Federal officials are allowing the private insurance plans to use “step therapy” for drugs administered by doctors. In step therapy, patients must first use cheaper drugs to see if they work before receiving more expensive options.
Category: Medicare
Watch: What Is Sepsis?
What exactly is sepsis, and why is it so dangerous? Who is most vulnerable? And what are the signs? KHN explains in this video.
Are Medicare procedure payments in jeopardy?
While hundreds of doctors have submitted (mostly unfavorable) comments to CMS on the proposed evaluation and management changes, there are other issues which seem to be receiving much less attention than they deserve. And one of those may hit physicians who perform procedures in the wallet. In 2015, Congress asked CMS to analyze the global […]
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ Ask Us Anything!
In this episode of KHN’s “What the Health?” Julie Rovner of Kaiser Health News, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times and Joanne Kenen of Politico answer listeners’ questions about health policy and politics.
HHS Watchdog To Probe Enforcement Of Nursing Home Staffing Standards
The study follows a Kaiser Health News and New York Times investigation that found nearly 1,400 nursing homes have reported fewer registered nurses on duty than Medicare requires or failed to provide reliable staffing information to the government.
HHS Watchdog To Probe Enforcement Of Nursing Home Staffing Standards
The study follows a Kaiser Health News and New York Times investigation that found nearly 1,400 nursing homes have reported fewer registered nurses on duty than Medicare requires or failed to provide reliable staffing information to the government.
The Doctors Want In: Democratic Docs Talk Health Care On The Campaign Trail
Among candidates running for Congress in upcoming elections are a smattering of left-leaning physicians who present a stark contrast to the predominantly Republican physicians currently in office.
The Doctors Want In: Democratic Docs Talk Health Care On The Campaign Trail
Among candidates running for Congress in upcoming elections are a smattering of left-leaning physicians who present a stark contrast to the predominantly Republican physicians currently in office.
The Man Who Sold America On Vitamin D — And Profited In The Process
The doctor most responsible for turning the sunshine supplement into a billion-dollar juggernaut has received hundreds of thousands of dollars from the vitamin D industry, according to government records and interviews.
Do uninsured patients receive more unnecessary care?
American physicians dole out lots of unnecessary medical care to their patients. They prescribe things like antibiotics for people with viral infections, order expensive CT scans for patients with transitory back pain, and obtain screening EKGs for people with no signs or symptoms of heart disease. Some critics even accuse physicians of ordering such services […]
