The tax on an employer's generous health plan — originally envisioned as a way to get patients to avoid unneeded care — has never been implemented. Now Congress is considering a bipartisan repeal.
The administration's rules would require hospitals to provide far more detail about the actual prices they charge insurers for medical care. Would patients welcome the data, or feel overwhelmed?
This week, NPR profiled a Montana man who was billed nearly half a million dollars for 14 weeks of dialysis, after being caught in a dispute between insurer and the dialysis provider. Now he owes $0.
A federal audit and a whistleblower lawsuit allege that Medicare Advantage plans from the St. Louis-based Essence Group Holdings Corp. have significantly overcharged taxpayers.
A personal trainer in Montana had a sudden need for lifesaving dialysis after his kidneys failed. But he and his wife never expected the huge bill they received for 14 weeks of care.
The Biden plan released this week is an update of the Affordable Care Act with controversial differences. Among them: a "public option" that covers abortion, and subsidized premiums for more people.
The federal government wants to deploy several new tools for catching insurers that have overcharged Medicare $30 billion in the past three years alone. But the insurance industry is balking.
In January, California expects to enroll 138,000 undocumented, low-income residents under age 26 in the state's version of Medicaid. But young adults say their parents need health care coverage, too.
Advances in online tech are revolutionizinghealth care, with patients now emailing doctors, filling prescriptions or even getting therapy via a video session.But what if you can't afford broadband?
A pricing tool embedded in many prescribing and medical records systems lets doctors see how much each patient is likely to pay out of pocket for medicine. But the tools could be better, doctors say.
After an investigation by journalists found the Methodist hospital system had filed 8,300 lawsuits in five years, the hospital announced it will be "reviewing" its policies in the next 30 days.
The median air ambulance bill is more than $36,000 and is seldom covered by health plans. So far, legislative hurdles and industry pressure have kept Congress from stepping in.
Washington passed a law this week to create a new kind of public health insurance. It could inspire other states to try such a plan, but consumers might be in for a reality check.
A bipartisan group of senators has been working on a plan to protect patients from unexpected medical bills. Disagreements within the health care industry could thwart those efforts.
The average deductible for employer-sponsored health insurance has quadrupled in the last 12 years. A Los Angeles Times investigation finds even insured workers are going without needed medical care.
Her employer offered only a high-deductible health plan; that meant she'd have to pay up to $6,000 out of pocket each year. Advocates for patients say this sort of underinsurance is snatching lives.
These job-based programs can motivate employees to make some changes in behavior, research finds, but they don't seem to move the dial on workers' health status or employer spending on health care.
"Medicare for America" would stop short of a full-blown expansion of Medicare. It would include copays from patients and a role for insurers. Could it survive health care's politics?
The Senate Finance Committee will hear Tuesday from executives from the biggest pharmacy benefit managers. Confidential rebates paid to the PBMs are expected to draw scrutiny.
Surprise billing is one of the rare public policy issues that are both bipartisan and in need of a federal solution. A hearing on Capitol Hill looked to insurers and providers to help figure it out.
After a sports injury, Esteban Serrano owed $829.41 for a knee brace purchased with insurance through his doctor's office. The same kind of brace costs less than $250 online.
Some states have begun using Medicare reimbursement rates to recalibrate how they pay hospitals. If the gamble pays off, more private-sector employers could start doing the same thing.
Although federal law prohibits health insurance plans from discriminating against transgender individuals, a Georgia county specifically excludes trans-related health care from coverage.
Well-known insurers are selling new sorts of health plans outside the Affordable Care Act exchanges that may sound cheaper but aren't necessarily. Some, for example, charge extra for common surgeries.
Critics question claims by federal officials that CanaRX jeopardizes patient safety. Many U.S. companies, cities, counties and school districts rely on the firm to help employees get cheaper medicine.
