The independent source for health policy research, polling, and news.
Health officials stress that the new coronavirus devastating mainland China continues to pose minimal risk in the United States. The exception involves people who have had 鈥渃lose contact鈥 with someone infected with the virus. So what exactly is close contact?
For Alzheimer鈥檚 patients and their caregivers, social and emotional isolation is a threat. But hundreds of 鈥淢emory Cafes鈥 around the country offer them a chance to be with others who understand, and to receive social and cognitive stimulation in the process.
Scores of organs 鈥 mostly kidneys 鈥 are trashed each year and many more become critically delayed while being shipped on commercial airliners, a new investigation finds.
A sampling of health policy highlights from the eighth Democratic presidential primary debate in Manchester, N.H.聽
The Affordable Care Act requires that insurers cover birth control with no out-of-pocket costs, but the enforcement mechanism is weak and a pending court case could add further complications.
The state proposes to jettison the federal insurance exchange and instead send people buying individual coverage to private companies to choose coverage. It would also cap how much money is spent on premium subsidies, which could mean some consumers would be put on a wait list if they needed financial help buying a plan.
Insurance companies often require patients to have medical procedures, devices, tests and even some medicines preapproved to ensure the insurers are willing to cover the costs. But that doesn鈥檛 guarantee they鈥檒l end up paying. Some patients are getting stuck with unexpected bills after the medical service has been provided.
President Donald Trump spent a good deal of time on health issues in his State of the Union address, but not everything he said checks out. Meanwhile, Iowa Democrats heading into the caucuses said health is their top issue, but it鈥檚 hard to see how that played out in their actual choices. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN鈥檚 Julie Rovner to discuss this and more. Also, Rovner interviews KHN鈥檚 Julie Appleby and NPR鈥檚 Selena Simmons-Duffin about the latest 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 feature.
Insurance giant Cigna and San Francisco-based Dignity Health have failed to ink a 2020 contract, leaving nearly 17,000 patients in California and Nevada scrambling to find new health care providers. Meanwhile, Dignity faces financial and legal challenges while it strives to implement its merger with Catholic Health Initiatives, which created one of the nation鈥檚 largest Catholic hospital systems.
Small-business owners, frustrated by the byzantine health system, are warming to the idea of a 鈥淢edicare for All,鈥 government-run system, even if it increases their taxes. But they have questions.
California Healthline reporters Anna Maria Barry-Jester and Anna Almendrala spoke with WNHN鈥檚 鈥淭he Attitude w/ Arnie Arnesen鈥 about the novel coronavirus and its impact on Asian immigrants in the United States.
In his Feb. 4 State of the Union address, President Donald Trump said the cost of extending health care to people regardless of their citizenship status would “bankrupt” the U.S.
We checked again. The data has not changed.
Here’s a sampling of recent fact checks related to some of the health care claims made during President Donald Trump’s Feb. 4 State of the Union speech.
Helping a loved one overcome addiction isn鈥檛 easy. Start by listening to people who have been through it. They can help find effective treatment and avoid unethical or incompetent operators.
Kaiser Health News reporter Liz Szabo talked to Connecticut Public Radio about the risks of the novel coronavirus compared with influenza.
If you鈥檙e told Medicare鈥檚 home health benefits have changed, don鈥檛 believe it: Coverage rules haven鈥檛 been altered and people are still entitled to the same types of services. All that has changed is how Medicare pays agencies.
KHN鈥檚 Shefali Luthra examines the president鈥檚 talking points on a range of topics 鈥 from insurance coverage, access to care and affordability issues to preexisting condition protections and prescription drug costs.
Doctors and other clinicians say they’re enduring moral injury because the business of health care interferes with patient care.
