Latest California Healthline Stories
How Helping Patients Get Good Care At Home Helps Rural Hospitals Survive
Hospitals are now financially rewarded by insurers for safety and efficacy — which often results in patients spending less time as inpatients.
After Bitter Closure, Rural Texas Hospital Defies The Norm And Reopens
The 25-bed hospital in Crockett, Texas, abruptly closed its doors in 2017, joining the ranks of nearly 100 rural hospitals that have shut down in the past decade. But the community kept the faith and several doctors reopened the facility this year.
As Hospitals Post Sticker Prices Online, Most Patients Will Remain Befuddled
The new rule took effect Jan. 1 but, for consumers seeking hospital price information, using it to find answers may be like searching for a needle in a haystack.
Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ Ask Us Anything!
From Medicare dental coverage to drug prices to fetal tissue research, the panelists answer listeners’ questions. Joanne Kenen of Politico, Stephanie Armour of The Wall Street Journal and Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post join KHN’s Julie Rovner.
Refund On The Way To Latest ‘Bill Of The Month’ Patient
Ski buff Sarah Witter will get $6,358.26 back from her hospital and insurer after a careful review of her bill following the KHN-NPR story on her case.
Year One Of KHN’s ‘Bill Of The Month’: A Kaleidoscope Of Financial Challenges
A crowdsourced investigation in which we dissect, investigate and explain medical bills you send us.
Taking Surprise Medical Bills To Court
Some legal experts say contract law could provide consumers another avenue to challenge unexpected hospital bills.
After Her Skiing Accident, An Uphill Battle Over Snowballing Bills
She took a bad fall on the slopes and her surgeon used a metal plate to put the splintered bones of her leg back together. When that device failed less than four months later, she and her insurer had to pay full price for the replacement plate.
Health Care Industry ‘Pays Tribute’ To California’s Influential Lawmakers
The leaders of California’s legislative health committees who wield power over state health policy have been showered with money from the health care sector, with drug companies, health plans, hospitals and doctors providing nearly 40 percent of their 2017-18 campaign funds.
Feds Join Lawsuit Alleging Sutter Health Padded Revenue With False Patient Data
The whistleblower complaint says that Sutter, one of the largest health systems in the U.S., exaggerated how sick certain Medicare patients were in order to collect higher payments from the government-funded program.