Oct. 30

Arielle Zionts reads the week’s news: Though 13 states cover GLP-1s such as Wegovy for weight loss for people on Medicaid, many eligible people are missing out, and advance planning can help seniors aging alone maintain more control over their final days.

Oct. 23

Sam Whitehead reads the week’s news: More men are developing osteoporosis, but insurance often won’t pay to screen them, and the Trump administration’s cuts to a digital equity program are setting back efforts to help some rural communities access telehealth.

Oct. 16

Katheryn Houghton reads the week’s news: Most states allow medical providers to force employers to send them part of a patient’s paycheck to cover unpaid medical bills, and the Trump administration’s cuts to federal funding are making flood-prone hospitals more vulnerable.

Oct. 9

Zach Dyer reads the week’s news: Some cosmetic surgeons who have been sued multiple times for injuring patients have been able to get jobs with other clinics, and millions of people could dodge new Medicaid work rules where unemployment rates are high.

Oct. 2

Sam Whitehead reads the week’s news: Hospital charity care programs can still leave patients who qualify with big bills, and the Trump administration is rolling out a pilot program to use AI to deny care for Medicare patients in six states. 

Sept. 25

Arielle Zionts reads this week’s news: Asking AI tools to interpret your lab results can have downsides, and more Americans are choosing environmentally friendly “green burials.”

Sept. 18

Zach Dyer reads the week’s news: Some independent rural hospitals are joining forces to try to survive, and public health guidance on head lice at school clashes with parents’ preferences.

Sept. 11

Jackie Fortiér reads the week’s news: Federal cuts to food assistance could make it harder for families to stay healthy, and some health insurers are planning to reduce coverage of popular but expensive weight loss drugs.

Sept. 4

Katheryn Houghton reads the week’s news: New research shows that regular, moderate use of devices like computers and smartphones can be good for the cognitive health of older people, and human resources departments can help employees get health insurance companies to pay for covered care.

Aug. 28

Sam Whitehead reads the week’s news: Emergency rooms with no doctor on staff are becoming more common in rural areas, and higher costs for Affordable Care Act plans could hit early retirees and small-business owners hard next year.

Aug. 21

Zach Dyer reads the week’s news: Some doctors are changing how they talk to patients about immunizations because of changes to federal vaccine policy, and 26 is the age with the highest uninsured rate.

Aug. 14

Jackie Fortiér reads the week’s news: Many states are making doulas more accessible, and opioid settlement money may get used to fill budget holes from federal funding cuts to Medicaid.

Aug. 7

Sam Whitehead reads the week’s news: New Trump administration policies could limit patient access to qualified medical interpreters, and physicians often miss the signs of iron deficiency in older adults.

July 31

Jackie Fortiér reads the week’s news: The Republican megabill President Donald Trump signed July 4 could lead rural health facilities to close, and previously rare mosquito-borne illnesses like dengue are on the rise in the U.S.

July 24

Sam Whitehead reads the week’s news: Affordable Care Act health plans will likely be more expensive next year, and work requirements for Medicaid recipients can be expensive and hard to navigate for enrollees.

July 17

Sam Whitehead reads the week’s news: President Donald Trump’s immigration crackdown is threatening nursing home staff, and the country’s largest health insurers say they’ll simplify the process they use to decide whether to pay for doctor-ordered care.

July 10

Zach Dyer reads the week’s news: Federal funding cuts have left some of the nation’s most popular beaches without lifeguards this summer, and new research shows vaccines are good at keeping older adults out of the hospital. 

July 3

Katheryn Houghton reads the week’s news: The Trump administration is cutting some programs intended to prevent gun violence, and seniors who don’t sign up for Medicare at age 65 can be on the hook for medical bills, even if they still have health insurance through work.

June 26

Jackie Fortiér reads the week’s news: Gatherings called “memory cafés” can help both people with dementia and their caregivers reduce depression and isolation, and the looming end of some Affordable Care Act subsidies will make ACA plans much more expensive.

June 19

Zach Dyer reads the week’s news: Cannabis use could be riskier for older adults, and research shows covid vaccines in pregnancy can protect pregnant women as well as newborns.

June 12

Sam Whitehead reads the week’s news: Inadequate communications infrastructure is harming the health of rural Americans, and ministroke symptoms may look mild but need medical treatment.

June 5

Katheryn Houghton reads the week’s news: More than 100 rural hospitals have stopped delivering babies since 2021, and the federal government failed to warn the public about a major E. coli outbreak.

May 29

Jackie Fortier reads the week’s news: New programs teach Black kids to swim competitively and help their parents learn too, and people in prison are often denied basic health care at the end of their lives.

May 22

Zach Dyer reads this week’s news: Federal funding cuts are gutting HIV prevention programs, and financial pressures are leading to the closure of clinics that provide abortion care even in states where it’s legal.

May 15

Sam Whitehead reads this week’s news: Using “elderspeak” with seniors can be harmful, and independent pharmacists worry tariffs could force them to close.

