health care costs

Californians Can Now Pay Cash For Health Insurance At 7-Eleven

12:29pm April 21, 2015

by Sarah Varney

Many people who are eligible for federal health insurance subsidies don't have bank accounts, which makes it hard to pay premiums. A system in California lets them pay with cash at stores.

Maybe You Should Skip That Annual Physical

2:10pm April 06, 2015

by Jenny Gold

Americans spend billions of dollars every year on annual physicals. But there's little evidence that a yearly checkup helps healthy adults. Some doctors are telling patients to skip it.

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High-Deductible Health Plans Cut Costs, At Least For Now

5:07pm March 26, 2015

by Jay Hancock

Health plans that require people to pay thousands of dollars up front cut costs in the first three years, a study finds. But no one knows if costs will rise later as people avoid preventive care.

Some surgeons aren't adept at laparoscopic surgery, although it is often the better choice for patients.

Patients Often Aren't Offered Minimally Invasive Surgery

10:32am March 26, 2015

by Nancy Shute

Laparascopic surgery can be faster, safer and cheaper, but patients don't always get the choice even if it's appropriate, a study finds. Using it more often would reduce complications and save money.

The itchy rash of eczema, also sometimes called atopic dermatitis, can be painful and unsightly.

People With Eczema Are Itching For Better Health Care

2:50pm March 04, 2015

by Poncie Rutsch

Just a rash? Not if you have eczema. People with eczema often have a hard time finding appropriate health care and are apt to miss work dealing with the chronic skin problem, a study finds.

Shopping for an MRI scan? Guroo.org, won't yet show you what your local hospital or radiologist charges, but it will reveal the average cost of the test in your area.

Attention, Shoppers: Prices For 70 Health Care Procedures Now Online!

4:04pm February 27, 2015

by Jay Hancock

It's not exactly Priceline.com for knee replacements. But a website from the nonprofit Health Care Cost Institute could helping patients shop around for the best values.

Steven Brill is a journalist who also founded Court TV, American Lawyer magazine, 10 regional legal newspapers and Brill's Content Magazine. He teaches journalism at Yale.

Books
Arts

'America's Bitter Pill' Makes Case For Why Health Care Law 'Won't Work'

2:07pm February 05, 2015

Journalist Steven Brill's latest book critiques the Affordable Care Act, which he calls "unsustainable." In the next few years, "something is going to snap," he says. "We cannot pay for this."

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Heartland Regional Medical Center in St. Joseph, Mo., is changing its name to Mosaic Life Care. It was the focus of an NPR and ProPublica investigation into its billing practices.

Senator 'Astounded' That Nonprofit Hospitals Sue Poorest Patients

3:42pm January 24, 2015

by Chris Arnold

NPR and ProPublica have been reporting about nonprofit hospitals that seize the wages of lower-income patients. Sen. Chuck Grassley says hospitals doing that could be breaking the law.

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Hospitals' Medicare Quality Bonuses Get Wiped Out By Penalties

4:43pm January 22, 2015

by Jordan Rau

Medicare is giving hospitals financial incentives to provide better care. But so far about half of the hospitals that got incentive payments found them canceled out by other quality programs.

Keith Herie is swamped in debt from medical issues he and his wife encountered starting about a decade ago. Heartland hospital is seizing 10 percent of his paycheck and 25 percent of his wife's wages, and has placed a lien on their home.

When Nonprofit Hospitals Sue Their Poorest Patients

10:13am January 22, 2015

by Chris Arnold

In exchange for tax breaks, nonprofit hospitals provide assistance to poor patients. But some hospitals seize wages from poor patients with unpaid bills — even those who qualify for reduced-cost care.

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