Category: Kaiser Health News

Where Contraception’s A Lifestyle Drug Not A Medical Need — So Women Pay The Tab

Unlike in the U.S., health insurance in Germany doesn’t cover birth control. Advocates here say that causes health problems — but change is unlikely.

Why Hospitals Are Getting Into The Housing Business

Hospital systems now invest in housing to help some of their most frequent patients. This allows them to safely discharge patients who otherwise would have no place to go, freeing up beds for sicker patients and saving the hospitals money.

Trump Speech Offers Dizzying Preview Of His Health Care Campaign Strategy

The president’s outline of key health policy concerns touched on a variety of hot-button issues from drug prices to immigration.

Tenn. Block Grant Experiment Would Boost Federal Funding, State Medicaid Chief Says

In a Q&A with Kaiser Health News, Tennessee Medicaid Director Gabe Roberts says state officials are requesting a modified block grant from federal officials because it would save money and allow the state to keep some of that savings.

When Masculinity Turns ‘Toxic’: A Gender Profile Of Mass Shootings

Men are far more likely than women to commit deadly mass shootings, both in California and across the nation. We break down the numbers — and ask experts why gender would have a role in indiscriminate violence.

Walmart To Give Workers Financial Incentives To Use Higher-Quality Doctors

The program, which will roll out next year in three parts of the country, seeks to encourage workers on the company’s health plan to choose doctors that have been identified as providing “appropriate, effective and cost-efficient care.”

Cosmetic Surgery And The Secret World of Instagram Dolls

An Instagram community of “doll pages” lets women find valuable information about body-sculpting journeys.

The Deep Divide: State Borders Create Medicaid Haves And Have-Nots

State borders can highlight Medicaid’s arbitrary coverage. On the Missouri side of the Mississippi River, low-income people struggle with untreated health issues. But on the Illinois side, people in similar straits can get health care because their state expanded its Medicaid program under the Affordable Care Act.

Skin-Lightening Cream Put A Woman Into A Coma. It Could Happen Again.

A Sacramento woman is in a coma after using a face cream from Mexico. It is the nation’s first case of methylmercury poisoning from a cosmetic, and public health officials can do almost nothing to prevent other contaminated cosmetics from hitting the shelves.

New Round of Medicare Readmission Penalties Hits 2,583 Hospitals

Starting today, Medicare is keeping half a billion dollars in payments from 83% of general hospitals for having too many patients come back.