Latest KFF Health News Stories
Should Big Insurance Become Like Walmart To Lower Health Costs?
Evidence shows dominant insurers hold down hospital prices. Big insurers seeking to get bigger want to take that idea to the extreme.
Teaching In-Home Caregivers Seems To Pay Off
Intensive training for such aides helps reduce repeated ER visits and hospitalizations of elderly disabled people, a pilot project suggests.
Assisted Living Residents With Dementia Prone To Abusing Others, Study Finds
Residents with dementia need to be monitored and increased training is needed for staff who care for them, said researchers who examined reported instances of abuse in assisted living facilities.
Refugees’ Needs In U.S. Change As World’s Conflicts Shift
Syrian and Iraqi refugees arrive with decidedly different medical and mental health needs than other waves of refugees.
Big Companies Expect Moderate Increases In 2017 Employee Health Care Costs
Two surveys suggest these companies continue to try new ways to control the expense of employees’ coverage.
Elderly Hospital Patients Arrive Sick, Often Leave Disabled
Some hospitals try to avoid sharp declines in the health of elderly patients by treating them in special units geared to their specific needs. This story is the first in a KHN series on the challenges hospitals face with an aging population.
‘Lost In Translation:’ Hospitals’ Language Service Capacity Doesn’t Always Match Need
A study in Health Affairs finds that nationwide hospital-based language services are not available in a systematic way.
In Later Years, Disabilities End Blacks’ Active Lives Sooner Than Whites’
Elderly black women suffer most from shorter active life expectancy free of disabilities, showing no improvement since the early 1980s, Health Affairs study finds.
Syncing Up Drug Refills: A Way To Get Patients To Take Their Medicine
A study published in Health Affairs concludes that the idea of coordinating prescription refill timelines for people with multiple chronic conditions could improve their medication adherence and health outcomes.
California Doctors And Hospitals Tussle Over Role Of Nurse-Midwives
Legislation that would allow nurse-midwives to practice independently is mired in a dispute about whether hospitals should be allowed to hire them.
Doctors Need A New Skill Set For This Opioid Abuse Treatment
Practicing surgery on a piece of pork — that’s how some doctors are learning to implant a new drug that curbs opioid cravings. It’s not a skill set typically used in addiction medicine.
Depressed Teen’s Struggle To Find Mental Health Care In Rural California
After a teenager attempted suicide, her family searched in vain for therapists who would take their insurance and were accepting new patients. The family paid for therapy with credit cards instead.
Can I Afford To Keep My Doctor?
Covered California says most consumers can avoid double-digit premium hikes next year if they shop around. But will enrollees be willing to switch plans if it means having to change doctors?
Obamacare Expansion A Bumpy Ride For Rural Health Clinics
A Northern California clinic network is overwhelmed with Medi-Cal patients after the Affordable Care Act rollout.
Medicare’s Readmission Penalties Hit New High
Medicare will withhold an estimated $528 million in 2017 from more than 2,500 hospitals that have too many patients returning within 30 days.
Teaching Future Doctors About Addiction
Most medical schools offer very little education on treating opioid addiction. Stanford University’s medical school is trying to ramp it up.
Study Bodes Well For Biosimilars But Highlights Need For More Research
Some experts said the findings stemming from this systematic review of existing studies was reassuring, but not surprising.
Long-Term Care Is An Immediate Problem — For The Government
Medi-Cal has become the payer of first resort for many Californians unable to afford the long-term care they need.
University Of California OKs $8.5 Million Payout In Spine Surgery Cases
Two Los Angeles area patients alleged a prominent UCLA spine surgeon harmed them by using Medtronic devices in experimental ways without their consent and failing to disclose his financial ties to the company. Both UCLA and Medtronic deny wrongdoing.
Opioid Dependence Leads To ‘Tsunami’ Of Medical Services, Study Finds
Insurance claims for medical services related to opioid dependence diagnoses rose more than 3,000 percent between 2007 and 2014, an analysis finds.
