The independent source for health policy research, polling, and news.
A lot has changed since last summer’s town hall meetings. A new poll finds that, in the last month, the percentage of people viewing the health law unfavorably has fallen. But seniors continue to be more negative.
A small school that specializes in the most difficult children is the one hardest hit.
Deficit and debt drive cuts in jobs and services
Most men with low-risk prostate cancer get aggressive treatment, even though the therapies carry big risks, a new study finds.
A look at the new health law’s long-term-care program and the plan to close the Medicare drug doughnut hole.
This week’s health policy news was marked by new administration rules regarding the appeals process for denied health insurance claims and continuing state-level efforts to implement high risk pools.
The Obama administration issues regulations that will set some minimum requirements for the process, including allowing patients to appeal the insurer’s decision to an independent outside panel.
After a knee injury, patients often have immediate reconstruction of the anterior cruciate ligament. A Swedish researcher found that exercise was just as good as surgery at helping patients recover.
Evidence shows the requirement for state residents to buy health insurance is working in Massachusetts — and we should it expect it to work in the new health overhaul as well.
Massachusett’s health reform has increased demand without increasing the supply of health care providers, it continues to keep people in the dark about the true cost of health care and health insurance, and has not changed incentives for people to seek more affordable options or for a truly competitive marketplace. Washington’s health overhaul law has the same structural flaws.
Lower numbers of donors, rare genes make finding a match less likely for blacks than for whites.
Three black members of Congress say minority nursing home patients would be disproportionately affected if Congress fails to extend bonus payments to state Medicaid programs.
Children are missing out on vital dental care-risking their health and racking up costs to parents and taxpayers alike. In the past decade, the number of cavities in children between the ages of two and five has increased 15 percent.
The health overhaul prohibits new insurance plans from charging higher copayments or coinsurance amounts for out-of-network emergency services or from imposing other coverage limitations that wouldn’t apply to in-network care.
The battle over whether the new federally-funded program to help people with pre-existing health conditions will pay for abortions just won’t go away.
This week, news outlets covered the Obama administration as it began implementing parts of the new health law and also unveiled a national HIV/AIDS strategy. And, Capitol Hill is still reacting to the president’s recess appointment of Dr. Donald Berwick to head the agency overseeing Medicare and Medicaid.
The administration is getting an earful from abortion rights groups for making sure that states getting federal funds to run insurance programs for people with pre-exisitng conditions don’t cover elective abortions.
