Category: Kaiser Health News

Finding Homeless Patients A Place To Heal

California hospitals must comply with a new state law that requires them to try to find a safe place for homeless patients upon discharge. But hospitals say doing so isn’t as easy as calling a shelter and securing a cot.

Fixing Surprise Medical Bill Problem Shouldn’t Fall To Consumers, Panel Told

Though a range of policy solutions have been discussed by Congress, the White House and other experts, a theme of a House subcommittee hearing Tuesday was that providers and insurers are key to correcting the issue.

Elite Hospitals Plunge Into Unproven Stem Cell Treatments

Critics are concerned about the explosion in controversial stem cell procedures offered by clinics — and, increasingly, respected hospitals.

California Hospitals See Massive Surge In Homeless Patients

Homeless patients accounted for about 100,000 visits to California hospitals in 2017, marking a 28% increase from just two years earlier. Health officials attribute the surge to the overall rise in California’s homeless numbers and the large proportion of people living on the streets with mental illness.

Suicide Risk Grew After Missouri Medicaid Kids Shifted To Managed Care, Hospitals Say

Psychiatric treatment for children in Medicaid managed-care plans in Missouri has declined and suicide risks are up, reveals a study sponsored by the state hospital association.

CMS Ignores Federal Judge Ruling To Approve Medicaid Work Rules in Utah

Work helps make people healthier, CMS chief Seema Verma said in approving Utah’s waiver request to tie government health benefits to employment or volunteer work. But Judge James Boasberg has said that isn’t the goal of Medicaid.

Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health’ Health Care’s Back (In Court)

It’s been a wild week for health policy, mostly because of developments surrounding two different legal cases. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Joanne Kenen of Politico and Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner join KHN’s Julie Rovner to sort it out with a discussion of a setback for Medicaid work requirements and the Trump administration’s decision to back a lawsuit claiming the entire Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional. Also, Rovner interviews filmmaker Mike Eisenberg about his movie “To Err Is Human: A Patient Safety Documentary.”

Health Officials’ Plug For Next FDA Chief: Go Big On E-Cig Regulation

With Scott Gottlieb making his exit from the Food and Drug Administration’s top spot, city and country health officials call for backup in the fight to curb teen use of e-cigarettes.

Federal Judge Again Blocks Medicaid Work Requirements

The decision applies only to Kentucky and Arkansas, and many experts expect the administration and other conservative states to continue to move forward on rules that would limit coverage for people who don’t work.

FDA Chief Calls For Release Of All Data Tracking Problems With Medical Devices

In the wake of a KHN investigation, Scott Gottlieb says releasing the records is in the public interest.