health insurance

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Who's to Blame for High Health Care Costs? 2 Takes

Journalist points to overpaid doctors, doctor to the 'waste' of private insurance

(Newser) - One of the most talked-about policies in the national conversation around insurance is Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield's decision in Connecticut, New York, and Missouri to deny claims for anesthesia for surgeries that went longer than a set time limit. It was greeted with huge uproar before the insurer...

Health Insurer's Top Boss Speaks Out After Murder

Andrew Witty of UnitedHealth Group acknowledges the system is flawed

(Newser) - The top leader of insurance giant UnitedHealth is speaking out publicly for the first time since the murder of underling Brian Thompson. In a guest essay at the New York Times , Andrew Witty—CEO of UnitedHealth Group, parent company of UnitedHealthcare—condemned the killing while also acknowledging that the insurance...

Cops: She Made 'Delay, Deny, Depose' Threat to Insurer

Briana Boston hit with charges in Florida

(Newser) - A Florida woman was arrested this week after allegedly ending a call with her insurance company by saying, "Delay, deny, depose. You people are next." Those first three words, of course, are the ones found on bullet casings at the scene of the fatal shooting of UnitedHealthcare CEO...

Major Insurer Nixes Anesthesia Cap After Backlash

Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield had placed time limit on anesthesia coverage during surgery

(Newser) - A major health insurer has nixed a planned policy shift regarding a cap it placed on anesthesia coverage after intense public backlash against the plan. NPR reports on the 180 by Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, which had initially announced it would no longer pay for coverage for anesthesia use...

Whistleblower Calls Out Health Insurer Cigna
Whistleblower Calls Out
Health Insurer Cigna
longform
May 5, 2024 12:10 PM CDT

Whistleblower Calls Out Health Insurer Cigna

Debby Day says she and other doctors are pressured to review cases too quickly

(Newser) - A ProPublica story paints the picture of health insurance giant Cigna being more concerned about productivity—mainly through speedy denials of coverage—than the health of its customers. The story is told through the prism of Dr. Debby Day, who reviewed claims at Cigna for 15 years and says her...

In Hack Update, UnitedHealth Reveals Ransom Was Paid

It says a 'substantial proportion' of Americans possibly had data stolen

(Newser) - Hackers stole health and personal data from what could amount to a "substantial proportion" of Americans, UnitedHealth said in a Monday update on the February cyberattack on its Change Healthcare subsidiary. UnitedHealth also confirmed that it paid a ransom "as part of the company's commitment to do...

Restaurant Put on Blast for Health Insurance Fee on Bill
Patron Didn't Appreciate
Eatery's 4% Surcharge
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Jan 20, 2024 4:30 PM CST

Patron Didn't Appreciate Eatery's 4% Surcharge

Fee added by Atlanta restaurant is to help cover costs for employee health insurance

(Newser) - An Atlanta restaurant is taking heat over what its owners say is an optional fee on customers' tabs to help cover employees' health insurance costs. Fox Business reports on the blowback that JenChan's Pizza and Chinese, an eatery located in the Cabbagetown section of the city, has received since...

Asthma Sufferers Brace for 'Huge Shock to the System'

As of Monday, popular Flovent inhaler will no longer be available in US; generic version will replace it

(Newser) - An inhaler commonly used by people with asthma has just a few days left on drugstore shelves. Fast Company reports that as of Monday, Flovent will be officially discontinued in US pharmacies, though manufacturer GSK says an authorized generic version will take its place. In a November statement , the drugmaker...

Survey Finds 'Huge' Spike in Employee Health Insurance Costs

Job-related health insurance premiums now reflecting inflation pressures

(Newser) - Bad news on the inflation front: The cost of employee health insurance saw its biggest annual increase in more than a decade this year. The average annual premium for family health insurance climbed 7% from 2022 for the biggest annual increase since 2011, per the Wall Street Journal . The cost...

