Medicare

Get Ready! Medicare Will Mail New Cards to 60 Million People

7:14pm September 14, 2017

by Alison Kodjak

The federal health program for seniors and the disabled is removing Social Security numbers from the ID cards of 60 million people in an effort to prevent identity theft

We might all feel a lot better if we saw a view like this, from the North Shore of Oahu, every day.

Live In Hawaii, And Odds Are You'll Need Fewer Prescription Meds

3:05pm August 31, 2017

People who live in the Aloha State are less likely to use opioid painkillers or be prescribed antibiotics than are mainland dwellers. Healthy lifestyles have a lot to do with that.

Bill Moyers On Working With LBJ To Pass Medicare 52 Years Ago

1:59pm August 03, 2017

Journalist Bill Moyers once worked as the special assistant to President Johnson, where he witnessed first-hand the political maneuvering that resulted in the landmark health care legislation.

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The HHS inspector general found that some 22,000 Medicare Part D beneficiaries seem to be doctor shopping for opioids — obtaining large amounts prescribed by four or more doctors and filled at four or more pharmacies.

'Extreme' Opioid Use And Doctor Shopping Still Plague Medicare

11:10am July 13, 2017

by Charles Ornstein

One-third of all Medicare recipients were prescribed opioids last year, the HHS inspector general says, with more than half a million getting high doses for at least three months.

Hugo, Colo., is home to no more than 850 residents, but has a beloved hospital where staff members know most of their patients by name. To survive financially, the hospital depends on payments from Medicaid, a program that faces deep cuts in the GOP healt

A Hospital In Rural Colorado Is The Cornerstone Of Small Town Life

7:52am July 01, 2017

by John Daley

At the lone hospital in Hugo, a country town, staff members know most of the patients — they are friends and family. But cuts in the GOP health bill could threaten this cherished institution.

Protestors Rally Against GOP Health Care Plan In High Point

8:43am June 28, 2017

by David Ford

On Tuesday, a group of about forty protesters gathered at the High Point office for Republican U.S. Senator Thom Tillis. They ranged in age from infants to the elderly.

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Many people with marketplace health plans purchased under the Affordable Care Act didn't realize they need to switch to Medicare Part B plans at age 65.

Feds To Waive Penalties For Some Who Signed Up Late For Medicare

5:30am June 06, 2017

by Susan Jaffe

People who mistakenly stayed on marketplace health plans after they qualified for Medicare may be eligible to have Medicare penalties reduced or waived, if they apply for the waiver by Sept. 30.

Ben Gapinski, 10, (center) is greeted by his parents Dan and Nancy Gapinski after getting off the school bus. When Ben was a toddler, he was diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder and needed constant monitoring to stay safe.

Wisconsin Family Stays Together With Help From Medicaid

5:43pm June 05, 2017

by Alison Kodjak

While Medicaid is best known as a health care program for poor people, more than 80 percent of its budget goes to care for elderly people, disabled people and children.

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Juanita Milton, who suffers from COPD, uses her nebulizer with albuterol sulfate at her home in Live Oak, Texas.

Many COPD Patients Struggle To Pay For Each Breath

10:57pm June 02, 2017

by Sarah Jane Tribble

One in 9 Medicare enrollees have chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, and many of them can't afford the inhalers that keep them out of the emergency room.

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A whistleblower lawsuit alleged that two Florida insurance companies inflated fees by making patients appear sicker than they were.

Medicare Advantage Insurers Settle Whistleblower Suit For $32 Million

2:11pm May 31, 2017

by Fred Schulte

A former medical director at two Florida insurance companies alleged the companies inflated fees by making patients appear sicker than they were or exaggerating the treatment that was provided.