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House Democrats' budget plan leaves health law and Medicare intact

GOP Rep. Paul Ryan's plan, in the meantime, would offer seniors a choice between private or traditional Medicare plans and would repeal the health law.

9 Apr 2014

HHS reverses plan to cut Medicare advantage rates

Administration officials announce that they will slightly boost rates paid to insurers offering the private Medicare plans. In February they had suggested cuts to the funding, but Republican and Democratic lawmakers had opposed the suggestion.

9 Apr 2014

First Edition: April 8, 2014

Kaiser Health News staff writer Jay Hancock reports: "Under intense, bipartisan political pressure, the Obama administration backed down for the second year in a row on proposed payment cuts for insurance companies that offer private plans to Medicare members.

8 Apr 2014

Virginia Mason wins Healthgrades Outstanding Patient Experience Award for second consecutive year

Virginia Mason was today named a recipient of Healthgrades Outstanding Patient Experience Award for the second consecutive year. This distinction places it among the top 10 percent of hospitals in the nation for patient experience.

8 Apr 2014

Study: Seniors living in community with dementia are more likely to be hospitalized

Seniors living in the community who have dementia are more likely to be hospitalized and visit the emergency department than those who do not have dementia, according to a new study by researchers at RTI International.

8 Apr 2014

Viewpoints: Despite enrollment success, health law has internal problems; burdens for both parties

For the foreseeable future, the health care debate probably isn't going to get any less intense. Instead, what we've watched unfold since 2009 is what we should expect for years, decades, a generation: a grinding, exhausting argument over how to pay for health care in a society that's growing older, consuming more care, and (especially if current secularizing trends persist) becoming more and more invested in postponing death.

8 Apr 2014

Medicaid enrollment increases by 3 million since health law enrollment began

The number is not yet complete because some states have not reported their numbers and it doesn't include March sign-ups.

8 Apr 2014

Medicare advantage cuts pose political threat

The cuts to Medicare Advantage, expected to be included in planned 2015 payments to be unveiled Monday, end what proponents call a windfall to insurers. But they have drawn protests not just from insurers but from Democrats who fear the GOP will use them as political fodder in the midterm elections.

8 Apr 2014

Republicans secure health law coverage change

The change involves improving coverage choices for small business. In the meantime, Senate Democratic leadership is trying to secure victories for their at-risk colleagues and Republicans look to pass a budget.

8 Apr 2014

First Edition: April 7, 2014

Today's headlines include stories about the next round of health law challenges the Obama administration faces as well as the new Medicare Advantage rates scheduled to be announced today.

7 Apr 2014

Viewpoints: Debate rolls on about enrollment numbers; Ryan's plan 'squeezes seniors'

You can forgive a little football-spiking, even if Obamacare is far from the end zone. The White House this week announced that the number of people who enrolled in new individual health-care insurance plans under the Affordable Care Act topped 7 million and could still rise.

7 Apr 2014

Buying health insurance no longer a year-round option

The Associated Press reports that those who purchase coverage directly from insurers must do it within open enrollment periods, unless they experience a life-changing event such as a move or a job change.

7 Apr 2014

Viewpoints: 'Pent-up demand' for health care; too early for that White House victory lap; the fight over Medicare advantage

More than seven million people have signed up for insurance on the new federal and state health exchanges, President Obama said this week. Millions more could be added to that total once insurers tally up the people who bought policies directly from them and when those who tried to apply on balky websites are able to complete the process.

4 Apr 2014

Obama administration point to official end -- April 15 -- for enrollment extension

The Wall Street Journal reports that this cut-off will apply to the hundreds of thousands of people who started signing up for insurance on the federal health exchange but got held up during their last-minute shopping. Also in the news, the latest from California and Georgia in terms of deadlines and enrollment efforts.

4 Apr 2014

With eyes on upcoming congressional elections, Democrats see glimmer of hope in enrollment numbers

For months, Republicans have viewed the health law as a powerful weapon against Democratic opponents, but the better-than-expected enrollment figures offered Democrats a positive counter-argument.

4 Apr 2014

Ryan budget plan stirs opposition on both sides of the aisle

The proposal from House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wisc., would cut $5 trillion over the next decade by repealing the Affordable Care Act and making sharp cuts to health care programs for the middle class and the poor. Democrats are incorporating the proposal into their midterm campaign strategy, while some Republicans, angered by the House leadership's handling of the 'doc fix' vote, are also expressing doubts.

4 Apr 2014

Confident from enrollment numbers, Obama turns focus to GOP health care and budget plans

President Barack Obama continued to tout the success of the health care law, using the momentum to attack the House GOP's new budget proposal, as well as providing a blueprint for the defense of the law for Democrats in upcoming elections.

4 Apr 2014

Medicare will release billing data from doctors

The information will include data on what services doctors used, the average amount they charged Medicare and what they were paid. Doctors have fought such disclosures in the past.

4 Apr 2014

Roundup: Battles fought over Lyme disease, autism and abortion

In Texas, abortion providers file suit to block a state rule that could shut down many of the state's remaining clinics, while lawmakers in Vermont and N.Y. seek to immunize doctors who prescribe long-term antibiotics for patients with lasting symptoms attributed to Lyme disease.

3 Apr 2014

First Edition: April 3, 2014

Today's headlines include reports on how Paul Ryan's budget is playing on Capitol Hill as well as news that the Obama administration is releasing a trove of data on physician services and payments.

3 Apr 2014

Medicare News and Research

House Democrats' budget plan leaves health law and Medicare intact

HHS reverses plan to cut Medicare advantage rates

First Edition: April 8, 2014

Virginia Mason wins Healthgrades Outstanding Patient Experience Award for second consecutive year

Study: Seniors living in community with dementia are more likely to be hospitalized

Viewpoints: Despite enrollment success, health law has internal problems; burdens for both parties

Medicaid enrollment increases by 3 million since health law enrollment began

Medicare advantage cuts pose political threat

Republicans secure health law coverage change

First Edition: April 7, 2014

Viewpoints: Debate rolls on about enrollment numbers; Ryan's plan 'squeezes seniors'

Buying health insurance no longer a year-round option

Viewpoints: 'Pent-up demand' for health care; too early for that White House victory lap; the fight over Medicare advantage

Obama administration point to official end -- April 15 -- for enrollment extension

With eyes on upcoming congressional elections, Democrats see glimmer of hope in enrollment numbers

Ryan budget plan stirs opposition on both sides of the aisle

Confident from enrollment numbers, Obama turns focus to GOP health care and budget plans

Medicare will release billing data from doctors

Roundup: Battles fought over Lyme disease, autism and abortion

First Edition: April 3, 2014

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