Latest Morning Briefing Stories

KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: We Answer Your Questions

KFF Health News Original

You asked about drug prices, the “Cadillac tax” on generous insurance plans and why Americans don’t know that most other countries also have combination public-private insurance systems. This week, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico and Caitlin Owens of Axios join KHN’s Julie Rovner to answer those questions.

The Differences Between ‘Medicare For All’ And A Public Option

KFF Health News Original

KHN’s Julie Rovner appears on CSPAN’s Washington Journal Tuesday and compares two key health programs being touted by Democratic presidential candidates: “Medicare for All” and an optional government health plan, often called a public option.

KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: Deciphering The Democrats’ Health Debate

KFF Health News Original

Health care was a major topic at the Democratic presidential candidate debates in Detroit on Tuesday and Wednesday, but the focus on plan minutiae may have left viewers more confused than edified. Alice Ollstein of Politico, Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner and Caitlin Owens of Axios join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss the points made by the candidates plus a series of Trump administration health initiatives on drug prices and hospital shopping.

‘If You Like Your Plan, You Can Keep It.’ Biden’s Invokes Obama’s Troubled Claim.

KFF Health News Original

The health policy landscape is very different than it was when Barack Obama made this pledge as part of his pitch for the Affordable Care Act. But the words still might be risky for Democratic presidential primary hopeful Joe Biden.

Democrats Favor Building On ACA Over ‘Medicare For All’

KFF Health News Original

Asked to choose between building on the Affordable Care Act and replacing it with a national Medicare for All plan, 55% of Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents said they would expand the existing law, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation poll released Tuesday.

KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: Cue The Drug Price Debate

KFF Health News Original

Democrats and Republicans on the Senate Finance Committee unveiled their long-awaited proposal to try to rein in prescription drug costs, even as bipartisan leaders of the other Senate committee that oversees health announced it would not bring its drug price bill to the Senate floor until fall. Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post, Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss this, plus court actions on health issues.

KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: Biden Doubles Down On Obamacare

KFF Health News Original

Presidential candidate Joe Biden unveiled a health plan intended to provide a more moderate alternative to his competitors’ “Medicare for All” plans. It would build on the Affordable Care Act but would go much further. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Joanne Kenen of Politico and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss this, plus Planned Parenthood’s very bad week, the U.S. House vote to repeal the health law’s “Cadillac tax” on generous health plans, and the reduction in deaths from opioids.

Did Your Health Plan Deny You Care? Fight Back.

KFF Health News Original

Most patients don’t argue when their health insurance won’t cover treatment or medication, but they should: Consumers win about half of their appeals. The process can sometimes be overwhelming, but there are ways to prepare and get help.

Víctimas de violación reciben cuentas por examen forense, aunque una ley lo prohíbe

KFF Health News Original

Durante 25 años, el Acta de Violencia contra la Mujer ha requerido que el estado que quiera ser elegible para ciertos subsidios federales cubra el costo de exámenes médicos para víctimas de agresión sexual. 

Despite Federal Protections, Rape Victims Still Get Billed For Forensic Exams

KFF Health News Original

Under federal law, people who have been raped don’t have to pay for medical forensic exams, yet many get billed and have trouble getting the hospitals or collection agencies to stop dunning them for payment.

DOJ Lawyers Try New Tricks To Undo Obamacare. Will It Work?

KFF Health News Original

KHN consulted legal experts about some of the arguments advanced by Trump administration lawyers during the most recent round of oral arguments in the legal challenge brought by 18 “red” states to overturn the Affordable Care Act.