Category: Health Care Costs

‘Not Accountable to Anyone’: As Insurers Issue Denials, Some Patients Run Out of Options

Health insurers issue millions of prior authorization denials every year, leaving many patients stuck in a convoluted appeals process, with little hope of meaningful policy change ahead. For doctors, these denials are frustrating and time-consuming. For patients, they can be devastating.

KFF Health News’ ‘What the Health?’: RFK Jr. Upends Vaccine Policy, After Promising He Wouldn’t

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. this week did something he had promised not to do: He fired every member of the scientific advisory committee that recommends which vaccines should be given to whom. And he replaced them, in some cases, with vaccine skeptics. Meanwhile, hundreds of employees of the National Institutes of Health sent an open letter to the agency’s director, accusing the Trump administration of policies that “undermine the NIH mission.” Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.

Four Ways Trump’s ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ Would Undermine Access to Obamacare

The combination of the House-passed spending and tax bill and the Trump administration’s regulatory action could change Affordable Care Act enrollment and the cost of insurance. The result, according to the Congressional Budget Office, is that millions of people may become uninsured.

An Arm and a Leg: A Mathematical Solution for US Hospitals?

An immigrant mathematician is on a mission to save U.S. hospitals billions of dollars and improve the lives of doctors, nurses, and patients. At one hospital, it’s working.

Trump’s ‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ Continues Assault on Obamacare

The domestic policy legislation the House advanced in May includes the most substantial rollback of the Affordable Care Act since President Donald Trump and his Republican allies tried to pass legislation in 2017 that would have largely repealed President Barack Obama’s signature domestic accomplishment.

A Medicaid Patient Had a Heart Attack While Traveling. He Owed Almost $78,000.

Federal law says Medicaid must cover out-of-state emergency care. But a Florida man got a five-figure bill after a South Dakota hospital declined to charge his state’s Medicaid program.

In Arizona County That Backed Trump, Conflicted Feelings About Cutting Medicaid

Medicaid plays a vital role in many rural communities that favored President Donald Trump in the 2024 election. But residents still seem open to Republican proposals to cut perceived waste in the program.

KFF Health News’ ‘What the Health?’: Bill With Billions in Health Program Cuts Passes House

The House narrowly passed a budget reconciliation bill, including billions of dollars in tax cuts for the wealthy along with billions of dollars in cuts to health program spending. But the Senate is expected to make major changes to the measure before it can go to President Donald Trump for his signature. This week’s panelists are Julie Rovner of KFF Health News, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico.

Republicans Aim To Punish States That Insure Unauthorized Immigrants

A GOP tax-and-spending bill the House approved Thursday would slash federal Medicaid reimbursement for states that offer health coverage to immigrants without legal status.

How the Trump Administration Aims To Slash Health Care Spending

One thing experts agree on: The damage from the funding cuts will be varied and immense.