Category: Medicare

Retiring Abroad? Prepare To Possibly Mix And Match Health Insurance

More than 400,000 U.S. workers have retired in foreign countries and their ranks are rising. But Medicare doesn’t cover most expenses overseas, so these expats will need to confront the cost of finding alternative insurance.

Missouri Firm With Silicon Valley Ties Faces Medicare Billing Scrutiny

Amid an overall crackdown on private insurers’ Medicare billing practices, a new government audit and a whistleblower suit allege St. Louis-based Essence Group Holdings Corp.’s Medicare Advantage plans overcharged taxpayers.

Medicare Advantage Overbills Taxpayers By Billions A Year As Feds Struggle To Stop It

An enhanced government effort to catch insurers that overcharge Medicare faces resistance from the insurance industry.

Medicare Going In ‘Right Direction’ On Opioid Epidemic

A new report by the inspector general for HHS shows prescriptions to treat opioid addiction are way up in recent years, while prescriptions for the painkillers have fallen.

How To Get A Cheaper Prescription Before Leaving The Doctor’s Office

A pricing tool embedded in their electronic health record and prescribing system lets doctors see how much patients will pay out-of-pocket based on their insurance and the pharmacy. But doctors have been slow to adopt the technology, which has limitations.

KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: All About ‘Medicare for All’

Need to know more about “Medicare for All?” It’s a top issue in the Democratic presidential primary campaign. This holiday week, we are rerunning our explainer on the subject. But first, KHN’s “What the Health?” host Julie Rovner talks to KHN’s Shefali Luthra about how health played out in the first Democratic candidate debates last week.

Pelosi Aims For Feds To Negotiate Drug Prices, Even For Private Insurers

A draft plan spearheaded by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi would allow the federal government for the first time to negotiate prices for 250 drugs for Medicare and apply those prices to all payers, including employers and insurers.

Health Care Gets Heated On Night 2 Of The Democratic Presidential Debate

Though the candidates tended to agree on the end goal of universal coverage, differences emerged over how to get there. 

Delaney’s Debate Claim That ‘Medicare For All’ Will Shutter Hospitals Goes Overboard

At the first Democratic presidential primary debate, former U.S. lawmaker John Delaney outlined his opposition to “Medicare for All” by claiming it would prove fatal for hospitals. It’s really not that simple.

KHN’s ‘What The Health’: Dems Debate Health Care

Democratic presidential candidates disagreed on how to fix health care in their first debate Wednesday, although they all called for boosting insurance coverage and lowering prices. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is keeping health care in the news, too, with a new plan to make medical prices more available to the public. Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal, Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call and Anna Edney of Bloomberg News join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss this, plus the latest in news about bipartisan progress on catch-all legislation to address “surprise” medical bills. Plus, Rovner interviews NPR’s Jon Hamilton about the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month” installment.