Private Medicare, Medicaid Plans Exaggerate In-Network Mental Health Options, Watchdogs Say
Companies running private Medicare and Medicaid insurance plans inaccurately list many mental health professionals as being available to treat the plans’ members, a new federal watchdog report says. The investigators allege that some insurers effectively set up “ghost networks” of psychologists, psychiatrists, and other mental health professionals who purportedly have agreed to treat patients covered […]
KFF Health News’ ‘What the Health?’: Schrödinger’s Government Shutdown
The Host Democrats and Republicans are both facing potential political consequences in their continuing standoff over federal government funding. Republicans are likely to face a voter backlash if they refuse to agree to Democrats’ demands that they renew additional tax credits for Affordable Care Act marketplace plans, since the majority of those facing premium hikes […]
AARP Urges Seniors to Review Medicare Plans During Open Enrollment
WASHINGTON — AARP is urging seniors to review their Medicare plan options during this year’s Medicare Open Enrollment period (October 15 – December 7, 2025) to determine the coverage that best meets their needs for 2026, and that their doctors, hospitals, and prescription drugs are covered by their plan selected. “Medicare Open Enrollment is the […]
RFK Jr. Misses Mark in Touting Rural Health Transformation Fund as Historic Infusion of Cash
“It’s going to be the biggest infusion of federal dollars into rural health care in American history.” Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Sept. 4, 2025, in a Senate hearing At a September Senate hearing, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. boasted about a rural health initiative within President Donald Trump’s “One Big […]
Journalists Dig Into Government Shutdown and Rural Doctor Drought
KFF Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner appeared on CNN’s “Quest Means Business” to discuss the Affordable Care Act subsidies at the core of the government shutdown on Oct. 2. Rovner also appeared on NPR’s “Morning Edition” to discuss the subsidies on Oct. 7. KFF Health News South Carolina correspondent Lauren Sausser discussed a […]
KFF Health News’ ‘What the Health?’: Starting To Feel the Shutdown’s Bite
The Host It’s not yet clear how the federal government shutdown will end, but Democrats are continuing to draw attention to the issue they are promoting — the coming expiration of additional subsidies for Affordable Care Act insurance plans. Some Republicans are now going public with their worries about the huge cost increases many of […]
KFF Health News’ ‘What the Health?’: Democrats Make This Shutdown About the ACA
The Host As long predicted, much of the federal government shut down on Oct. 1, after Congress failed to agree on spending bills that keep most programs running. Republicans need at least a handful of Democratic votes to pass spending bills in the Senate. In exchange, Democrats demanded Republicans renew expanded premium subsidies for Affordable […]
AI Will Soon Have a Say in Approving or Denying Medicare Treatments
Taking a page from the private insurance industry’s playbook, the Trump administration will launch a program next year to find out how much money an artificial intelligence algorithm could save the federal government by denying care to Medicare patients. The pilot program, designed to weed out wasteful, “low-value” services, amounts to a federal expansion of […]
KFF Health News’ ‘What the Health?’: Public Health Further Politicized Under the Threat of More Firings
The Host In a highly unusual White House news conference this week, President Donald Trump — without evidence — boldly blamed the painkiller Tylenol and a string of childhood vaccines for causing a recent rise in autism. That came just days after the newly reconstituted Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices, now populated with vaccine skeptics […]
Health Care Cuts Threaten Homegrown Solutions to Rural Doctor Shortages
CHICO, Calif. — Olivia Owlett chose to do her primary care residency in this Northern California college town largely because it faces many of the same health care challenges she grew up with. Owlett is one of four residents in the inaugural class of a three-year family medicine residency program run by the local nonprofit […]