KFF Health News’ ‘What the Health?’: The Campaign’s Final Days
The Host Emmarie Huetteman KFF Health News Emmarie Huetteman, senior editor, oversees a team of Washington reporters, as well as “Bill of the Month” and KFF Health News’ “What the Health?” She previously spent more than a decade reporting on the federal government, most recently covering surprise medical bills, drug pricing reform, and other health policy debates…
Ghosts, Ghouls, and Ghastly Drug Prices in Winning Halloween Haikus
If you dare, feast your eyes on this year’s winners of KFF Health News’ sixth annual Halloween Haiku contest. We received more than four dozen spooky submissions but only a few bubbled to the top of the cauldron. Here’s the winner and the top runners-up, illustrated by Oona Zenda. The judges’ favorites were inspired by…
Toddler’s Backyard Snakebite Bills Totaled More Than a Quarter Million Dollars
This spring, a few days after his 2nd birthday, Brigland Pfeffer was playing with his siblings in their San Diego backyard. His mother, Lindsay Pfeffer, was a few feet away when Brigland made a noise and came running from the stone firepit, holding his right hand. She noticed a pinprick of blood between his thumb…
For People With Opioid Addiction, Medicaid ‘Unwinding’ Raises the Stakes
CITRUS COUNTY, Fla. — It was hard enough for Stephanie to get methadone treatment when she moved to Florida from Indiana last year. The nearest clinic was almost an hour’s drive away and she couldn’t drive herself. But at least she didn’t have to worry about the cost of care. As a parent with young…
Florida Medical Device Maker Exactech Declares Bankruptcy
Exactech, a Florida device manufacturer that faces more than 2,000 state and federal lawsuits from patients who allege the company sold defective hip and knee implants, filed for bankruptcy protection Tuesday. The Gainesville-based company said in a statement it was restructuring and would be sold to an investor group of private equity and “alternative asset”…
‘Dreamers’ Can Enroll in ACA Plans This Year — But a Court Challenge Could Get in the Way
When open enrollment for the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, starts nationwide this week, a group that had previously been barred from signing up will be eligible for the first time: The “Dreamers.” That’s the name given to children brought to the United States without immigration paperwork who have since qualified for the Deferred Action…
Where Medicaid unwinding and disenrollments stand at the one-year mark
In this article The Medicaid unwinding process National disenrollment totals at a glance Disenrollments will likely be higher than projected How many people have had their Medicaid renewed? Why have states disenrolled Medicaid beneficiaries? What should I do if I’ve been procedurally disenrolled? What should I do if I’m no longer eligible for Medicaid? How…
How a Proposed Federal Heat Rule Might Have Saved These Workers’ Lives
On a sweltering afternoon in July 2020, Belinda Ramones got a call that her brother was in the hospital. The call was from a woman at the Florida landscaping business that he had joined that week, the Davey Tree Expert Co., Ramones said. By the time she arrived, she said, “My brother was swollen up…
Six ways federal rule changes might affect Marketplace enrollees
In this article Open enrollment start dates will be standardized in state exchanges Special enrollment period effective dates will be standardized It will be easier for states to add to their essential health benefit requirements States will be allowed to add adult dental to essential health benefits, starting in 2027 The low-income special enrollment period…
Black Americans Still Suffer Worse Health. Here’s Why There’s So Little Progress
KINGSTREE, S.C. — One morning in late April, a small brick health clinic along the Thurgood Marshall Highway bustled with patients. There was Joshua McCray, 69, a public bus driver who, four years after catching covid-19, still is too weak to drive. Louvenia McKinney, 77, arrived complaining about shortness of breath. Ponzella McClary brought her…