Kaiser Health News
By teaming with community organizations, doctors and hospitals can deliver high-quality care at good value to disadvantaged people at risk for poor health, according to a new report from a panel of experts.
Sutter Health, long accused of abusing its market power in California, is squaring off against major U.S. employers in a closely watched legal fight over healthcare competition and high prices.
Medical errors are estimated to be the third-highest cause of death in the country. Experts and patient safety advocates are trying to change that. But at least one of the tools that's been considered a fix isn't yet working as well as it should, suggests a report released Thursday.
Nearly a third of people without health insurance, about 10 million, live in families that received a federal earned income tax credit (EITC) in 2014, according to a new study. But the Internal Revenue Service doesn't tell those tax filers that their low and moderate incomes likely mean their households qualify for Medicaid or subsidies to buy coverage on the insurance exchanges. That's a lost opportunity to identify people who are eligible but not receiving government assistance to gain health coverage, the researchers say.
As patient-centered medical care has taken hold in recent years, there's been a growing interest in finding ways to use outcomes reported by individuals to help guide care.
In a few months, California will begin providing full Medi-Cal coverage to all low-income children -- regardless of their immigration status.
UnitedHealthcare is betting $65 million that it can profit by making primary care more attractive.
Tucked in remarks the president made Tuesday on the opioid epidemic was his announcement of a new task force on mental health parity -- aimed at ensuring that people with mental illnesses and substance abuse problems don't face discrimination in the health care system.
More wages, less health insurance. In a recent survey, one in five people with employer-based coverage said they would opt for fewer health benefits if they could get a bump in their wages. That's double the percentage who said they would make that choice in 2012.
Many states -- including some that have been hardest hit by the opioid crisis -- don't know how many of their youngest residents each year are born physically dependent on those drugs.