Latest KFF Health News Stories
Calif. ‘Report Cards’ Are Out In Time For Open Enrollment
The state timed the release of this year’s report cards to coincide with the second round of open enrollment in Covered California, the state’s online health exchange, which kicks off Nov. 15. Several plans included in the report cards are offered on the exchange.
Ohio Medicaid Expansion Faces 2015 Political Hurdle
Gov. Kasich’s workaround means more than 350,000 gained Medicaid coverage in the Buckeye State in 2014. But the legislature needs to approve the program next year for it to continue, hospital chief warns.
Got Insurance? You Still May Pay A Steep Price For Prescriptions
These high-priced medications are often shifted to the top tiers of drug plans, so consumers dealing with cancer, multiple sclerosis, HIV and other complicated diseases can end up paying thousands of dollars for their prescriptions.
Price Tags On Health Care? Only In Massachusetts
Under a new state law, Massachusetts insurers have to post how much tests and procedures cost at different providers in a consumer-friendly way.
How Will Taxes Be Reconciled With Premium Subsidies?
KHN consumer columnist Michelle Andrews examines how subsidies for health insurance can be divvied up among family members choosing separate plans and how a miscalculation of the premium will be handled on your taxes.
Obamacare Enrollment: Second Year An Even Tougher Challenge
States and the federal government aim to renew coverage for 15.3 million already signed up on exchanges and Medicaid — and enroll about 10 million more who are currently uninsured.
Medicare Fines 2,610 Hospitals In Third Round Of Readmission Penalties
Although fewer patients are now returning to the hospital within a month, the fines reached a record level this year.
Readmissions Penalties By State: Year 3
Medicare evaluated the readmission rates of the nation’s hospitals in determining the third year of penalties in the Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program. This table lists the average impact on hospitals in each state.
Canceled Health Plans: Round Two
Those who held onto plans that didn’t comply with the health law may have to choose new ones for 2015, and they could cost more.
Many Rural Hospitals Are Excluded From Government’s Push For Better Quality
A quarter of the nation’s hospitals are exempt from penalties, quality bonuses and other payment reforms.
New Insurance Coverage Gives Tech Entrepreneur A New Flexibility
Once deemed ‘uninsurable,’ a businesswoman suffering from a chronic condition now has coverage — and it’s not tied to a job or a boyfriend.
Debate Grows Over Employer Plans With No Hospital Benefits
Some insurance pros say the administration intended such coverage to meet Obamacare’s “minimum value” standard. Others disagree, and the government stays silent.
Personal Attention Seen As Antidote To Rising Health Costs
Some of a hospital’s income now depends on keeping patients healthy. Kevin Wiehrs seeks to save hospitals money by keeping former patients out of the hospital.
Administration Says Hospitals Will Save $5.7B From Unpaid Bills Due To Health Law
About three-quarters of the savings will go to hospitals in states that expanded Medicaid.
Insurance Brokers Key To Kentucky’s Obamacare Success
More than 40 percent of the people who signed up for insurance on Kynect, Kentucky’s exchange, used an insurance broker.
Number Of Marketplace Insurers To Rise 25 Percent, HHS Says
More companies will likely mean more competition and lower prices for consumers, HHS Secretary Sylvia Burwell said Tuesday.
Caring for His Elderly Dad With No Insurance Of His Own
In the remote reaches of California, a doctor’s son says coverage has nearly always eluded him, and his initial efforts to enroll in the state’s new insurance exchange were unsuccessful.
A Single Insurer Holds Obamacare Fate In Two States
Where did the insurance marketplaces created by the Affordable Care Act struggle the most? The answer lies in commerce, not politics.
Rise Of Catholic Insurance Plans Raises Questions About Contraceptive Coverage
Insurers try to avoid conflict with church positions on contraception by using third parties to provide coverage.
In Onscreen Dramas, Health Experts Inject A Dose Of Reality
Hollywood center taps medical authorities to answer producers’ questions on everything from autism to tuberculosis.
