Nearly 2 million more Americans were uninsured in 2018 than in the previous year, according to the Census Bureau’s annual report. Plus, the Trump administration announced plans to ban flavored vape liquids, and Congress is back and working to address high prescription drug prices and “surprise” medical bills. This week, Joanne Kenen of Politico, Tami Luhby of CNN and Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.
Almost 80% of Americans support efforts in Congress to protect patients from bills that come from doctors or hospitals that were outside their insurance network.
Wyoming is taking on expensive air ambulance bills by trying to expand Medicaid to cover transport for all patients. This is a big change: a red state seeking to control what’s been a growing free-market bonanza.
A case of questionable logic.
A case of questionable logic.
A House committee approved its version of legislation to solve the problem of surprise medical bills. But the measure includes a key provision that’s got less support in the Senate.
Most patients don’t argue when their health insurance won’t cover treatment or medication, but they should: Consumers win about half of their appeals. The process can sometimes be overwhelming, but there are ways to prepare and get help.
California lawmakers on Wednesday pulled legislation that would have protected some patients from surprise medical bills for emergency care, citing opposition from hospitals. They vowed to resurrect the bill next year.
Democratic presidential candidates disagreed on how to fix health care in their first debate Wednesday, although they all called for boosting insurance coverage and lowering prices. Meanwhile, the Trump administration is keeping health care in the news, too, with a new plan to make medical prices more available to the public. Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal, Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call and Anna Edney of Bloomberg News join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss this, plus the latest in news about bipartisan progress on catch-all legislation to address “surprise” medical bills. Plus, Rovner interviews NPR’s Jon Hamilton about the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month” installment.
The measure also includes a range of provisions designed to address health care costs.
