Health Insurance

An emotional woman told the president about her sister, who died of colon cancer and didn't have insurance.

Federal officials are upholding a major military healthcare award to UnitedHealth Group in spite of complaints from a previous contractor.

Starting in 2013, UnitedHealth will manage healthcare in 21 states for active-duty military, retirees and families. The award is worth $20.5 billion.

UnitedHealth replaced TriWest Healthcare Alliance Corp., which was denied on all counts after disputing the Pentagon's choice with the Government Accountability Office. 

The memo is just the latest part of the long-running attack on what they consider the Republicans' "war on women."

GOP lawmakers thought decision was going their way, but then it didn't

Rep. Peter Welch (D-Vt.) is eyeing a "Medicare-for-all" proposal in response to a potential decision by the Supreme Court to roll back President Obama's healthcare reform law.

The Vermont Democrat is hoping his proposal will serve as the Democrats' answer to the lingering question of what Congress would do if the high court strikes down the individual mandate, the broad Medicaid expansion or any combination of provisions included in the reform law. It’s a Plan B the Democrats say GOP leaders don't have.

The American Medical Association (AMA) said Monday that its efforts have cut the number of medical claims paid incorrectly by insurers, resulting in billions of dollars of savings.

"The AMA has been working constructively with insurers, and we are encouraged by their response to our concerns regarding errors, inefficiency and waste that take a heavy toll on patients and physicians," AMA Board Chairman Robert M. Wah said in a statement.

Errors dropped from 19.3 percent in 2011 to 9.5 percent in 2012, according to materials from the AMA.

Reps. Raúl Grijalva and Keith Ellison said the Supreme Court case might be the work of “large corporate interests.”

A new study says insurance exchanges in Obama's healthcare law won't automatically create more competition and lower costs for consumers.

Most people who buy their own health insurance would get a much more generous policy under the Affordable Care Act, according to a new study published in Health Affairs.

Most individual policies today fall short of the ACA's most basic standards, the study said. That means many consumers will get more benefits and will likely face lower out-of-pocket costs — but premiums could rise as a result.

People who buy health insurance on their own typically pay higher premiums and higher out-of-pocket costs than people who get their coverage through an employer. Individual policies also tend to offer less coverage and, until the ACA is fully implemented in 2014, can exclude coverage for pre-existing conditions.

According to the Health Affairs study, even the most basic plan under the ACA's new standards would be significantly more generous than what most people get today on the individual market.

Half of all employers offered domestic partner benefits last year, up from 31 percent in 2010, Kaiser Health News reports.

The United States is launching an ambitious push to develop new treatments for Alzheimer's. The effort will include a prevention study for high-risk patients, Reuters reports.

A Catholic diocese in Indiana faces a lawsuit from a former parochial school teacher who claims she was fired for using in vitro fertilization, The Associated Press reports.

The Defense Department is preparing to transition to electronic health records, Modern Healthcare [registration required] reports.

Smoking marijuana may ease the symptoms of multiple sclerosis, a new study found. The Los Angeles Times has more.

Testosterone replacement therapies may be the most sought-after lifestyle drugs since Viagra, the San Francisco Chronicle reports.

And in case you missed it, interest groups are flooding Capitol Hill in anticipation of "Taxmageddon" in January, The Washington Post reports.