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Direct primary care, with a touch of Robin Hood

Britta Foster and Minerva Tiznado are in different leagues as far as health care is concerned.

26 Oct 2021

Watch: Going beyond the script of ‘Dopesick’ and America’s real-life opioid crisis

KHN and policy colleagues at our parent organization KFF teamed up with Hulu for a discussion of America’s opioid crisis, following the Oct. 13 premiere of the online streaming service's new series "Dopesick."

18 Oct 2021

What will it take to boost vaccinations? The scene from Kentucky’s back roads

In the end it was the delta variant that drove Rose Mitchell, 89, down the winding mountain road to the Full Gospel Church of Jesus Christ to get the shot. Her pastor, Billy Joe Lewis, had told his congregation that, No, ma'am, a covid vaccine would not leave the "mark of the beast" nor rewrite their genetic codes.

18 Oct 2021

Policymakers may need to focus on increasing telehealth use by rural older adults, analysis suggests

About one in six doctor's office visits by older Americans no longer takes place in an actual doctor's office, but rather online or over the phone, a new analysis of telehealth visits billed to Medicare in the past two years finds.

15 Oct 2021

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: The politics of vaccine mandates

Should covid vaccines be mandated? The answer to that question has become predictably partisan, as with almost everything else associated with the pandemic.

14 Oct 2021

The public backs Medicare Rx price negotiation even after hearing both sides’ views

As Congress debates cutting prescription drug costs, a poll released Tuesday found the vast majority of adults — regardless of their political party or age — support letting the federal government negotiate drug prices for Medicare beneficiaries and those in private health insurance plans.

12 Oct 2021

Long-term exposure to low concentrations of air pollution may cause many early deaths

Exposure to low concentrations of air pollution, even at levels permitted under federal regulations, may be causing tens of thousands of early deaths each year among elderly people and other vulnerable groups in the U.S., according to a large national study from Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

7 Oct 2021

COVID-19 vaccinations associated with reduction of COVID-19 infections and deaths among Medicare beneficiaries

A study identified associations between COVID-19 infections, hospitalizations, and deaths among Medicare FFS beneficiaries and the fully vaccinated population at the county level.

7 Oct 2021

Mandatory vaccines for health care workers might upend nurses’ training

Kaitlyn Hevner expects to complete a 15-month accelerated nursing program at the University of North Florida in Jacksonville in December. For her clinical training this fall, she's working 12-hour shifts on weekends with medical-surgical patients at a hospital.

4 Oct 2021

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: The health agenda still on hold

Meanwhile, the Biden administration issued regulations to implement last year's law to limit "surprise" medical bills to patients who get care outside their insurance networks.

1 Oct 2021

Study explores trends in cardiac imaging from 2010 to 2019

A new study published in Radiology: Cardiothoracic Imaging on cardiac imaging trends over a decade reports that the rate of coronary computed tomography angiography (cCTA) exams by radiologists in hospital outpatient departments increased markedly from 2010 to 2019, suggesting a bright future for the technology

1 Oct 2021

Death in Dallas: One family’s experience in the Medicaid gap

For years, Millicent McKinnon of Dallas went without health insurance. She was one of roughly 1 million Texans who earn too much to qualify for Medicaid in the state but too little to buy their own insurance.

30 Sep 2021

A covid test costing more than a Tesla? It happened in Texas.

When covid-19 struck last year, Travis Warner's company became busier than ever. He installs internet and video systems, and with people suddenly working from home, service calls surged.

30 Sep 2021

Alzheimer’s drug targets people with mild cognitive impairment. What does that mean?

The approval of a controversial new drug for Alzheimer's disease, Aduhelm, is shining a spotlight on mild cognitive impairment — problems with memory, attention, language or other cognitive tasks that exceed changes expected with normal aging.

29 Sep 2021

Study: Life expectancy gaps between Black and white Americans have narrowed by nearly 50% in three decades

Persistent gaps in life expectancy between Black and white Americans have been highlighted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Yet, this gap has narrowed by nearly 50% in three decades, largely due to improvements among Black Americans, according to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).

29 Sep 2021

An ad’s charge that price haggling would ‘swipe $500 billion from Medicare’ is incorrect

The advertisement opens with a doctor sitting across from his patient and holding a prescription drug pill bottle. "You want to continue with this medication?" the doctor asks while an older patient nods.

28 Sep 2021

Study maps hotspots of low-value care use at individual health systems

Researchers estimate that up to $101 billion in health care spending is wasted each year due to over-treatment or the delivery of "low-value care." Low-value care includes a wide array of tests and treatments that are medically unnecessary and for which the potential for harm outweigh the potential for benefit. While researchers have charted the ongoing use of low-value care on national and regional levels, little research exists on how health systems across the country use low-value care and how they compare to each other.

28 Sep 2021

Higher-rated dialysis facilities yield a 47% higher likelihood of transplant waitlisting for patients

Dialysis centers, the gatekeepers of kidney transplantation waitlisting, produce more data and inspire more policies today than ever before.

24 Sep 2021

Low wages and pandemic gut staffing support for those with disabilities

Ernestine "Erma" Bryant likes her job, but the pay is a problem. She works in a caregiver role as a "direct support professional" in Tifton, Georgia, helping people who have intellectual and developmental disabilities with basic functions such as dressing, bathing and eating.

24 Sep 2021

A daily pill to treat covid could be just months away, scientists say

Within a day of testing positive for covid-19 in June, Miranda Kelly was sick enough to be scared. At 44, with diabetes and high blood pressure, Kelly, a certified nursing assistant, was having trouble breathing, symptoms serious enough to send her to the emergency room.

24 Sep 2021

Medicare News and Research

Direct primary care, with a touch of Robin Hood

Watch: Going beyond the script of ‘Dopesick’ and America’s real-life opioid crisis

What will it take to boost vaccinations? The scene from Kentucky’s back roads

Policymakers may need to focus on increasing telehealth use by rural older adults, analysis suggests

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: The politics of vaccine mandates

The public backs Medicare Rx price negotiation even after hearing both sides’ views

Long-term exposure to low concentrations of air pollution may cause many early deaths

COVID-19 vaccinations associated with reduction of COVID-19 infections and deaths among Medicare beneficiaries

Mandatory vaccines for health care workers might upend nurses’ training

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: The health agenda still on hold

Study explores trends in cardiac imaging from 2010 to 2019

Death in Dallas: One family’s experience in the Medicaid gap

A covid test costing more than a Tesla? It happened in Texas.

Alzheimer’s drug targets people with mild cognitive impairment. What does that mean?

Study: Life expectancy gaps between Black and white Americans have narrowed by nearly 50% in three decades

An ad’s charge that price haggling would ‘swipe $500 billion from Medicare’ is incorrect

Study maps hotspots of low-value care use at individual health systems

Higher-rated dialysis facilities yield a 47% higher likelihood of transplant waitlisting for patients

Low wages and pandemic gut staffing support for those with disabilities

A daily pill to treat covid could be just months away, scientists say

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The impact of vibration on microscopy

How Omics Technologies Are Transforming Biological Research and Drug Discovery

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