Category: Health Care Costs

‘An Arm and a Leg’: TikTok Mom Takes On Medical Bills

Shaunna Burns went viral on TikTok, partly because of a series of videos dishing out real-talk advice on fighting outrageous medical bills.

Not Pandemic-Proof: Insulin Copay Caps Fall Short, Fueling Underground Exchanges

Although sharing prescription medicines is illegal, many people with diabetes are turning to underground donation networks when they cannot afford their insulin. Caps on insulin copays enacted in Colorado and 11 other states were designed to help. But the gaps between insulin costs and many patients’ financial realities are only widening amid the economic crisis of the COVID pandemic.

Trump’s COVID Program for Uninsured People: It Exists, but Falls Short

The help is real — but access to it isn’t easy.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Election Preview: What’s Next for Health?

How will health issues affect voter choices? What will happen if President Donald Trump is reelected or the White House goes to Joe Biden? In this special election preview episode, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Joanne Kenen of Politico and Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.

Sky-High Drug Prices Driven by Pharma Profits, House Dems Charge

Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released a damning investigation Wednesday of drug company pricing tactics and profits, as two days of hearings with testimony from pharmaceutical industry CEOs begin.

The First Presidential Debate: A Night of Rapid-Fire Interruptions and Inaccuracies

Tuesday night’s presidential debate offered voters their first side-by-side comparison of the candidates, President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden.

Trump’s Executive Order on Preexisting Conditions Lacks Teeth, Experts Say

President Donald Trump’s executive order says that people with preexisting conditions can get affordable insurance. But it doesn’t explain how.

Trump Approves Final Plan to Import Drugs From Canada ‘for a Fraction of the Price’

The announcement clears the way for Florida and other states to implement a program bringing medications across the border to save money. The effort is strongly opposed by drugmakers and the Canadian government.

Heartbreaking Bills, Lawsuit and Bankruptcy — Even With Insurance

With health insurance that can leave him on the hook for more than a quarter of his salary every year, a Kentucky essential worker who has heart disease is one of millions of Americans who are functionally uninsured. At only 31, he has already been through bankruptcy and being sued by his hospital. This year, he faced a bill for more than $10,000.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: ACA in Peril With Ginsburg’s Seat in Play

The death of Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is giving new life to the latest constitutional challenge to the Affordable Care Act. It also places anti-abortion activists on the cusp of a court majority large enough to ensure the rollback of the right to abortion and, possibly, some types of birth control. Meanwhile, Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar tries to centralize power at the sprawling department plagued by miscommunications and scandals. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Kimberly Leonard of Business Insider and Mary Ellen McIntire of CQ Roll Call join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, Rovner interviews KHN’s Sarah Jane Tribble about her new podcast, “Where It Hurts,” debuting Sept. 29.