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NPR
Shots - Health News
Demonstrators pray in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on July 8, a day the court ruled that employers with religious objections can decline to provide contraception coverage under the Affordable Care Act. With the death of Ruth Bader Ginsburg, the ACA's

The Future Of The Affordable Care Act In A Supreme Court Without Ginsburg

Sep 21, 2020
The death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg comes just as the Supreme Court was about to hear a case challenging the ACA. It could end Medicaid expansion and protections for preexisting conditions.
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NPR
Coronavirus Live Updates
Median household income rose sharply last year, while poverty declined to 10.5% — the lowest since records began in 1959, according to the Census Bureau.

American Incomes Were Rising, Until The Pandemic Hit

Sep 15, 2020
Median household income jumped to $68,700 in 2019, the highest since record-keeping began in 1967. Many of those gains have likely been erased this year, as the pandemic left tens of millions jobless.
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NPR
Shots - Health News
Los Angeles County last fall unveiled one of its 10 Department of Mental Health vans aimed at, among other things, reducing long waiting periods for the transport of individuals experiencing a mental health crisis.

California Poised To Strengthen Mental Health Insurance Laws

Sep 01, 2020
One of the strongest mental health parity laws in the U.S. is on the governor's desk. It aims to help more than 13 million Californians — including those with milder mental illness and addictions.
NPR
Shots - Health News
"Before the appendectomy, I was looking for property and homes to purchase, and that is pretty much completely off the table right now," says Shannon Harness, a veteran who was uninsured when he had two appendicitis-related surgeries in 2019. The bills a

Veteran's Appendectomy Launches Excruciating, Months-Long Battle Over Bill

Aug 25, 2020
An uninsured Colorado man who had appendicitis owed $80,232 after two surgeries. After months of negotiating with the hospital, he still owes far more than most insurers would pay for the procedures.
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NPR
Shots - Health News
Healthcare workers talk in the Covid-19 unit at United Memorial Medical Center in Houston, Texas in July.

In Texas, 2 Big Problems Collide: Uninsured People And An Uncontrolled Pandemic

Jul 28, 2020
Nearly 700,000 Texans have lost health insurance during the pandemic, and the state already had more uninsured people than any other. Many Texans with COVID-19 symptoms hesitate to seek treatment.
NPR
Shots - Health News
Vickie Gregorio with Heartland Workforce Solutions in Omaha, Neb., updates a whiteboard outside the workforce office as unemployed job seekers wait in line for help. A recent change in federal rules gives some people who have lost their health plan along

Rule Change Gives Laid-Off Workers More Time To Sign Up For COBRA Insurance

Jul 20, 2020
People who lose their job-based health plan usually get 60 days to decide to continue it — and pay more — under federal rules. But a recent pandemic-related rule change allows more decision time.
NPR
Shots - Health News
Carmen Quintero works as a supervisor at a distribution center for N95 masks. She owes $1,840 for other care she received when she tried to get a coronavirus test.

Essential Worker Shoulders $1,840 Debt For Trying To Get A Coronavirus Test

Jun 30, 2020
Carmen Quintero couldn't get a coronavirus test but ended up with a huge bill for trying to. She also was told to self-isolate and had no choice but to use vacation time to stay home from work.
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NPR
Shots - Health News
Some cities, such as Washington, D.C. are offering free coronavirus testing for people who've attended protests. Where free tests aren't available, some people may find insurance refuses to cover precautionary testing.

Insurers May Only Pay For Coronavirus Tests When They're 'Medically Necessary'

Jun 19, 2020
Congress required health plans to fully cover COVID-19 testing, but insurance companies are starting to argue they should only have to pay if patients show symptoms or tests are ordered by a doctor.
NPR
Faces Of The Coronavirus Recession
Liz McLemore spent weeks trying to enroll in a health plan after being laid off and losing her job-based coverage. "You just got to fight through," she says.

She Lost Her Job And Health Insurance And Had To 'Fight' To Get A New Plan

Jun 09, 2020
Like millions of others, Liz McLemore always got her health insurance coverage through her job. In April, she suddenly had to figure out how to find coverage in the middle of a pandemic.
NPR
Shots - Health News
The IRS has announced that with employer approval, employees will be allowed to add, drop or alter some of their benefits — including flexible spending account contributions — for the remainder of 2020.

IRS Rule Shift Lets Workers Make Benefits Changes Midyear — If Their Employer Agrees

May 29, 2020
The new guidance amounts to a midyear open-enrollment period and applies to firms that buy health insurance to cover their workers as well as to those that self-insure — paying claims on their own.
NPR
Shots - Health News
With physician offices not seeing patients with COVID-19 symptoms in April, Timothy Regan said he had little choice when Denver Health directed him first to its urgent care facility and then to its emergency room. "I felt bad, but I had been dealing with

ER Visit For COVID-19 Symptoms Stuck Man With A $3,278 Bill

May 26, 2020
A dad in Denver tried to do everything right when COVID-19 symptoms surfaced. But he got a surprising bill from his insurer, which had waived cost sharing for treatment of the coronavirus infection.
NPR
Shots - Health News
As millions of Americans have lost their jobs, Congress is trying to figure out what to do to help those who have also lost their health insurance.

Coronavirus Conundrum: How To Cover Millions Who Lost Their Jobs And Health Insurance

May 04, 2020
Over 9 million Americans have lost both their job and health coverage. To help them, COBRA is an option, but it could cost buyers more than if subsidies were increased for Affordable Care Act plans.
NPR
Shots - Health News
Despite recent changes in insurance policy, some patients say doctors and insurers are charging them upfront for video appointments and phone calls — not just copays but sometimes the entire cost of the visit, even if it's covered by insurance.

