Latest KFF Health News Stories
How Much Is That X-Ray? Still Hard To Say, Even In Massachusetts
A new state law requires price transparency, but it is still a days-long quest for one reporter to find out how much a simple back X-ray costs.
A Reader Asks: Can Adult Children With An Offer Of Family Coverage Instead Get Subsidies?
The answer: Yes, if their parents have not claimed them as tax dependents.
Enrolling In Obamacare In Alaska Is Possible
Lara Imler finally got through on healthcare.gov, but it took both motivation and expertise. She has a chronic condition and a programming degree.
Democrats’ Frustrations With Health Law Grow Amid Website Problems
HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said at a Senate hearing Wednesday that officials were advised to keep healthcare.gov open while fixing problems and also fielded criticism of President Obama’s promise that if Americans like their old health plans they can keep it. KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey and CQ HealthBeat’s Rebecca Adams discuss.
Labor Unions May Get Health Law Tax Relief
Unions want their plans exempted from the reinsurance tax, but the Obama administration may not do so until 2015.
Blue Shield of California Delays Cancellations for Some Individual Policyholders
Threatened with a legal action from the state, company says 80,000 customers can keep their plans through March 31.
Call Centers Got Big Contracts From Health Law, But How Big Is Unclear
The contractor running Connecticut’s call center for its health insurance marketplace doesn’t have to reveal how its pricing works.
Oregon’s State Exchange May Be Worse Than Healthcare.gov
Not a single person is enrolled yet in Oregon, where 7,300 applications have been filed, all on paper.
For Many Workers, It’s Time To Consider Insurance Options
Fall is generally the time when many people who get insurance through their job re-enroll. Higher deductibles and dependent care costs, and financial incentives for wellness activities, lead trends.
So You Found An Exchange Plan. But Can You Find A Provider?
Many health plans being offered on the New York State insurance marketplace do not include some of New York City’s biggest hospitals in their networks. And across the state, many doctors say they are not yet participating in exchange plans at all.
Doctors Treat New Condition: Questions About Health Law
Health officials are counting on physicians to help educate patients about new insurance options under the health law. But like everyone else, doctors have differing opinions about Obamacare.
In Alabama, Lack Of Competition May Be Behind Insurance Premium Costs
The health law is being blamed for policy cancellations and replacement rate shock. But in Alabama, some say a lack of competition among insurance companies is a big part of the problem.
Adding To Health Insurance Confusion, Other Groups Try To Cash In
With the federal exchanges still not working well, some uninsured people are turning to local groups to figure what to do. In Florida, a lack of coordination among different agencies is leaving room for dubious outfits to enter the scene.
IHS services don’t meet the requirements of the law, but many Native Americans and Alaska natives are exempted from the individual mandate.
Why State Exchange Sites Worked While The Federal Site Faltered
What accounts for the different experiences of the state and federally managed exchanges? Why are the exchanges that the federal government runs so bug-ridden, subjecting users to long delays and possibly even more serious problems?
Florida Insurer Says It Didn’t Drop Customers, Just Insurance Plans
After 300,000 Floridians receive notices that their plans will expire, Florida Blue, the state’s largest insurance company, assures customers they will be eligible for new, ACA compliant plans.
Sebelius Says Healthcare.gov Problems Are Her Responsibility
The Health and Human Services secretary also said she couldn’t give firm numbers on how many people have enrolled for health insurance using the website because the data are not yet trustworthy. KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey and CQ Roll Call’s Emily Ethridge discuss.
Why Insurers Cancel Policies, And What You Can Do When It Happens
Many people are receiving cancellation notices as the health law transforms the individual insurance market.
Letters To The Editor: Nurse Practitioners In Primary Care; The Future Of Bare-Bones Health Plans
Letters to the Editor is a periodic KHN feature in which readers can comment on our recent stories.
Medicare Head Tavenner Apologizes For Healthcare.gov Problems
But while Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Administrator Marilyn Tavenner said in her Capitol Hill testimony Tuesday that some website subcontractors hadn’t met expectations, she offered few other details on the problems. KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey and Politico Pro’s Jennifer Haberkorn discuss.
