Latest California Healthline Stories
Listen: What Our 2-Year-Long Investigation Into Medical Debt Reveals
An award-winning project by KFF Health News and NPR found that at least 100 million people in the United States are saddled with medical bills they cannot pay — and exposed a health care system that systematically pushes people into debt.
Watch: She Had a Home and a Good-Paying Job. Then Illness and Debt Upended It All.
A chronic health diagnosis and medical debt reordered Sharon Woodward’s life.
Social Security Clawbacks Hit a Million More People Than Agency Chief Told Congress
More than 2 million people a year have been sent notices that Social Security overpaid them and demanding they repay the money. That’s twice as many as the head of Social Security disclosed at a congressional hearing in October.
‘Forever Chemicals’ Found in Freshwater Fish, Yet Most States Don’t Warn Residents
At least 17 states have issued PFAS-related fish consumption advisories, California Healthline found. But with no federal guidance, what is considered safe to eat varies significantly among states, most of which provide no regulation.
In Congress, Calls Mount for Social Security to Address Clawbacks
In the wake of a KFF Health News-Cox Media Group investigation, U.S. lawmakers are asking what Social Security will do about its demands on their constituents to repay money already distributed — and sometimes in error. Sen. Rick Scott called the agency’s actions “unacceptable.”
Out for Blood: For Routine Lab Work, the Hospital Billed Her $2,400
Convenient as it may be, beware of getting your blood drawn at a hospital. The cost could be much higher than at an independent lab, and your insurance might not cover it all.
New Social Security Report Shows Growing Overpayment Problem Tops $23B
Social Security has been overpaying recipients for years, then demanding the money back, leaving people with bills for up to tens of thousands of dollars or more.
Biden Pick to Lead Social Security Pledges Action on ‘Heartbreaking’ Clawbacks
At a Senate confirmation hearing, former Maryland Gov. Martin O’Malley said he would address hardships the Social Security agency has caused by demanding money back from beneficiaries.
Medical Debt Is Disappearing From Americans’ Credit Reports, Lifting Scores
As credit rating agencies have removed small unpaid medical bills from consumer credit, scores have gone up, a new study finds.
Gubernatorial Candidates Quarrel Over Glory for Winning Opioid Settlements
Some gubernatorial candidates are sparring over bragging rights for their state’s share of $50 billion in opioid settlement funds. Many of the candidates are attorneys general who pursued the lawsuits that produced the payouts.