Julie Rovner

Democratic Sen. Ted Kennedy ( left) and Republican Sen. Orrin Hatch teamed up on a series of landmark legislative health care achievements, such as the Ryan White program on AIDS treatment, the Americans with Disabilities Act, and the first major federal child care law.

Sen. Orrin Hatch's legacy tracks the GOP's evolution on health

Julie Rovner

The man who forged successful alliances with Democratic health giants, such as Sen. Kennedy and Rep. Waxman, fell back on his deep conservative roots as opposition grew to the Affordable Care Act.

Demonstrators gathered in front of the U.S. Supreme Court as the justices heard arguments in Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health, a case about a Mississippi law that bans most abortions after 15 weeks, on December 01, 2021. Experts believe a ruling on this case could undermine or overturn Roe v. Wade.

With the Supreme Court poised to act, Americans remain bitterly divided on abortion

Julie Rovner

Years ago, opponents of abortion tried to change 'hearts and minds' on the issue. Public views haven't budged but the court may take action anyway.

Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, sworn in last week as the administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, says she will focus on improving Americans' access to health care. Any discussions of shoring up Medicare funding, she says, should also entail strengthening the program's benefits.

Expanding Health Coverage Is Top Priority For New Head Of Medicare/Medicaid

Julie Rovner

Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, the new head of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, says she'll focus her time in charge on getting more Americans insured.

U.S. Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett's first opportunity to weigh in on abortion and contraception could come as early as this week, as the high court decides whether to take up a Mississippi case.

How An Abortion Fight In Supreme Court Could Threaten Birth Control, Too

Julie Rovner

In talk of the impact Amy Coney Barrett could have on abortion rights, many people overlook related cases that might be in play, including the right to birth control that the court recognized in 1965.

Funding is shrinking for Medicare's Part A trust fund, which pays for hospitalization and in-patient care. The funding largely comes from a 1.45% payroll tax paid by employees and employers.

Health & Wellness

Another Problem On The Health Horizon: Medicare Is Running Out Of Money

Julie Rovner

With millions of people out of work because of the coronavirus pandemic, fewer payroll taxes are coming in to help keep Medicare's trust fund intact.

Casa de Salud clinicians, staff and health apprentices socially distance outside their New Mexico clinic. The facility is one of many social safety net clinics that haven't yet received pandemic-related funding and are now on the brink financially.

Health & Wellness

Medicaid Clinics And Doctors Have Been Last In Line For COVID-19 Relief Funding

Julie Rovner

Congress authorized $100 billion to reimburse health care providers for losses linked to the pandemic, but much of that money has gone for Medicare patients, with low-income families left behind.

Pedro Rivera waits with other volunteers in District Heights, Md. to hand out food. He's wearing a mask that reads, "This too shall pass."

Health & Wellness

Opinion: Always The Bridesmaid, Public Health Rarely Spotlighted Until It's Too Late

Julie Rovner

Because the public health system mostly operates in the background, it rarely gets the attention or funding it deserves ― until there's a crisis.

Former Vice President Joe Biden at a press conference in Wilmington, Del., in mid-March. His bid this week to allow 60-year-olds to get Medicare "reflects the reality," he says, "that, even after the current crisis ends, older Americans are likely to find it difficult to secure jobs."

Health & Wellness

Biden's Health Play In A COVID-19 Economy: Lower Medicare's Eligibility Age To 60

Julie Rovner

Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden proposes letting 60-year-olds enroll in Medicare. He'd pay for the expansion out of general tax revenue, he says, not the Medicare fund.

Abortion-rights supporters demonstrate last May in front of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington. A high court decision in a case that could curtail or even overturn <em>Roe v. Wade</em> is set for opening arguments in March.

Roe v. Wade: Settled Law Or Bad Precedent? States Prep For An Overturn

Julie Rovner

A Supreme Court case in March will test the new five-member conservative majority. If justices strike federal abortion protections, look for a state-by-state quilt of abortion "deserts" and "havens."

Student demonstrators cheered in 2015 outside the Supreme Court after learning that the high court had upheld the Affordable Care Act as law of the land. But Republican foes of the federal health law are still working to have it struck down.

Stakes High For Democrats And Republicans In Bid To Rush ACA To Supreme Court

Julie Rovner

Both sides say they want the high court to quickly weigh in on a case that could invalidate the federal health law. Whatever the court decides will likely have consequences in 2020 elections.