Category: Kaiser Health News

How A Company Misappropriated Native American Culture To Sell Health Insurance

Maine investigators find one patient’s saga with O’NA HealthCare offers a cautionary tale for anyone looking for cut-rate coverage online.

To Stem COVID, This Small Indiana City Decided To Test All Public-Facing Employees

An affluent suburb looked to Iceland’s and South Korea’s widespread testing in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus. The method is pricey, but leaders are convinced it is worthwhile.

Fewer Traffic Collisions During Shutdown Means Longer Waits For Organ Donations

Accident deaths are typically the biggest source of donor organs nationwide. But when the coronavirus forced Californians indoors, accidents declined.

The Pandemic Is Hurting Pediatric Hospitals, Too

Children’s hospitals were generally in good shape before COVID-19, but now their revenues are plunging as beds they reserved to assist in the pandemic effort remain empty.

‘Last Responders’ Seek To Expand Postmortem COVID Testing In Unexplained Deaths

Early in the outbreak, some coroners and medical examiners didn’t have enough tests to use for people who died unexpectedly at home to see whether the coronavirus was a factor. Now, as testing gradually becomes widely available, more such mysteries could be solved.

Tourists, Beware: Foreign Visitors’ Travel Health Insurance Might Exclude Pandemics

Many travel insurance plans offer health care coverage, but they could limit how much the insurer will pay or exclude coverage for health crises like the coronavirus pandemic. That may leave foreign travelers — unfamiliar with the way the American health system works ― on the hook for major expenses.

Medicaid Providers At The End Of The Line For Federal COVID Funding

Congress authorized $100 billion for health care providers to help reimburse them for losses linked to the coronavirus pandemic. But the majority of that funding so far has gone to hospitals, doctors and other facilities that serve Medicare patients. Providers primarily serving low-income Medicaid populations and children have been largely left out.

‘An Arm And A Leg’: Angst And Advice From A Health Insurance Insider

A podcast listener who works in the health insurance industry says that when you’re trying to untangle a problem with your health insurance company ask the representative on the phone to slow down. And if need be, don’t hesitate to ask to speak with a supervisor.

In The COVID Age, Bring A Mask And Gloves To A Protest

After a police shooting in Indianapolis, activists held a protest — but, recognizing the dangers of the coronavirus in a crowd, many worked to make sure demonstrators took proper precautions.

Drugmakers Tout COVID-19 Vaccines To Refurbish Their Public Image

Vaccines and antivirals have long been an afterthought but Johnson & Johnson and other firms are widely publicizing how they might stop COVID 19.