Older and About to Become an Ex? Think Health Insurance

If you're about to divorce in your 50s, 60s, or older, think ahead so you're not left in the lurch

(Newser) - More than 1 in 3 people who divorce in the United States are age 50 or older, and 1 in 4 are 65 or older, according to a 2022 analysis published in the Journals of Gerontology. Divorcing as you near retirement—or after you've retired—comes with considerations: Are...

1.3 Million Diabetic Americans Forced to Ration Insulin

It can have serious if not deadly consequences

(Newser) - Nearly 30 million Americans have been diagnosed with diabetes, and over 7 million of them rely on a daily dose of insulin, including almost 1.9 million living with Type 1. For them, access to insulin is a matter of life and death, but as the Guardian reports, a recent...

Car Accident Reveals an Odd Insurance Reality

Urgent care medical facilities often don't treat victims from auto crashes

(Newser) - If you visit an urgent care facility rather than a regular emergency room after a car accident, don't be surprised if they refuse service. That's the upshot of the latest "bill of the month" feature from NPR , which puts a focus on medical bills. In this case,...

Colorado Woman Wins Fight Against Crazy Hospital Bill

Colorado Supreme Court rules in favor of Lisa French

(Newser) - Lisa French may finally be able to wash her hands of the $228,000 hospital bill that's been hanging over her head since 2014, thanks to a Monday ruling by the Colorado Supreme Court. The Denver Post has the story of the bill, which is tied to two back...

Record Numbers Enroll in ObamaCare

14.5M Americans signed up

(Newser) - Some 14.5 million Americans who lack job-based health coverage signed up for 2022 coverage under the Affordable Care Act—a record—according to the latest figures. They're not quite final, with the number expected to climb, per the Washington Post . The current tally includes 10 million people from...

Unvaccinated Delta Workers to Pay $200 Monthly Charge

That's a health insurance surcharge

(Newser) - Delta employees don't have to be vaccinated like United employees do , but those who aren't will have to jump through some hoops. Specifically:
  • The company on Wednesday announced that as of today, unvaccinated employees will have to be masked in Delta's offices.
  • As of Sept. 12, unvaccinated
...

Supreme Court Dismisses ObamaCare Challenge

Justices leave the Affordable Care Act intact

(Newser) - The Supreme Court has dismissed a challenge to the Obama-era health care law , preserving insurance coverage for millions of Americans, per the AP . The justices, by a 7-2 vote, left the entire law intact Thursday in ruling that Texas, other Republican-led states, and two individuals had no right to bring...

Critics Call UnitedHealthcare's New ER Policy Dangerous

Patients could be on the hook for visits later deemed to be nonemergencies

(Newser) - UnitedHealthcare says a new policy will reduce health care costs by reducing unnecessary emergency-room visits—but doctors warn there are some very obvious downsides to discouraging people from going to the ER. The policy the insurer is bringing in on July 1 will retroactively assess claims for emergency room visits,...

Citizen Flown Back to US for Burn Treatment Gets Massive Bill

'$1,734,769.82 That's the price that I have to pay for surviving'

(Newser) - After suffering burns over almost his entire body in a horrific accident in Mexico, American citizen Alexis Hernandez was flown to the US for treatment—and later received an unexpected bill for $1.7 million. The 24-year-old spent seven months at the US Army's Institute of Surgical Research in...

Biden: I'm Reversing Trump's 'Attack on Women's Health'

He also reopens sign-up window for health insurance during pandemic

(Newser) - President Biden on Thursday ordered government health insurance markets to reopen for a special sign-up window, offering uninsured Americans a haven as the spread of COVID-19 remains dangerously high and vaccines aren't yet widely available, per the AP . Biden signed an executive order directing the HealthCare.gov insurance markets...

Pandemic Wipes Out Insurance in Record Numbers

About 5.4M people lost coverage from February to May

(Newser) - Over the course of a year from 2008 to 2009, an estimated 3.9 million laid-off workers lost their health insurance in the recession. That was an annual record at the time, but the pandemic already has shattered it, reports the New York Times . An assessment by the nonpartisan group...

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