Billing experts and lawmakers are playing catch-up as providers find ways to get around new surprise-billing laws, leaving patients like Danielle Laskey of Washington state with big bills for emergency care.
Category: Hospitals
Outpatient Visits Are Growing More Complex: Implications for Health Costs
This analysis for the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker uses claims data from private, large employer-based plan to examine trends in complexity coding across outpatient practice settings from 2004 to 2021. It finds a trend toward higher complexity co…
Readers and Tweeters Urgently Plea for a Proper ‘Role’ Call in the ER
KHN gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
Rural Hospitals Have Fared Worse Financially in States that Haven’t Expanded Medicaid Coverage
Rural hospitals fared worse financially in states that have not expanded their Medicaid programs under the Affordable Care Act than in states that expanded Medicaid, a new KFF analysis finds. Nearly one third of all rural hospitals nationally are in th…
Rural Hospitals Face Renewed Financial Challenges, Especially in States That Have Not Expanded Medicaid
This data note examines rural hospitals’ operating margins in recent years. After seeing higher margins early in the pandemic, likely due to government relief funds, rural hospitals now face renewed challenges, especially in states that have not expand…
California Requires Hospitals to Turn to a Patient’s Next of Kin, Closing a Longtime Loophole
A state law establishes a list of representatives who can make medical decisions for patients unable to convey their wishes. California is late to making the change; 45 other states and the District of Columbia already have next-of-kin laws.
Your Money or Your Life: Patient on $50,000-a-Week Cancer Drug Fears Leaving Behind Huge Medical Debt
When Medicare stops paying for a pricey drug that prolongs life, an Ohio man considers giving up treatment to spare his family enormous debt.
Montana’s Tax-Exempt Hospitals Oppose Increased Oversight by State Officials
As Montana officials seek to make nonprofit hospitals prove the benefits they provide the community justify their tax exemptions, industry leaders propose their own changes — which state officials say would further limit the state’s authority.
Doctors Are Disappearing From Emergency Rooms as Hospitals Look to Cut Costs
As a money-saving strategy, emergency rooms are turning to nurse practitioners, physician assistants, and other staffers who earn far less than physicians.
Analysis: Inconsistencies Within Hospital Price Transparency Data Make Cost Comparisons Difficult
Since 2021, federal law has required hospitals to publicly post information about their standard prices and negotiated discount rates for common health services to encourage consumers to compare prices and to promote competition. To date, however, the …
