The GOP health care bill will make it harder for rural hospitals to keep their doors open

As Congress continues to debate the last-ditch Republican effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act (ACA), the deadline to permanently renew funding for rural hospitals faced with high costs and limited resources may go unnoticed.

Hundreds of qualifying rural hospitals rely on payments provided by the Medicare Dependent Hospital (MDH) and the Low Volume Hospital Adjustment (LVHA) programs, both of which expire on September 30. Rep. Tom Reed (R-NY) introduced the Rural Hos...

All the lies Sen. Cassidy told about his health bill after Jimmy Kimmel called him out as a liar

Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-LA) has a truth-telling problem.

After late night host Jimmy Kimmel delivered an impassioned monologue Tuesday night, saying Cassidy “lied right to my face” when he told Kimmel that every American should have certain health benefits, Cassidy appeared on all three cable news networks Wednesday morning to defend himself. The senator spent those interviews unleashing a blizzard of untruths so thick with new falsehoods that it was difficult to keep track...

Republican congressman blames opioid crisis on Medicaid

Republican Congressman Jim Renacci (OH) argued this week that Medicaid expansion in Ohio and other states may have caused the current opioid crisis ravaging the country. His comments come just ahead of a highly-anticipated vote on the Graham-Cassidy heath care bill, which would end Medicaid expansion and, eventually, the entire program.

“Medicaid was, in some ways, the driver of this opioid addiction,” Renacci said, in an interview on WAKR radio. “…If [the ex...

The GOP’s on the verge of passing a bill that will phase out Medicaid in its entirety

Senate Republicans are on the cusp of passing a bill that will eliminate hundreds of billions of dollars worth of health funding, destabilize insurance markets, and eventually phase out Medicaid in its entirety. Less than two months after three Republican senators stopped an earlier effort to strip away much of America’s health care safety net, millions of Americans’ health care is now in very serious peril.

The new Trumpcare legislation — often referred to as R...

A doctor on the front lines describes Medicaid’s role in the opioid crisis

For decades, the residents of Baltimore, have been dying from opioid overdoses and have been incarcerated due to addiction.

“There’s no doubt that the opioid epidemic is worse than before, but it’s not a new problem,” says Baltimore City Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen. “I do think there are elements of racial inequalities, racial disparities, racial discrimination, and that needs to be taken into account.”

Baltimore has been a leader among localitie...