Journalists Discuss Medicaid Unwinding and Clawbacks
KHN and California Healthline staff made the rounds on national and local media this week to discuss their stories. Here鈥檚 a collection of their appearances.
Healthcare Costs
801 - 820 of 1,900 Results
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Temp Nurses Cost Hospitals Big During Pandemic. Lawmakers Are Now Mulling Limits.
Missouri is considering making it a felony to jack up temporary health care staffing prices during a statewide or national emergency. It鈥檚 one of at least 14 states looking to reel in travel nurse costs, after many hospitals struggled to pay for needed staffers earlier in the covid pandemic.
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Listen to 鈥楾radeoffs鈥: Medical Debt Delivers ‘A Shocking Amount of Misery’
Medical debt in America pushes families to the edge. Ariane Buck and his wife, Samantha, were denied care at their doctor's office because of an unpaid bill of less than $100. A trip to the emergency room added thousands of dollars to their health care debt, which topped $50,000 by the time they filed for bankruptcy.
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Two Counties Square Off With California Over Mental Health Duties
The state wants to stop paying Kaiser Permanente for treating severely mentally ill Medi-Cal patients in Sacramento and Solano counties and force the counties to take on the task. The counties鈥 leaders say they can鈥檛 afford it.
By Angela Hart Wrestling With a Giant: How to Dispute a Hospital Bill
Season 9, Episode 3One listener tried to dispute a $1,300 鈥渇acility fee鈥 with the treating hospital, his insurer, a bill-mediation service provided by his employer, and finally a debt collector. He didn鈥檛 win, but he learned valuable lessons about advocating for hospital discounts.
Biden Budget Touches All the Bases
Episode 288Very little in the proposed budget released by the Biden administration is likely to become law, particularly with Republicans in charge of the U.S. House. Still, the document is an important statement of the president鈥檚 policy priorities, and it鈥檚 clear health programs are among those he feels are important. Meanwhile, five women who were denied abortions when their pregnancies threatened their lives are suing Texas. Shefali Luthra of The 19th, Victoria Knight of Axios, and Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Harris Meyer, who reported and wrote the two latest KHN-NPR 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 features. Both were about families facing unexpected bills following childbirth.
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Medicaid Health Plans Try to Protect Members 鈥 And Profits 鈥 During Unwinding
States are turning to the big health insurance companies to keep Medicaid enrollees insured once pandemic protections end in April. The insurers鈥 motive: profits.
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Why Does Insulin Cost So Much? Big Pharma Isn鈥檛 the Only Player Driving Prices
Big Pharma may be moving on from squeezing diabetes patients on insulin prices, but it鈥檚 the arbitrators that jack up prices for those who can least afford them.
By Arthur Allen -
Watch: Emergency Room Turns Simple Injury Into a Big Bill
This installment of InvestigateTV and KHN鈥檚 鈥淐ostly Care鈥 series looks at the case of a New Orleans woman whose thumb injury saddled her with a big ER bill for a tetanus shot and some minor care.
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For Young People on Medicare, a Hysterectomy Sometimes Is More Affordable Than Birth Control
While Medicare was designed as health insurance for those 65 and older, it also covers people with disabilities who are young enough to still get pregnant. Yet they often struggle to get their birth control covered and end up with large medical bills 鈥 or instead opt for hysterectomies or tubal ligations, which Medicare sometimes will cover.
By Gina Jim茅nez -
Biden Administration Urged to Take More Aggressive Steps to Relieve Medical Debt
Consumer and patient advocates push for new federal rules to protect Americans from debt collectors and force hospitals to make financial assistance more accessible.
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Journalists Discuss Insulin Prices, Gun Violence, Distracted Driving, and More
KHN and California Healthline staff made the rounds on national and local media this week to discuss their stories. Here鈥檚 a collection of their appearances.
March Medicaid Madness
Episode 287President Joe Biden and Republicans in Congress spent last month sparring over whether to shield Medicare and Social Security from budget cuts 鈥 leading some to wonder if Medicaid was on the table instead. Biden and Democrats say no, but some Republicans seem eager to trim federal spending on the health program for Americans with low incomes. And ready or not, artificial intelligence is coming to medical care. Benefits, as well as unintended consequences, are likely. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Rachel Cohrs of STAT News, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post join KHN鈥檚 chief Washington correspondent, Julie Rovner, to discuss these issues and more.
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Eli Lilly Slashed Insulin Prices. This Starts a Race to the Bottom.
Eli Lilly's news that it plans to cut insulin costs for patients will help, not hinder, the recent efforts in California and by entrepreneurs such as Mark Cuban to offer lower-cost alternatives, drug pricing experts said.
By Bram Sable-Smith and Samantha Young -
KHN-CBS NEWS INVESTIGATION
Watch: Dental Device at Center of Lawsuits Was Used on Patients Without FDA Review
More than 10,000 dental patients have been fitted with an Anterior Growth Guidance Appliance, or AGGA, according to court records.聽But the unproven and unregulated device has not been evaluated by the FDA, according to聽a months-long joint investigation by KHN and CBS News.
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After People on Medicaid Die, Some States Aggressively Seek Repayment From Their Estates
States take drastically different approaches to recovering Medicaid money from deceased participants鈥 estates. Demands for repayment of Medicaid spending can drain the assets a person leaves behind, depending on where they lived.
By Tony Leys -
California鈥檚 Massive Medicaid Program Works for Some, but Fails Many Others
Medi-Cal serves more than one-third of the state鈥檚 population 鈥 offering a dizzying range of care to a diverse population. In the new 鈥淔aces of Medi-Cal鈥 series, California Healthline will assess the program鈥檚 strengths and weaknesses through the lives and experiences of its enrollees.
By Angela Hart and Bernard J. Wolfson -
This Dental Device Was Sold to Fix Patients鈥 Jaws. Lawsuits Claim It Wrecked Their Teeth.
A dental device called AGGA has been used on about 10,000 patients without FDA approval or proof that it works. In lawsuits, patients report irreparable harm. The AGGA鈥檚 inventor and manufacturer have denied all liability in court.
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Biden Promises to Fight GOP on 鈥楪utting鈥 Medicaid. Budget Talks Seem Like Another Story.
As many lower-income Americans prepare to lose pandemic-era access to Medicaid, President Joe Biden vowed to stop Republicans from making deeper cuts to lower the national debt. Other changes may still be up for discussion.
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Surprise-Billing Law Loophole: When 鈥極ut of Network鈥 Doesn鈥檛 Quite Mean Out of Network
Billing experts and lawmakers are playing catch-up as providers find ways to get around new surprise-billing laws, leaving patients like Danielle Laskey of Washington state with big bills for emergency care.
By Harris Meyer