Latest KFF Health News Stories
The Decline Of Employer-Sponsored Coverage Under Health Reform: Good, Bad Or Ugly?
The new health overhaul law will encourage employers to stop offering health insurance. We should welcome this, provided the decline in employer coverage is gradual and good alternatives exist. The upside is that it will make more visible the biggest looming health care problem: costs.
$5 Billion In Federal Funding For High-Risk Pools May Not Be Enough
A new report says federal funding will not cover the insurance needs of all the people who now have trouble getting coverage because of preexisting conditions. But HHS officials disagree with the findings.
Health On The Hill: May 25, 2010
The House of Representatives may vote on legislation this week that would stop a scheduled June 1 payment cut for doctors who accept Medicare physicians.
College Student Health Plans Often Get Low Marks
College health plans – used by students who aren’t covered by family insurance plans or whose parents are uninsured – can offer only limited protection. The new health law may help.
Many Young Adults Will Wait For Health Coverage After All
Some parents, hoping that their young adult children could get insurance soon, are finding that many large employers aren’t planning to offer the new benefit early.
New Health Law Throws Lifeline to ‘Uninsurables’
In a new KHN feature, Michelle Andrews writes about the coming changes to health care. The new law offers relief for people who can’t get insurance because they are sick or have been sick. States can set up their own pools, or let the federal government do it.
Health On The Hill: Upcoming Primaries
After a lengthy and fierce debate in Washington about health care reform, voters in several states have an opportunity to weigh in this week on what they think of the historic measure in numerous primary contests.
Health On The Hill – May 17, 2010
Health care is a key issue in many Senate and House races around the country, with some Democrats who voted for the health care law having to defend their support for the measure. Republicans are confident that voters will reject Democrats who voted for the new law. Jackie Judd talks with KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey and CQ-Roll Call Senior Elections Analyst Bob Benenson.
Insurance Regulators Wrestle With Definition Of ‘Unreasonable’ Rate Increases
State and federal officials are wrestling with how to define “unreasonable” premium increases, a thorny issue Congress has handed regulators.
Week In Review: Politics Of Health Reform Implementation, Insurance Mandate, More CBO Estimates
This week featured more legal and political challenges to the new health law as the Obama adminstration issued rules to extend insurance coverage to young adults on their parents’ plans.
Washington Post Event: Health Reform And Its Implications
This video features Washington Post staff writers discussing the new health care law and its implications.
Lobbyists Have Long Wish List For New Health Rules
Now that the health care bill is law, an array of groups — representing doctors, insurers, small businesses and others — have switched to their post-passage game plans. Among their top goals: Helping shape the all-important regulations being written by the Obama administration.
Sebelius, Holder: New Health Reform Law Will Help Prevent Medical Fraud
Obama administration officials, touting $2.5 billion recovered from Medicare overpayments and fraud, immediately turned to talk of how health reform could ensure bigger successes in the future.
Health Law Guarantees Protections For Emergency Room Visits
The new health law mandates that insurers cannot pay less for emergency care in “out-of-network” hospitals and eases consumer worries about having to pre-authorize an emergency room visit.
Swamped Insurance Departments Hope Website Will Answer Overhaul Questions
Want to understand how the new health law might affect you? Be prepared to spend some time online.
Health On The Hill: Insurance Coverage For Young Adults Moves Forward
Today the Obama administration issued proposed regulations to implement a provision in the health care law that would allow adult children to stay on their parents’ health insurance policy until age 26.
Book Excerpt: Why A Mandate Matters
The thinking behind the individual mandate is that, in the absence of a government-run “single payer” insurance program like Canada’s, the only way to achieve universal health insurance is to require people to obtain coverage on their own, with government assistance for those who can’t afford it. An excerpt from a new book, Landmark: The Inside Story of America’s New Health Care Law and What It Means for Us All, by The Washington Post.
Book Excerpt: How The Individual Health Insurance Mandate Will Work
A simple rule lies at the heart of the new health law: Starting in 2014, almost every American will need to carry health insurance or pay a fine. An excerpt from a new book, Landmark: The Inside Story of America’s New Health Care Law and What It Means for Us All, by The Washington Post.
Health Law’s “Grandfather” Clause Could Deprive Consumers Of Key Benefits
Business and consumer groups are sparring over rules that might allow existing health plans to sidestep some patient protections in new health care law.
Companies Get Help To Insure Early Retirees
Companies that provide health insurance to retirees who are too young for Medicare may get some financial relief due to a new $5 billion federal program.