May 8

Jackie Fortiér reads this week’s news: CPR and defibrillator training can give people the skills to help others survive cardiac arrest, and doctors are using telehealth to help thousands of patients each month access abortion care in states where it’s banned.

May 1

Katheryn Houghton delivers the week’s news: A new survey finds that more Americans are hearing false claims about measles and the vaccine that prevents it, and changes to federal health funding have advocates worried the White House is deprioritizing fighting addiction.

April 24

Zach Dyer reads this week’s news: Concierge medicine could worsen the physician shortage in rural areas, and the Trump administration has canceled medical research grants that it says aren’t in line with its priorities.

April 17

Sam Whitehead reads this week’s news: Families that rely on home health aides could pay the price for the Trump administration’s anti-immigrant policies, and some local health departments are canceling scheduled services because the federal government is trying to take back health grants.

April 10

Jackie Fortiér reads this week’s news: The Trump administration is rolling back accommodations for people with disabilities, and a charity is about to wipe out $30 billion of medical debt, but that won’t stop Americans from accruing more.

April 3

Katheryn Houghton reads this week’s news: The Trump administration may stop using a “Housing First” approach to ending homelessness, and Medicaid rules can force people with disabilities not to work in order to keep services they need.

March 27

Zach Dyer delivers this week’s news: Federal regulators want to collect more data to figure out why some CT scans deliver much more radiation than others, and opposition to mRNA vaccines could end promising efforts to cure diseases including pancreatic cancer.

March 20

Jackie Fortiér reads this week’s news: Recent firings at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention could make it harder to control infectious disease outbreaks, and hoarding disorder can be especially dangerous for older people.

March 13

Sam Whitehead reads this week’s news: Trump voters may favor government regulation to cut health care costs, and health workers are being trained on the law to deal with possible raids by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers in health care settings.

March 6

Zach Dyer reads this week’s news: The current bird flu outbreak is gaining momentum despite mass culling of infected poultry, and the Trump administration is embracing the conservative policy playbook known as Project 2025.

Feb. 27

Katheryn Houghton reads this week’s news: Republicans in Congress are considering cuts to Medicaid, and the dietary supplement industry is hoping to cash in on RFK Jr.’s new role as head of the Department of Health and Human Services.

Feb. 20

Jackie Fortiér reads this week’s news: Some states are turning to laundromats to reach people who could qualify for programs including Medicaid and food assistance, and cross-border telehealth is helping Spanish-speaking farmworkers get care.

Feb. 13

Sam Whitehead reads this week’s news: Hospital systems are looking for ways to help people in the U.S. without legal status get care, and some schools say staffing shortages make it hard to meet the needs of students with diabetes who use continuous glucose monitors.

Feb. 6

Katheryn Houghton delivers this week’s news: Pediatricians believe a decline in childhood vaccination rates could drive a return of deadly vaccine-preventable diseases, and addiction experts say legalizing sports betting has downsides for health.

Jan. 30

Renu Rayasam delivers this week’s news: There are still no proven therapies for long covid despite more than $1 billion in federal funding, and some hospitals are assigning dogs to work alongside medical staff in hospitals to help them cope with burnout and stress.

Jan. 23

This week on the KFF Health News Minute: Stable housing is scarce for a rapidly increasing number of homeless seniors, and insurers sometimes deny coverage for prosthetic limbs by deeming them experimental or not medically necessary.

Jan. 16

This week on the KFF Health News Minute: AI tools in medicine might not save money, and credit agencies can no longer include medical debt on credit reports.

Jan. 9

This week on the KFF Health News Minute: Small interventions at the doctor’s office, such as removing a splinter, can be billed as surgeries, and billing problems with the Indian Health Service are leaving Native American communities with significantly higher medical debt than the national average.

Jan. 2

This week on the KFF Health News Minute: Hyperthermia deaths are rising, and millions of people could lose Medicaid if the incoming Republican-controlled Congress follows through on proposed cuts to federal funding.

The KFF Health News Minute is available every Thursday on CBS News Radio.

John Cleveland is ready to pay a lot more for his health insurance next year.

He hasn’t forgotten the pile of hospital bills that awaited him after he had a seizure while tending to customers in his Austin, Texas, barbershop four years ago. Once doctors hurriedly removed the dangerous tumor growing on his brain, a weeklong hospital stay, months of therapy, and nearly $250,000 worth of medical expenses followed.

The coverage he has purchased for years through the Affordable Care Act marketplace covered most of those bills.

“That saved my ass,” said Cleveland, who owns three barbershops across the city.

Even with Cleveland’s monthly premiums expected to soar next year — from $560 to about $682 — he will still sign up for a plan that requires him to shell out $70 if he sees a doctor and 50% of the cost for any emergency room visits. Still, Cleveland is most worried about some of his employees, who might risk going without insurance once they see the high prices.

