Medicare News and Research

RSS

Trump on ‘Medicare for All’ and the costs of extending health care to undocumented immigrants

In his 2020 State of the Union address, President Donald Trump attempted to tie a Democratic proposal for health care reform to one of his signature issues: immigration.

5 Feb 2020

What to do if your home health care agency ditches you

Craig Holly was determined to fight when the home health agency caring for his wife decided to cut off services Jan. 18.

4 Feb 2020

Why home health care is suddenly harder to come by for Medicare patients

The decision came out of the blue. "Your husband isn't going to get any better, so we can't continue services," an occupational therapist told Deloise "Del" Holloway in early November. "Medicare isn't going to pay for it."

3 Feb 2020

Warren is right. Presidents have the power to bypass Congress on drug pricing

On the presidential primary campaign trail in Iowa, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) brought out a favorite talking point: ways the president can bring down drug prices without waiting for Congress.

31 Jan 2020

Preeminent hospitals penalized over rates of patients’ injuries

Hundreds of hospitals across the nation, including a number with sterling reputations for cutting-edge care, will be paid less by Medicare after the federal government pronounced that they had higher rates of infections and patient injuries than others.

31 Jan 2020

5 things to know about Trump’s Medicaid block grant plan

The Trump administration unveiled a plan Thursday that would dramatically revamp Medicaid by allowing states to opt out of part of the current federal funding program and instead seek a fixed payment each year in exchange for gaining unprecedented flexibility over the program.

31 Jan 2020

State-purchased insurance plans improve HIV outcomes, save healthcare costs

Health insurance purchased by state AIDS Drug Assistance Programs for people living with HIV in states that did not expand Medicaid are improving outcomes and have the potential to save millions in healthcare costs, a new study suggests.

30 Jan 2020

Mercy Medical Center receives five stars for quality of care

Mercy Medical Center has received a 5-Star Overall Hospital Rating, the highest possible, from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for quality of care.

30 Jan 2020

Two Rush hospitals earn top rating from CMS

Rush University Medical Center and Rush Oak Park Hospital again earned high marks in one of the nation's most respected assessments of health care quality.

30 Jan 2020

A guide to following the health debate in the 2020 elections

Health has been a top issue in the presidential campaign during the past year: Not only do the Democratic candidates disagree with President Donald Trump, but they also disagree among themselves.

30 Jan 2020

Trump’s latest health care challenge: Gaining voters’ trust

Far more Americans disapprove of President Donald Trump's handling of several high-profile health care issues than give him positive marks, underscoring the challenge the president faces in claiming health care as a political asset in his reelection bid.

30 Jan 2020

Annual lung cancer screening with LDCT reduces lung cancer deaths

The Dutch-Belgian Randomized Lung Cancer Screening Trial, known as the NELSON trial (de Koning et. al), published Jan. 29 in the New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), reconfirms that annual lung cancer screening with low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) in high-risk patients significantly reduces lung cancer deaths.

30 Jan 2020

Medicaid expansion could lessen the burden of colon cancers, save Black male lives

Expanding Medicaid in North Carolina could sharply lessen the burden of colon cancers in the state and save the lives of thousands of Black men as well as improving access to care for men of all races, researchers report in the 27 January issue of PLOS ONE.

29 Jan 2020

An attack ad that claims Michigan Sen. Gary Peters supports ‘Medicare for All’ doesn’t hold up

Sen. Gary Peters (D-Mich.), who is running for a second term as Michigan's junior senator, is the subject of an attack ad that takes issue with his position on "Medicare for All."

28 Jan 2020

California reopens the single-payer debate

California Gov. Gavin Newsom was a single-payer candidate.

28 Jan 2020

$Length of stay, recovery rate associated with functional outcomes after hip fracture surgery$

Length of stay, recovery rate associated with functional outcomes after hip fracture surgery

The rate of recovery and a patient's length of stay at nursing and rehabilitation facilities are associated with a patient's mobility and their ability to provide self-care when they are discharged following hip fracture surgery, according to a new study from the George Washington University, published in JAMA Network Open.

27 Jan 2020

Burden of health care payments greatest among households with lowest incomes

Higher income American households pay the most to finance the nation's health care system, but the burden of payments as a share of income is greatest among households with the lowest incomes, according to a new RAND Corporation study.

27 Jan 2020

CRNAs offer safe, affordable solution for care as rural hospitals continue to close

As the 2020 presidential candidates propose to fix U.S. healthcare, rural hospitals across the country continue to close. Since the 2018 midterms, about 66 percent of primary care physician shortages have been in rural and partially rural areas.

24 Jan 2020

Bloomberg on health care: Translating his mayoral record to the national stage

Former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg has spent more than $200 million arguing that he should be the Democratic nominee for president, blanketing the airwaves with advertisements.

24 Jan 2020

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: SCOTUS punts on ACA case — for now

The Supreme Court has declined to take up immediately a case out of Texas that could overturn the entire Affordable Care Act. But that is not likely to stop the case from becoming a major political issue in the 2020 presidential and congressional campaigns.

23 Jan 2020