces.
Drugmakers Help Turn Patients With Rare Diseases Into D.C. Lobbyists
Amplifying the “patient voice,” those with the rarest afflictions are trained to become powerful advocates for new drugs and legislation that would help the industry.
Death By 1,000 Cuts: How Republicans Can Still Alter Your Coverage
There are many ways beyond legislative repeal for the Trump administration and congressional Republicans to unravel the Affordable Care Act.
