Medicare Eases Readmission Penalties Against Safety-Net Hospitals
Penalties will total $566 million for all hospitals. But many that serve a large share of low-income patients will lose less money than they did in previous years.
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Surprise Medical Bills Are What Americans Fear Most In Paying For Health Care
Two-thirds of Americans worry about unexpectedly large bills from doctors, hospitals or other medical providers, a poll shows. Four in 10 have received one in the past year.
By Jordan Rau -
HHS Watchdog To Probe Enforcement Of Nursing Home Staffing Standards
The study follows a Kaiser Health News and New York Times investigation that found nearly 1,400 nursing homes have reported fewer registered nurses on duty than Medicare requires or failed to provide reliable staffing information to the government.
By Jordan Rau -
Mining A New Data Set To Pinpoint Critical Staffing Issues In Skilled Nursing Facilities
Low staffing is a root cause of many injuries in nursing homes. Kaiser Health News senior correspondent Jordan Rau explains how he connected the dots between manpower and risk at facilities nationwide, using a federal tool known as the Payroll-Based Journal.
By Jordan Rau -
1,400 Nursing Homes Get Lower Medicare Ratings Because Of Staffing Concerns
Medicare said those homes either lacked a registered nurse for “a high number of days” over three months, provided data the government couldn’t verify or didn’t supply their payroll data at all.
By Jordan Rau and Elizabeth Lucas -
‘Like A Ghost Town’: Erratic Nursing Home Staffing Revealed Through New Records
Daily nursing home payroll records just released by the federal government show the number of nurses and aides dips far below average on some days and consistently plummets on weekends.
By Jordan Rau -
ACA Protections For Sick Patients Still Popular Despite GOP’s Efforts To End Them
Despite a decision by the Trump administration to ask a court to nullify the portion of the health law guaranteeing coverage to the sick, the Kaiser Family Foundation poll finds most people want insurers to be required to offer coverage and not charge more.
By Jordan Rau -
Medicare Takes Aim At Boomerang Hospitalizations Of Nursing Home Patients
One in 5 Medicare patients who leave the hospital for a nursing home end up back in the hospital. To discourage this, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will soon give bonuses and penalties to facilities based on their rehospitalization rates.
By Jordan Rau Photos by Heidi de Marco -
In Battleground Races, Health Care Lags As Hot-Button Issue, Poll Finds
The economy and jobs tend to eclipse health care as the top voter concern in competitive congressional and gubernatorial races.
By Jordan Rau -
Half Of Hospitals In Conn., Del. Hit By Medicare’s Safety Penalties
Seven states saw a third or more of their hospitals punished under the federal heath law’s campaign against hospital-acquired conditions.
By Jordan Rau -
Care Suffers As More Nursing Homes Feed Money Into Corporate Webs
Increasingly, owners of nursing homes outsource services to companies in which they also have financial interest or control. That allows the nursing homes to claim to be in the red while owners reap hidden profits.
By Jordan Rau -
Trump Administration Relaxes Financial Penalties Against Nursing Homes
Medicare is discouraging regional offices from levying fines for “one-time mistakes” or from using daily fines that seek to put pressure on nursing homes to make changes.
By Jordan Rau -
Infection Lapses Rampant In Nursing Homes But Punishment Is Rare
A Kaiser Health News analysis of federal inspection records shows that nursing home inspectors labeled mistakes in infection control as serious for only 161 of the 12,056 homes they have cited since 2014.
By Jordan Rau Photos by Heidi de Marco -
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Medicare Penalizes Group Of 751 Hospitals For Patient Injuries
Each hospital will have its payments reduced by 1 percent for the year.
By Jordan Rau -
Repeal & Replace Watch
While Trump Moves To Dismantle Health Law, Public Favors Repair
Nearly three-quarters of Americans would like to see the administration focus on efforts on making the Affordable Care Act work, rather than trying to make it fail.
By Jordan Rau -
Why Glaring Quality Gaps Among Nursing Homes Are Likely To Grow If Medicaid Is Cut
Medicaid covers about two-thirds of nursing home residents, but it pays less than other types of insurance.
By Jordan Rau -
Nursing Home Disaster Plans Often Faulted As ‘Paper Tigers’
Too often enforcement of rules for dealing with crisis is lax, advocates for nursing home residents say.
By Jordan Rau -
Under Trump, Hospitals Face Same Penalties Embraced By Obama
Federal records show that 2,573 hospitals around the country will have their Medicare payments reduced because they have too many patients readmitted.
By Jordan Rau -
REPEAL & REPLACE WATCH
Opposition To GOP Repeal Bill Inches Up And Intensifies
Six in 10 Americans say they do not approve of the Senate Republicans’ plan to replace Obamacare, according to a poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation.
By Jordan Rau
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