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About 68 million Americans receive Medicare benefits, including 61 million people aged 65 years and older. Medicare provides coverage for doctor visits, hospitalizations, and more.
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Currently, traditional Medicare does not include hearing, dental, and vision coverage, leaving beneficiaries on the hook to pay huge out-of-pocket costs.
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KFF Health News: Blurry Line Between Medical and Vision Insurance Leaves Patient With Unexpected Bill
January 30, 2026: Barbara Tuszynski was concerned about her vision but confident in her insurance coverage when she went to an eye clinic last May. The retiree, 70, was diagnosed with glaucoma in her right eye in 2019. She had a laser procedure Read More >
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KFF Health News: These 3 Policy Moves Are Likely To Change Health Care for Older People
January 23, 2026: Month after month, Patricia Hunter and other members of the Nursing Home Reform Coalition logged onto video calls with congressional representatives, seeking support for a proposed federal rule setting minimum staff levels for nur Read More >
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KFF Health News: Solving the Home Care Quandary
January 08, 2026: You’re ready to leave the hospital, but you don’t feel able to care for yourself at home yet. Or, you’ve completed a couple of weeks in rehab. Can you handle your complicated medication regimen, along with shopping and co Read More >
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KFF Health News: Complaints About Gaps in Medicare Advantage Networks Are Common. Federal Enforcement Is Rare.
November 20, 2025: Along with the occasional aches and pains, growing older can bring surprise setbacks and serious diseases. Longtime relationships with doctors people trust often make even bad news more tolerable. Losing that support — especiall Read More >
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KFF Health News: AI Will Soon Have a Say in Approving or Denying Medicare Treatments
September 25, 2025: [caption id="attachment_15788" align="aligncenter" width="600"] Mehmet Oz, chief of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, said during a June press conference that “violence in the streets” had prompted the Trump ad Read More >
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Medicare Telehealth Services Will Expire on September 30
September 17, 2025: Congress only has until the end of September to renew expanded Medicare telehealth services. Before the COVID pandemic, only certain patients with specific diagnoses and conditions were eligible to receive telehealth medical care. Read More >
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Americans Struggle to Access COVID Vaccines
September 12, 2025: HHS Secretary Robert Kennedy, Jr. has said that Americans who want COVID shots will be able to get them. However, some older Americans have reported going to local pharmacies to receive a COVID vaccine only to discover that Medic Read More >
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HHS Secretary Grilled About Medicaid, CDC Firings, and Vaccines During Contentious Hearing
September 05, 2025: During a tense hearing on Thursday, members of the Senate Finance Committee pressed HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. about his position on a number of issues, including Medicare drug price negotiation, vaccine skepticism, recen Read More >
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KFF Health News: Breaking Down Why Medicare Part D Premiums Are Likely To Go Up
August 15, 2025: Medicare enrollees who buy the optional Part D drug benefit may see substantial premium price hikes — potentially up to $50 a month — when they shop for next year’s coverage. Such drug plans are used by millions of people Read More >
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Study Debunks Pharmaceutical Industry’s Claims That Medicare Drug Price Negotiation Would Harm R&D
July 18, 2025: A new study by Bentley University debunks the pharmaceutical industry’s claims that the Medicare drug price negotiation law would harm innovation and research. Drug research and development (R&D) spending actually increased Read More >
