Health Insurance News and Research

RSS

Study: Trust in personal doctors divided along political lines

Democrats are more likely to trust their personal doctors and follow their doctors' advice than Republicans, new research from the University of Oregon finds.

4 Apr 2025

Older adults embrace digital health portals despite billing concerns

When today's older adults were growing up, the only way to get information to your doctor or their clinic was a phone call. And getting more than a simple answer probably meant going in for an appointment.

4 Apr 2025

Study identifies 17 modifiable risk factors shared between stroke, dementia, and depression

Age-related brain diseases such as stroke, dementia, and late-life depression are a debilitating part of growing older, but people can lower their risk of these diseases through behavioral and lifestyle changes.

3 Apr 2025

Addressing low lung cancer screening rates through awareness and access

Lung cancer screening has the potential to catch lung cancer early and save lives-but only if people get screened. Although lung cancer screening is recommended in the U.S. for certain individuals with a history of smoking, only 18% of eligible individuals in the U.S. get screened.

3 Apr 2025

Ethical hurdles of integrating telemedicine in sexual medicine

The perspective article titled"Ethical perspective on telemedicine usage in sexual medicine: A friend or a foe?", was published on January 27, 2025.

2 Apr 2025

How much will that surgery cost? 🤷 Hospital prices remain largely unhelpful.

It's a holy grail of health care: forcing the industry to reveal prices negotiated between health plans and hospitals — information that had long been treated as a trade secret.

2 Apr 2025

Study finds clues to hypertension hidden in electronic health records

A new study from investigators at Mass General Brigham shows that clues about hypertension may be buried in electronic health records (EHR).

1 Apr 2025

Montana’s small pharmacies behind bill to corral pharmacy benefit managers

Montana's small, independent pharmacies say they're getting increasingly squeezed on reimbursements by pharmacy benefit managers — and are pushing an ambitious bill to rein in what they say are unfair practices by the powerful industry negotiators known as PBMs.

31 Mar 2025

‘They won’t help me’: Sickest patients face insurance denials despite policy fixes

Sheldon Ekirch spends a lot of time on hold with her health insurance company. Sometimes, as the minutes tick by and her frustration mounts, Ekirch, 30, opens a meditation app on her phone. It was recommended by her psychologist to help with the depression associated with a stressful and painful medical disorder.

31 Mar 2025

He had short-term health insurance. His colonoscopy bill: $7,000.

Tim Winard knew he needed to buy health insurance when he left his management job in manufacturing to launch his own business.

28 Mar 2025

Their physical therapy coverage ran out before they could walk again

Mari Villar was slammed by a car that jumped the curb, breaking her legs and collapsing a lung. Amy Paulo was in pain from a femur surgery that wasn't healing properly.

28 Mar 2025

Older Americans support insurance coverage for obesity medications

A large majority of older Americans feel that health insurance – including Medicare – should cover anti-obesity medications, according to a new University of Michigan study.

27 Mar 2025

Addressing cardiovascular risk factors in emerging adulthood

Many teenagers enter adulthood with significant risk factors for cardiovascular disease, and the transition from adolescence to adulthood is a key time to address these risk factors and reduce the risk of developing future cardiovascular disease, according to a new American Heart Association scientific statement published today in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

26 Mar 2025

‘I am going through hell’: Job loss, mental health, and the fate of federal workers

The National Institutes of Health employee said she knew things would be difficult for federal workers after Donald Trump was elected. But she never imagined it would be like this.

26 Mar 2025

Microplastics exposure linked to increased risk of chronic diseases

Tiny fragments of plastic have become ubiquitous in our environment and our bodies. Higher exposure to these microplastics, which can be inadvertently consumed or inhaled, is associated with a heightened prevalence of chronic noncommunicable diseases, according to new research being presented at the American College of Cardiology's Annual Scientific Session (ACC.25).

25 Mar 2025

Many people with disabilities risk losing their Medicaid if they work too much

Zach Mecham has heard politicians demand that Medicaid recipients work or lose their benefits. He also has run into a jumble of Medicaid rules that effectively prevent many people with disabilities from holding full-time jobs.

25 Mar 2025

Study shows decline in ambulatory antibiotic use in France following COVID-19 lockdown

The COVID-19 pandemic and lockdown measures in France affected health care access and prescribing patterns, leading to significant changes in outpatient (ambulatory) antibiotic use.

24 Mar 2025

Smell-based test taken at home could predict cognitive impairment in older adults

When it comes to early detection of cognitive impairment, a new study suggests that the nose knows. Researchers from Mass General Brigham developed olfactory tests-in which participants sniff odor labels that have been placed on a card-to assess people's ability to discriminate, identify and remember odors.

24 Mar 2025

Study reveals gaps in lung cancer screening despite updated guidelines

Since 2021, when lung cancer screening guidelines began to include younger people and those with a lower smoking history, the number of screenings climbed, but significant gaps remain, especially among people with limited access to healthcare, according to a new study led by researchers at Sylvester Comprehensive Cancer Center, part of the University of Miami Miller School of Medicine.

20 Mar 2025

Research shows only half of emergency visits align with doctor’s assessment

Emergency departments in the United States have more than 140 million visits each year - a rate of four visits for every 10 people - that cost nearly $80 billion.

20 Mar 2025