Astronomical hospital bills are a trope of American health care. Hospitals in the US are known for charging exorbitant fees for simple procedures, and for adding baffling entries to discharge bills. Notorious examples include the woman who was charged $40 to hold her newbo...
medicaid
Ruling Striking Down Obamacare Moves Health Debate to Center Stage
A Texas judge’s ruling that the Affordable Care Act is unconstitutional may not stand, but it will elevate health care as a pressing topic in a divided Washington.
When it comes to longevity, we should look to the East, not the West
This story is part of What Happens Next, our complete guide to understanding the future. Read more predictions about the Future of Aging.
The longevity era has arrived—and it looks different to your grandparents’ generation.
If you’re 65 ...
Arkansas moves to cut Medicaid funds to health facilities serving elderly, people with disabilities
The Arkansas state legislature advanced a proposal Monday that would slash Medicaid payments to assisted living facilities that provide services to the elderly and individuals with disabilities — a move that continues the state’s assault on the public health insurance program designed for low-income people.
Lawmakers advanced the legislation in a joint meeting of the House and Senate public health committees, choosing to move forward even after a variety of providers and indiv...
The Supreme Court just gave us its first view of how it will handle abortion in the Kavanaugh era
The Supreme Court handed down a surprising order on Monday, announcing it will not hear a pair of cases asking, among other things, how much power conservative states have to defund Planned Parenthood. The order is surprising because, as Justice Clarence Thomas notes in a dissent joined by Justices Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch, the two cases meet the ordinary criteria the Supreme Court uses to determine which cases it should hear.
“One of this Court’s primary functions is to ...
Wisconsin’s GOP power grab will have devastating consequences for health care
Wisconsin’s GOP-controlled, lame-duck legislature is trying to disparage the powers of incoming Democratic Gov. Tony Evers and Attorney General Josh Kaul, preventing the elected officials from keeping key campaign promises on health care.
The blue wave came to Wisconsin after residents rejected union-busting, anti-Obamacare Gov. Scott Walker (R) in November. But now, GOP state lawmakers are trying to secure their conservative agenda. On Tuesday, the legislature is scheduled to...
Coalition releases plan to end U.S. HIV epidemic by 2025
In advance of World AIDS Day Saturday, a coalition of HIV/AIDS advocacy organizations have laid out a detailed plan to end the U.S. HIV epidemic by 2025.
The new roadmap sets ambitious goals for treatment and prevention and calls upon lawmakers to enact the kinds of changes that will help achieve them.
What that looks like is meeting what is called the “95/95/95” framework:
- 95 percent of people who have HIV are aware of their status.
- 95 perce...
US rate of uninsured children increases for the first time in nearly a decade
Nearly four million children in the United States are uninsured, the highest rate in nearly a decade.
The latest data, released by Georgetown University’s Center for Children and Families on Thursday, reflects an unprecedented increase in the number of children without health insurance, at a time when the Trump administration continues its assault on health care by chipping away at the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
The Georgetown report found that approximately 276,000 more chi...
Maine’s Gov. LePage uses final days in office to resist expanding Medicaid
Gov. Paul LePage (R-ME) will leave office in January — but not before using his final few months in the governor’s mansion to resisting providing health care to an additional 70,000 low-income Mainers.
A Maine judge ordered LePage this week to follow through on expanding the Medicaid program in the state, setting a December 5 deadline for the state to make meaningful progress on setting up the health care expansion.
It’s the latest development in a protracte...
After federal court blocks Kentucky’s Medicaid work requirements, Trump admin reapproves them
The Trump administration permitted Kentucky again to require low-income people to report at least 80 hours of work or community engagement per month or lose coverage for six months, even after a federal judge blocked the state’s proposal over the summer.
A U.S. district court judge called Kentucky’s proposal, which includes work rules, “arbitrary and capricious” in June, noting that officials never adequately considered whether the plan actually provided cove...