Patients Are Being Billed For Some Phone Chats With Doctors That Used To Be Free

Apr 27, 2020
As part of their social distancing policies, elected leaders suggested phone and video medical appointments would be covered by health insurance. So why are some patients paying $70 per virtual visit?
NPR
Shots - Health News
A January report found that 40% of U.S. counties don't have a single health care provider approved to prescribe buprenorphine, a medicine integral to helping many patients beat opioid addiction. Permitting more-distant doctors to evaluate patients online

Coronavirus Crisis Spurs Access To Online Treatment For Opioid Addiction

Apr 20, 2020
The federal government has waived a law that required an in-person doctor's visit before patients could be prescribed drugs that quell withdrawal symptoms. That's a boon for patients, counselors say.
NPR
Shots - Health News
Former Vice President Joe Biden at a press conference in Wilmington, Del., in mid-March. His bid this week to allow 60-year-olds to get Medicare "reflects the reality," he says, "that, even after the current crisis ends, older Americans are likely to fin

Biden's Health Play In A COVID-19 Economy: Lower Medicare's Eligibility Age To 60

Apr 11, 2020
Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden proposes letting 60-year-olds enroll in Medicare. He'd pay for the expansion out of general tax revenue, he says, not the Medicare fund.
KNPR
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Health Insurance Options Open, Responding To COVID-19 Crisis

Apr 10, 2020

On March 5, Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak adopted 

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NPR
Shots - Health News
A patient with suspected COVID-19 arrives at Maimonides Medical Center in Brooklyn in early April. Even as the risk of big medical bills climbs, many Americans are losing their jobs and health insurance right now.

Coronavirus Reset: How To Get Health Insurance Now

Apr 03, 2020
At least 27 million Americans who lost their jobs in recent weeks also lost their health insurance, a new report finds. Others lacked a health plan even before COVID-19 hit. Here's how to find help.
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NPR
Coronavirus Live Updates
Medical staff move bodies from the Wyckoff Heights Medical Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., Thursday to a refrigerated truck.

FACT CHECK: Money-To-Hospitals Plan To Treat Coronavirus Patients Could Face Problems

Apr 02, 2020
Instead of reopening health care exchanges for those who don't qualify for Medicaid and don't have employer-based insurance, Trump is proposing paying hospitals directly. But it might not be enough.
NPR
Shots - Health News
Aetna was the first insurer to announce its plan to help shield patients with COVID-19 from high medical bills. But out-of-network charges and other surprise bills remain a risk, say advocates for patients.

Some Insurers Waive Patients' Share Of Costs For COVID-19 Treatment

Mar 30, 2020
Aetna, Cigna and Humana now say they will waive most treatment costs associated with COVID-19 that would normally be picked up by patients enrolled in their health plans. Will other firms follow suit?
NPR
Shots - Health News
An expanding number of state health exchanges are reopening enrollment this month to help uninsured residents gain coverage during the COVID-19 pandemic.

9 States Reopen ACA Insurance Enrollment To Broaden Health Coverage

Mar 20, 2020
Some state exchanges have begun allowing new enrollment to help ease consumers' worry about health care costs. It's also so the uninsured won't inadvertently spread the coronavirus by avoiding care.
NPR
Shots - Health News
In light of the spread of COVID-19, some U.S. health insurers have begun to allow patients to order a larger emergency supply of their routine medicines for diabetes, heart disease and other chronic conditions.

How To Boost Your Emergency Supply Of Prescription Medicines

Mar 09, 2020
Insurers have begun easing restrictions on refills of some prescription drugs, in light of coronavirus. Still, co-pays for stocking up on that bigger supply can be prohibitive, say consumer advocates.
NPR
Shots - Health News
Hartford is home to the Connecticut State Capitol and state legislature — as well as to major U.S. insurance firms. In 2019, those insurers spent what it took to defeat Connecticut's version of a "public option" in health care, despite strong support a

Insurers Sank Connecticut's 'Public Option.' Would A National Version Survive?

Feb 26, 2020
Even in a solidly blue state where voters were demanding relief from the high cost of health care, the idea of a government-run public option for health insurance faced a "steam train of opposition."
NPR
Shots - Health News
A drug implant was prescribed for an active 8-year-old girl diagnosed with central precocious puberty. The price of one option was thousands of dollars less than the other.

Hormone Blocker Sticker Shock: Kids Drug Costs 8 Times More Than One For Adults

Feb 24, 2020
Two nearly identical drug implants have very different prices. The one for kids has a list price of $37,300. For adults, it's $4,400. A dad fought for his daughter to be able to get the cheaper drug.
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NPR
Shots - Health News
James Mark (center) inside his restaurant Big King, along with cooks (from left) Oscar Lange, Emily Joslyn, Peter Kachmarsky and JC Kuvaszko. Mark employs fewer than 50 people so isn't required to provide health benefits. But it helps with staff retentio

A Top Restaurateur Thinks Single-Payer Health Care Could Boost His Bottom Line

Feb 04, 2020
Offering health benefits can help elite restaurants hire and keep ace employees. But owners would rather focus on great food, they say, than drown in administrative costs. Is single-payer the answer?
NPR
Shots - Health News
Sure, you can shoot your doctor an email, or hit the urgent care clinic when you have a sore throat. But those convenient alternatives may be less likely than regular visits to a primary provider to catch symptoms that ebb and flow, yet might signal a la

As Out-Of-Pocket Health Costs Rise, Insured Adults Are Seeking Less Primary Care

Feb 03, 2020
When's the last time you checked in with your primary care provider? U.S. adults under age 65 made nearly 25% fewer visits to primary care providers in 2016 than in 2008, a big study finds.

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