Cost and Quality

Latest California Healthline Stories

No Cash, No Heart. Transplant Centers Require Proof Of Payment.

The case of a Michigan woman who was told to fundraise $10,000 for a heart transplant sparked viral outrage, but experts say such “wallet biopsies” are common. A California mother has raised nearly $24,000 in a GoFundMe campaign to pay for costs related to her adult daughter’s second kidney transplant.

Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ Is Health Spending The Next Big Political Issue?

Diabetics dying because they can’t afford insulin. Organ transplant patients undergoing “wallet biopsies” to get on waiting lists. Are out-of-pocket costs going to dominate the health discussion in the next election? Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Joanne Kenen of Politico and Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss this as well as new Trump administration rules giving states the ability to make major changes to the Affordable Care Act. Also, lame-duck lawmakers in Wisconsin and Michigan try to cement health changes before Democrats take over.