Latest California Healthline Stories
Federal Proposals Threaten Provider Taxes, Key Source of Medicaid Funding for States
Republican proposals to tighten the use of special taxes to fund Medicaid programs could deprive states of billions of dollars for safety net health care. In California, any such limit would come on top of Medicaid cuts proposed by California Democrats in response to a $12 billion state deficit.
Have Job-Based Health Coverage at 65? You May Still Want To Sign Up for Medicare
Patient advocates say they frequently hear from people who thought they didn’t need to sign up for Medicare when they turned 65 because they had group health coverage. That delay sometimes forces people to cover medical expenses themselves.
An Arm and a Leg: The Prescription Drug Playbook, Part I
In Part 1 of a two-part series on dealing with the high price of prescription drugs, a father explains the strategies he used to get his daughter the medicine she needs to treat her epilepsy.
The Price You Pay for an Obamacare Plan Could Surge Next Year
An estimated 4 million Americans will lose health insurance over the next decade if Congress doesn’t extend enhanced subsidies for Affordable Care Act marketplace coverage, which expire at the end of the year. Florida and Texas would see the biggest losses, in part because they have not expanded Medicaid eligibility.
‘MAGA’ Backers Like Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ — Until They Learn of Health Consequences
A new poll finds that most adults oppose the GOP bill that would extend many of President Donald Trump’s tax cuts while reducing spending on domestic programs including Medicaid. Most Trump backers support the plan until they learn that millions would lose health coverage and local hospitals would lose funding.
El precio que pagas por un plan del Obamacare podría aumentar el próximo año
Los subsidios mejorados durante la pandemia expiran a fines de 2025. Esto podría generar una catarata de aumentos que afectarían a los consumidores.
‘Not Accountable to Anyone’: As Insurers Issue Denials, Some Patients Run Out of Options
Health insurers issue millions of prior authorization denials every year, leaving many patients stuck in a convoluted appeals process, with little hope of meaningful policy change ahead. For doctors, these denials are frustrating and time-consuming. For patients, they can be devastating.
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': RFK Jr. Upends Vaccine Policy, After Promising He Wouldn’t
Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. this week did something he had promised not to do: He fired every member of the scientific advisory committee that recommends which vaccines should be given to whom. And he replaced them, in some cases, with vaccine skeptics. Meanwhile, hundreds of employees of the National Institutes of Health sent an open letter to the agency’s director, accusing the Trump administration of policies that “undermine the NIH mission.” Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.
‘One Big Beautiful Bill’ Would Batter Rural Hospital Finances, Researchers Say
Rural hospitals would take an outsize hit from Republicans’ proposed cuts to Medicaid and other federal health programs. Researchers say the financial erosion would trigger hospital closures and service cuts, especially in communities where large shares of patients are enrolled in Medicaid.
What Are ‘Improper’ Medicaid Payments, and Are They as High as a Trump Official Said?
The vast majority of improper payments stem from documentation mistakes and do not fit the definition of waste, fraud, or abuse. They also typically stem from health care providers’ actions, not beneficiaries’ abuse.