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Pregnant women are being asked to make large cash payments months before they deliver their babies. Some patient advocates worry this billing practice allows providers to hold treatment hostage.
Health care has ebbed and surged as an election issue throughout the presidential campaign. Here are the ways some of the most consequential changes in health policies could hinge on whether Vice President Kamala Harris or former President Donald Trump wins.
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.
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.
Hospitals in several states are partnering with a private equity-backed company to offer combined emergency and urgent care in a single building. But patients may not realize prices vary between the two services 鈥 often by a lot.
Even when patients double-check that their care is covered by insurance, health providers often send them bills as they haggle with insurers over reimbursement, which can last for months. It鈥檚 stressful and annoying 鈥 but legal.
Rising health care costs are fueling anxiety among older Americans covered by Medicare. They鈥檙e right to be concerned.
The United Way of Greater Kansas City gave $1.2 million to victims and $832,000 to 14 community groups Thursday, hoping to reach other victims from the violence at the Kansas City Chiefs鈥 Super Bowl parade, as well as those working to prevent gun violence.
Families of the people hurt during the Feb. 14 mass shooting are carrying what one expert calls 鈥渧ictimization debt.鈥 In the third story of our series 鈥淭he Injured,鈥 we learn about the strain of paying small and large medical bills and other out-of-pocket costs.
Los Angeles County, the nation鈥檚 most populous county, is spearheading a comprehensive plan to tackle a $2.9 billion medical debt crisis. Hospitals are still getting on board with the project, which is helmed by the public health department.
鈥淎n Arm and a Leg鈥 is looking for listener stories about facility fees for a new project.
Used to operating with scarce resources, Montana Medicaid providers say gaps in state payments have left them struggling further.
A state policy to extend Medi-Cal to qualified Californians without legal residency is running up against a federal requirement to resume eligibility checks. The redetermination process is causing many Latinos, who make up a majority of Medi-Cal beneficiaries, to be disenrolled.
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.
For low-income people who are on Medicaid or whose employer health plan is skimpy, help for infertility seems unattainable.
Convenient as it may be, beware of getting your blood drawn at a hospital. The cost could be much higher than at an independent lab, and your insurance might not cover it all.
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.
Chances are, if you aren鈥檛 older, chronically ill, or obese, you don鈥檛 need a forthcoming covid vaccine to stay out of the hospital. But it probably wouldn鈥檛 hurt.
Medicare was supposed to cover the entire cost of his procedure. But after the anesthesia provider failed to file its claims in a timely manner, it billed the patient instead.
Although nearly 40% of Americans 60 and older are obese, Medicare doesn鈥檛 cover weight loss medications. Meanwhile, studies haven鈥檛 thoroughly examined new drugs鈥 impact on older adults.
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