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A progress check on hospital price transparency

For decades, U.S. hospitals have generally stonewalled patients who wanted to know ahead of time how much their care would cost. Now that's changing — but there's a vigorous debate over what hospitals are disclosing.

29 Mar 2023

Congressman seeks to plug ‘shocking loophole’ exposed by KHN investigation

A U.S. lawmaker is taking action after a KHN investigation exposed weaknesses in the federal system meant to stop repeat Medicare and Medicaid fraud and abuse.

28 Mar 2023

Substance use disorders not associated with COVID-19-related mortality

New research from Boston Medical Center found that substance use disorders do not increase the likelihood of dying from COVID-19.

24 Mar 2023

Blacks and low-income Americans may reap the most benefits from stronger rules for air pollution

Stronger regulations lowering levels of fine particulate air pollutants (PM2.5) would benefit the health of all Americans, but Black Americans and low-income Americans would likely reap the most benefits, including a lower risk of premature death, according to a new study led by Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

24 Mar 2023

Obamacare at 13: Biden and a KHN reporter remember

I was back in the crowded East Room of the White House on Thursday, as I was 13 years ago, this time standing under a portrait of first first lady Martha Washington, when President Joe Biden entered for a lunchtime event focused on the Affordable Care Act.

24 Mar 2023

The policy, and politics, of Medicare Advantage

Medicare Advantage, the private-sector alternative to original Medicare, now enrolls nearly half of all Medicare beneficiaries.

23 Mar 2023

Legal questions, inquiries intensify around Noble Health’s rural Missouri hospital closures

A year after private equity-backed Noble Health shuttered two rural Missouri hospitals, patients and former employees grapple with a broken local health system or missing out on millions in unpaid wages and benefits.

23 Mar 2023

Prescription for housing? California wants Medicaid to cover 6 months of rent

Gov. Gavin Newsom, whose administration is struggling to contain a worsening homelessness crisis despite record spending, is trying something bold: tapping federal health care funding to cover rent for homeless people and those at risk of losing their housing.

22 Mar 2023

End of covid emergency will usher in changes across the US health system

The Biden administration's decision to end the covid-19 public health emergency in May will institute sweeping changes across the health care system that go far beyond many people having to pay more for covid tests.

22 Mar 2023

Supervised exercise training is safe and may improve quality of life for many people with heart failure

For many people who have heart failure, supervised exercise training is safe and may offer substantial improvement in exercise capacity and quality of life, even more than medications, according to a new, joint scientific statement from the American Heart Association and the American College of Cardiology.

21 Mar 2023

Mental health care by video fills gaps in rural nursing homes

Bette Helm was glad to have someone to talk with about her insomnia.

21 Mar 2023

Mobile clinics really got rolling in the pandemic. A new law will help them cast a wider safety net.

Nearly 12 years ago, a nonprofit centered on substance abuse prevention in Lyon County, Nevada, broadened its services to dental care.

20 Mar 2023

Study highlights a persistent life expectancy gap among patients living with sickle cell disease

While research has long established disparities in health outcomes among individuals living with sickle cell disease (SCD), few studies have quantified these gaps.

16 Mar 2023

New definitions can specify high-risk comorbidity combinations for older surgical patients

A new way to identify more specific, higher-risk groups of older surgical patients can help in clinical decision-making and accurately comparing the performance of one hospital to another, according to research published in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons.

16 Mar 2023

Hurricane exposure associated with increased mortality among older adults living with dementia

Previous studies of hurricanes have shown general increases in mortality but little has been known about how mortality following hurricane exposure may differ among older adults living with dementia.

13 Mar 2023

Feds move to rein in prior authorization, a system that harms and frustrates patients

When Paula Chestnut needed hip replacement surgery last year, a pre-operative X-ray found irregularities in her chest.

13 Mar 2023

Biden budget touches all the bases

President Joe Biden's fiscal 2024 budget proposal includes new policies and funding boosts for many of the Democratic Party's important constituencies, including advocates for people with disabilities and reproductive rights.

10 Mar 2023

Rapid shift to virtual behavioral health care during the pandemic helped adhere to depression treatment

The rapid transition from in-person to care to telemedicine visits at the start of the COVID‑19 pandemic did not adversely affect the quality of care – and even improved some aspects of care – for patients with major depression in a major integrated health system, according to a new report.

10 Mar 2023

Medicaid expansion decreased Black-white disparities in preventable hospitalizations and ED visits

Expanding Medicaid-benefit eligibility to cover all people with income below 139 percent of the federal poverty line reduced Black-white disparities in preventable hospitalizations and emergency department (ED) visits, according to research from Rutgers University and the U.S. Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality.

10 Mar 2023

Why does insulin cost so much? Big Pharma isn’t the only player driving prices

Eli Lilly & Co.'s announcement that it is slashing prices for its major insulin products could make life easier for some diabetes patients while easing pressure on Big Pharma.

9 Mar 2023

Medicare News and Research

A progress check on hospital price transparency

Congressman seeks to plug ‘shocking loophole’ exposed by KHN investigation

Substance use disorders not associated with COVID-19-related mortality

Blacks and low-income Americans may reap the most benefits from stronger rules for air pollution

Obamacare at 13: Biden and a KHN reporter remember

The policy, and politics, of Medicare Advantage

Legal questions, inquiries intensify around Noble Health’s rural Missouri hospital closures

Prescription for housing? California wants Medicaid to cover 6 months of rent

End of covid emergency will usher in changes across the US health system

Supervised exercise training is safe and may improve quality of life for many people with heart failure

Mental health care by video fills gaps in rural nursing homes

Mobile clinics really got rolling in the pandemic. A new law will help them cast a wider safety net.

Study highlights a persistent life expectancy gap among patients living with sickle cell disease

New definitions can specify high-risk comorbidity combinations for older surgical patients

Hurricane exposure associated with increased mortality among older adults living with dementia

Feds move to rein in prior authorization, a system that harms and frustrates patients

Biden budget touches all the bases

Rapid shift to virtual behavioral health care during the pandemic helped adhere to depression treatment

Medicaid expansion decreased Black-white disparities in preventable hospitalizations and ED visits

Why does insulin cost so much? Big Pharma isn’t the only player driving prices

Advancing Neuroscience Research Through Collaboration and Patient-Centered Innovation

The impact of vibration on microscopy

How Omics Technologies Are Transforming Biological Research and Drug Discovery

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