Latest 国产麻豆精品Health News Stories
A Call for Comfort Brought the Police Instead. Now the Solution Is in Danger.
Emotionally overwhelmed, an Indiana woman dialed a mental health hotline. She didn鈥檛 find the help she was looking for and hung up. Ultimately, she was handcuffed and hospitalized overnight. Now, amid federal cuts, she and others fear the U.S. response to similar crises will revert to more responses like that.
In New York, Providers Must Put Patient Costs on the Table
The governor鈥檚 fiscal year 2026 budget revises a law designed to limit unexpected bills that can put people at risk for unfair medical billing practices and reduce medical debt. Consumer groups say it doesn鈥檛 go far enough.
Trump Vowed To End Surprise Medical Bills. The Office Working on That Just Got Slashed.
The Trump administration鈥檚 first round of sweeping staff cuts to federal agencies eliminated dozens of positions at the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight, which is tasked with implementing the No Surprises Act.
A Runner Was Hit by a Car, Then by a Surprise Ambulance Bill
A San Francisco man had friends drive him to the hospital after he was hit by a car. Doctors checked him out, then sent him by ambulance to a trauma center 鈥 which released him with no further treatment. The ambulance bill? Almost $13,000.
Native American Patients Are Sent to Collections for Debts the Government Owes
Federal law says Native Americans aren鈥檛 liable for medical bills the Indian Health Service promises to pay. Some are billed anyway as a result of backlogs or mistakes from the agency, financial middlemen, or health systems.
Removing a Splinter? Treating a Wart? If a Doctor Does It, It Can Be Billed as Surgery
Minor interventions are increasingly being rebranded and billed as surgery, for profit. This means a neurologist spending 40 minutes with a patient to tease out a diagnosis can be paid less for that time than a dermatologist spending a few seconds squirting a dollop of liquid nitrogen onto the skin.
Toddler鈥檚 Backyard Snakebite Bills Totaled More Than a Quarter Million Dollars
For snakebite victims, antivenom is critical 鈥 and costly. It took more than $200,000 worth of antivenom to save one toddler鈥檚 life after he was bitten by a rattlesnake.
An Arm and a Leg: Don鈥檛 Get 鈥楤ullied鈥 Into Paying What You Don鈥檛 Owe
In this episode of 鈥淎n Arm and a Leg,鈥 host Dan Weissmann speaks with Caitlyn Mai, a woman in Oklahoma who received a six-figure bill for a surgery her insurance promised to cover. This episode is an extended version of the 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 series, produced in partnership with NPR.
Los contrastes de las f贸rmulas Harris-Walz y Trump-Vance en la atenci贸n de salud
La elecci贸n de la vicepresidenta Kamala Harris del gobernador de Minnesota, Tim Walz, como su compa帽ero de f贸rmula est谩 poniendo el tema de la atenci贸n m茅dica en primer plano en la recta final hacia las elecciones presidenciales de noviembre.
Harris-Walz Ticket Sharpens Contrast With Trump-Vance on Health Care
As Democrats convene in Chicago to make official their presidential and vice presidential nominees, Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz together are raising the prominence of health care as a 2024 election issue.
Journalists Broach Topics From Treating Shooting Victims to Sunscreen Safety
国产麻豆精品Health News and California Healthline staffers made the rounds on national and local media in the last couple of weeks to discuss topical stories. Here鈥檚 a collection of their appearances.
An Arm and a Leg: Digging Into Facility Fees
鈥淎n Arm and a Leg鈥 is looking for listener stories about facility fees for a new project.
国产麻豆精品Health News' 'What the Health?': The Supreme Court and the Abortion Pill
The Supreme Court this week heard its first abortion case since overturning Roe v. Wade in 2022, about an appeals court ruling that would dramatically restrict the availability of the abortion pill mifepristone. But while it seems likely that this case could be dismissed on a technicality, abortion opponents have more challenges in the pipeline. Meanwhile, health issues are heating up on the campaign trail, as Republicans continue to take aim at Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act 鈥 all things Democrats are delighted to defend. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post join 国产麻豆精品Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 国产麻豆精品Health News鈥 Tony Leys, who wrote a 国产麻豆精品Health News-NPR 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 feature about Medicare and a very expensive air-ambulance ride. Plus, for 鈥渆xtra credit,鈥 the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week they think you should read, too.
When Copay Assistance Backfires on Patients
Drugmakers offer copay assistance programs to patients, but insurers are tapping into those funds, not counting the amounts toward patient deductibles. That leads to unexpected charges. But the practice is under growing scrutiny.
The No Surprises Act Comes With Some Surprises
The No Surprises Act, the landmark law intended to protect patients from surprise out-of-network medical bills, has come with, well, some surprises. A little more than two years after it took effect, there鈥檚 good and bad news about how it鈥檚 working. First, it鈥檚 important to note that the law has successfully protected millions of patients […]
In Year 6, 国产麻豆精品Health News-NPR鈥檚 鈥楤ill of the Month鈥 Helps Patients in a Changing System
In the sixth year of the 国产麻豆精品Health News-NPR 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 series, patients shared more than 750 tales of medical billing problems, and reporters analyzed more than $730,000 in charges 鈥 including more than $215,000 owed by 12 patients and their families.
When a Quick Telehealth Visit Yields Multiple Surprises Beyond a Big Bill
For the patient, it was a quick and inexpensive virtual appointment. Why it cost 10 times what she expected became a mystery.
Nueva ley de California ofrece protecci贸n contra facturas por viajes en ambulancia
En California, casi tres cuartas partes de los traslados de emergencia en ambulancia generan facturas fuera de la red. La factura sorpresa promedio es de $1,209, la m谩s alta del pa铆s
New California Law Offers Fresh Protection From Steep Ambulance Bills
The law, which takes effect Jan. 1, prohibits out-of-network ground ambulance operators from billing patients more than they would pay for in-network rides. It also caps how much the uninsured must pay.
She Paid Her Husband鈥檚 Hospital Bill. A Year After His Death, They Wanted More Money.
A widow encountered a perplexing reality in medical billing: Providers can come after patients to collect well after a bill has been paid.