Small-business owners are among those who stand to lose the most should Congress let the additional, generous federal subsidies put in place during the covid-19 pandemic lapse. The looming change threatens not only their own coverage but also that of their employees, who often depend on marketplace coverage.

Whether to extend the enhanced ACA subsidies that cost taxpayers billions of dollars yearly poses a serious political conundrum for Republicans. After years of unified opposition to Obamacare, the party now faces pressure from one of its most loyal constituencies, small-business owners, who will bear the brunt of rising premiums if the subsidies disappear.

Most of the roughly 20 employees who work on Justin Miller’s 113-year-old family fruit farm in rural Northern California purchase coverage through the Obamacare marketplace.

He’s agonizing over what it could mean if health insurance through the marketplace becomes unaffordable for his employees. He fears they might consider leaving his farm for a job that comes with health coverage.

“Being a small-business owner, especially in a field like ours, where it is tough work and we really understand how hard everybody works, we have to look everybody in the eyes every day,” Miller said. “Knowing that they’re going to have to pay $4,000 or $5,000 more a year to stay on their insurance is a tough pill to swallow.”

Miller says he already pays a minimum wage of $22.50 and provides sick leave, vacation, retirement, and employee housing benefits.

Adding health insurance for his employees, he said, would be too costly to keep his farm in business.

GOP Pollsters Issue ACA Caution

About half of the 24 million people enrolled in Obamacare coverage are, or are employed by, small-business owners — a group that is more likely to vote Republican and overwhelmingly backed President Donald Trump in last year’s election. Farmers, dentists, real estate agents, and chiropractors are among the professions most represented among enrollees.

Even Trump’s own pollsters have found deep support for the Obamacare subsidies, warning that failing to extend them could cost Republicans in next year’s midterms.

A poll conducted last month by Republican pollster John McLaughlin found that a majority of independent voters would be less likely to vote for politicians who voted to let the enhanced tax credits expire.

Given that “approximately 4 million” people would lose coverage and premiums would “skyrocket by an average of 75%,” the poll also concluded that: “A candidate for congress who let the healthcare tax cuts expire would also be vulnerable to more pointed messages.”

Red States Benefited From the Subsidies

Some red states have seen Obamacare enrollment balloon since the federal government began offering extra help paying premiums in the form of more generous subsidies.

Texas and Florida have added 2.8 million enrollees each since 2020, far outpacing growth in most other states. Together, the two states now account for more than a third of marketplace enrollment nationally.

A small chorus of Republican lawmakers — up for reelection next year, mostly in competitive races — have proposed an extension of the subsidies, urging Democrats to vote to reopen the government while simultaneously pleading with House Speaker Mike Johnson to work out a bipartisan deal that doesn’t allow them to simply lapse.

At Cleveland’s barbershops in Austin, about a third of his 18 employees rely on Obamacare coverage. He’s talked to them about their health insurance options for next year but said many hadn’t started thinking about open enrollment, which began Nov. 1.

He’s worried they’ll be baffled once they see the new prices, which currently reflect what customers will pay next year without an extension of the extra subsidies.

“There’s a couple of my barbers that are going to go without, because they’re healthy and young, but I thought I was too when everything happened to me,” said Cleveland, now 47.

Republicans, meanwhile, remain wary of voting to extend the additional Obamacare subsidies, said Rodney Whitlock, a vice president at the McDermott+ consultancy who was a longtime congressional staffer and advises on health care policy.

No Republican voted for the extra subsidies when they were introduced in 2021 or continued in 2022. Approving them now, he said, is viewed by many as a band-aid that would temporarily help a program GOP leaders have long lambasted as problematic and too costly.

But, Whitlock noted, many in the party are coming to terms with how the subsidies might affect their changing constituencies. Nearly 6 in 10 Obamacare enrollees live in a Republican-held congressional district.

“Republicans are slowly starting to grasp that the lower third of income earners are their voters,” he said. “For the first time, I think they’re getting there. That battleship turns slowly.”

Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican who has firmly backed Trump, broke with her party last month, calling on the GOP to extend the subsidies. Greene said in an interview that rising health care costs are the “No. 1 issue” she hears about from people living in her district.

“I know a lot of small-business owners, like a family of four, and they’re paying $2,000 a month,” Greene said during the television interview, adding that rising deductibles make the insurance hardly functional for anything other than catastrophes.

She warned in another TV interview that “ignoring” the issue could be “very bad for midterms” next year.

Miller, the farmer who lives in a conservative district in Northern California, expects monthly health insurance premiums for himself, his wife, and two of his children to jump from $264 to $600. His deductibles and copayments are going up, too. He expects all these new expenses will still be on his mind when he goes to vote in the midterm elections next year, he said. Describing himself as an independent, Miller said he is frustrated that few American politicians talk about the type of universal health care coverage that’s available in other countries.

“I’m definitely voting for those that will protect the working American, regardless of party,” he said.