Kaiser family foundation news from FierceHealthcare

A new Kaiser Family Foundation poll indicates that about half of Americans think that Democratic healthcare reforms, if passed, will take effect within a year. The problem is, most reform provisions... Read more...

Maybe the health plans are willing to beat up on physician quality and efficiency, but don't expect patients to go that way, a new study from Kaiser Family Foundation, NPR and the Harvard School of... Read more...

In recent days, President Obama has been decrying the use of pre-existing conditions by health insurers to exclude some patients from individual coverage. In doing so, he's become one of a growing... Read more...

A new report concludes that cancer patients may face significant challenges in paying for life-saving treatment, even if they have commercial health insurance. The report, from the Kaiser Family... Read more...

Prescription scares have caused a number of sources, including the FDA, to release a lot more prescription safety information--but could it be too much information? Several recent studies have raised... Read more...

> Senate Finance Committee leaders told CMS this week that they are concerned about the impact of proposed reductions in Medicare reimbursement for hospitals during 2008 and 2009. Article

> A Kaiser Family Foundation poll has found that healthcare is top domestic issue the public wants presidential candidates to address. Executive summary …

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An Indianapolis physician and former HMO executive is hoping that fixed-cost prepaid plans will drive many of the city's uninsured to seek the routine care they've historically shunned. Indy Urgent Care, open since late last year, charges a $25 monthly membership fee per patient and $25 for each visit. "My goal right now is to try to work and solve the immediate need we have with getting primary care services to people who don't have access to them," clinic founder Dr. E. Stanley …

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In the past, consumers went for HMOs to save money, sometimes paying as much as $400 per year less than they did for PPO options. These days, however, as the price difference between the two types of plans has narrowed to about $150 per year, employees are fleeing HMOs for more-flexible PPO plans, observers say. Today, only one in five workers chose an HMO option, as opposed to one in three 10 years ago, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. Meanwhile, the number of PPO enrollees has …

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A report from the Kaiser Family Foundation examines the far-reaching effects of Hurricane Katrina on the state of healthcare in the Gulf Cost region. Uninsured patients were particularly hard-hit by the problems. Mental health workers and nursing staff are in short supply and nursing homes are struggling. Officials say the overall situation in the affected areas has gone from bad to worse in recent months. Report

The Kaiser Family Foundation released details of a tracking poll that found that most seniors enrolled in Medicare drug plans are satisfied with their coverage. Eight out of 10 reported no difficulties having prescriptions filled. A companion report "Voices of Beneficiaries: Early Experiences with the Medicare Drug Benefit" provides personal perspectives on the benefit. The new prescription drug benefit continues to receive extensive media coverage, as the May 15 enrollment deadline approaches.

- see the report summary from The Kaiser Family Foundation