BREAKING: Supreme Court Refuses To Lift CDC's Eviction Moratorium

BREAKING: Supreme Court Refuses To Lift CDC's Eviction Moratorium

The U.S. Supreme Court denied a request from a coalition of landlords and realtors to lift the federal government's eviction moratorium in a 5-4 vote Tuesday, with Chief Justice John Roberts Jr. and Justice Brett Kavanaugh joining the liberal members of the court to form a majority.

The 2021 Retirement and Annuity Interactive Atlas

The 2021 Retirement and Annuity Interactive Atlas

By Allison Bell

Here are tools you can use to find out where the high-income people are living, where pensions are in trouble, and more.

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The Top 10 Long-Term Care Insurance Issuers

The Top 10 Long-Term Care Insurance Issuers

By Allison Bell

These companies are still protecting millions of people against catastrophe as they struggle with low interest rates.

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Should we shake on it?

The handshake — part gesture of respect, part germ spreader — went on hiatus during the pandemic, and some doctors hope it's gone for good. 

Housing market still red hot

U.S. home prices jumped in April at the fastest pace in more than 15 years, and economists said there is little sign that the housing market's blistering price increases are likely to cool off soon.

Half of Emergency Ambulance Rides Lead to Out-of-Network Bills for Privately Insured Patients

 

Analysis: Half of Emergency Ambulance Rides Lead to Out-of-Network Bills for Privately Insured Patients    About half of emergency ground ambulance rides result in an out-of-network charge for people with private health insurance, potentially leaving patients at risk of getting a surprise bill, a new KFF analysis for the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker finds.   Congress last year enacted the “No Surprises Act,” which prohibits most surprise out-of-network bills when a patient receives out-of-network services during an emergency visit or at an in-network hospital without advance notice starting in 2022. However, the protections do not apply to ground ambulance services, and the law instead requires a federal advisory committee to study the issue and recommend options to protect patients from surprise bills.   The analysis estimates that ambulances transport about 3 million privately insured patients to emergency rooms each year, accounting for about 1 in 10 of all visits to hospital emergency rooms among privately insured patients. Local fire and rescue departments and other government agencies account for nearly two thirds (62%) of those rides.   The analysis examines 2018 claims data from large employer health plans and finds 51% of emergency ambulance rides and 39% of non-emergency rides include an out-of-network charge for the ambulance service.   In seven states – Washington, California, Florida, Colorado, Texas, Illinois, and Wisconsin – more than two thirds of emergency ground ambulance rides result in an out-of-network charge.   The analysis also examines several existing state and local laws that seek to protect consumers from unexpected or excessive bills for ground ambulance services, generally by limiting when and how much ambulance providers can bill patients for their services.   The analysis is available on the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker, an online information hub dedicated to monitoring and assessing the performance of the U.S. health system.

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CONTACT:   Craig Palosky | (202) 654-1369 | cpalosky@kff.org

 

Filling the need for trusted information on national health issues, KFF is a nonprofit organization based in San Francisco, California. kff.org  |  khn.org

 

What Factors Are Driving Racial Wage Gaps?

 

Factors Driving Growing Racial Wage Gaps and Solutions to Close Them   An analysis by Gad Levanon, Vice President, Labor Markets

 

 

Click on the chart to enlarge

 

Last week, Americans commemorated Juneteenth against a backdrop of renewed urgency around the nation’s racial divides. From the grassroots to the C-suite, the past decade—and the last year in particular—has seen a growing focus on the stubborn racial disparities that persist in the US economy. Yet, despite increased attention on the topic, a new report from The Conference Board finds that wage gaps have only widened between Black and White workers in recent years, even those of otherwise comparable backgrounds and qualifications. The report reveals: ·    How deeply rooted labor-market segmentation has constrained the earnings of even highly educated Black workers. ·    Why the rise of the tech industry in particular—where Black workers are especially rare—has been a key driver of racial wage gaps over the past decade. ·    The role of geographic mismatch in this tech divide. ·    How leaders in high-growth sectors can expand their access to Black talent. We encourage you to read the full report, Mind the Gap: Factors Driving Racial Wage Gaps and the Solutions to Close Them, for our exclusive data, nuanced analysis, and real world recommendations on this critical issue. We also encourage you to read The New York Times’ coverage of this important report.