Affordable Care Act
Missouri politicians hopeful of Medicaid expansion compromise
Mike Sherry – The Hale Center for Journalism Missouri policy makers might be inching toward middle ground that would expand Medicaid eligibility while reforming the safety-net program to encourage recipients to work, two key participants in the talks said Monday. The comments came from Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon, a Democrat, and state Rep. Noel Torpey,…
Consumers, advocates rushing toward health-reform deadline
Mike Sherry – The Hale Center for Journalism As an uninsured agriculture worker, Salvador Lopez said he’d welcome health coverage so he could afford diabetes medication. Health insurance would also help his wife, said the Excelsior Springs, Mo., resident. Not feeling well on Saturday, she actually had her blood pressure checked at the health fair…
Health law helps thousands of area Latinos, feds say
Approximately 95,000 uninsured Latinos in Missouri and Kansas combined are eligible for health coverage through the marketplaces established by the federal health reform law, according to a new report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The department broke out state-specific numbers in the report, which concluded that approximately 8 in 10 of…
Sebelius pushes health exchanges
Alex Smith — KCUR Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius urged the uninsured to enroll in the federal health exchange at a press conference in Kansas City, Mo., Monday morning. At the Full Employment Council near 18th and Vine, Sebelius touted the benefits of the health exchange for both the uninsured and for the…
Local efforts aim to curb Medicare costs
Mike Sherry – The Hale Center for Journalism Established five decades ago, the Medicare program has a budget rivalling that of the Pentagon, and congressional budgeters project the roughly $600 billion price tag will double within the next decade. But three Kansas City-area physician partnerships, serving both sides of the state line, are on…
A Local Solution
Part 3 continued: Undocumented and Uninsured – A Health Care Challenge [Editor’s Note: Click this link for an overview of the series and an interview with the author.] Tammy Worth — Special correspondent to The Hale Center for Journalism The cleaning crew at the Farmland Foods plant in rural Milan, Mo., clocks in at 10 p.m. every weeknight….
Supporting the System — Immigrant Contributions
Part 2, continued: Undocumented and Uninsured – A Health Care Challenge [Editor’s Note: Click this link for an overview of the series and an interview with the author.] Tammy Worth — Special correspondent to The Hale Center for Journalism Immigration policy has become the third rail of politics. During a Congressional address prior to the implementation of…
A Healthy Expense – Who Pays for Care
Part 2: Undocumented and Uninsured — A Health Care Challenge [Editor’s Note: Click this link for an overview of the series and an interview with the author.] Tammy Worth — Special correspondent to The Hale Center for Journalism Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine Dale Essmyer has a family practice in downtown Milan, Mo. He says he and other residents…
Undocumented and Uninsured – A Health Care Challenge
Tammy Worth – Special Correspondent – The Hale Center for Journalism The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is expected to make health insurance newly available to nearly 32 million Americans. The law has already expanded coverage for children and young adults. Beginning in January, it will broaden its reach as some states expand Medicaid…
The Examination: How many pages is 'Obamacare'?
THE EXAMINATION – This column looks for answers to what should be simple questions. This week’s question: How many pages is ‘Obamacare’? A simple search yields a wealth of fascinating estimates. And, like most things, the answer is simple, yet complicated. The easy answer is the law, as passed in 2010, weighs in at 906 pages. You…