health care gap Archives - Northwest Public Broadcasting

The New Year Brings More Transparency In Hospital Prices With New Federal Health Care Rule

By NPR News January 3, 2021

The Trump administration's rule, which goes into effect this month, was made possible in part through the efforts of Cynthia Fisher, the founder and chairman of PatientRightsAdvocate.org. Patients from across the United States have told "stories of being blindsided by outrageous medical bills," Fisher told NPR's Weekend Edition. "This is the win to put affordable into the Read More

Seasonal Ranch Workers Worry About Montana’s Medicaid Work Requirement

By NPR News November 3, 2019

Kate Clyatt, 28, works seasonally as a ranch hand in southwest Montana, and relies on the state's Medicaid program for health coverage. "Ranching is just not a job with a lot of money in it," Clyatt says. "I don't know at what point I'm going to be able to get off of Medicaid." CREDIT: Corin Cates-Carney/Montana Public Radio

Montana recently passed a law that, if it gains federal approval and goes into effect as planned in January, would require many Medicaid recipients to prove they work a set number of hours each month.Read More

The Gap Between Rich And Poor Americans’ Health Is Widening

By NPR News July 3, 2019

Health inequities are getting worse, according to new research. Factors like income, race and gender are playing a larger role in health outcomes than they did 25 years ago. Read More

Trump Administration Proposes Rule To Reverse Protections For Transgender Patients

By NPR News May 25, 2019

Roger Severino, director of the Office for Civil Rights, announced Friday a new proposed rule rolling back anti-discrimination protections for transgender patients. Those protections had been written in 2016 but enjoined in court. Jacquelyn Martin/AP

A federal agency issued a proposed rule Friday that rolls back Obama-era protections for transgender patients. Advocates for transgender people say the rule leaves them vulnerable to discrimination.Read More

Cancer Complications: Confusing Bills, Maddening Errors And Endless Phone Calls

By NPR News February 27, 2019

Carol Marley, a hospital nurse with private insurance, says coping with the financial fallout of her pancreatic cancer has been exhausting. CREDIT: Anna Gorman/KHN

Coping with the financial fallout of cancer is exhausting — and nerve-wracking. But the worst part, one patient says, is that it's unexpected. Cancer patients are 2.65 times more likely to file for bankruptcy than those without cancer, and bankruptcy puts them at a higher risk for early death, according to research.Read More

Idaho’s Proposition 2 Puts Medicaid Expansion To Voters After State Lawmakers Refused

By NWPB News November 3, 2018

Amy Pratt personally collected more than 1,000 signatures to help get Proposition 2 on the ballot. It's the first time she's been politically active and she has no plans of stopping. CREDIT: JAMES DAWSON / BSPR

After years of inaction by the Idaho legislature on the state's healthcare gap, Proposition 2 on the state ballot gives Idahoans the chance to say whether they want Medicaid expansion -- a proposal endorsed by outgoing Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter.Read More