Health Care Costs

Last year, Tim Chevalier received the first of many coverage denials from his insurance company for the hair removal procedure he needed as part of a phalloplasty, the creation of a penis. Electrolysis is a common procedure among transgender people like Chevalier, a software developer in Oakland, California. In some cases, it’s used to remove […]

A federal judge’s ruling in Texas has thrown into question whether millions of insured Americans will continue to receive some preventive medical services, such as cancer screenings and drugs that protect people from HIV infection, without making a copayment. It’s the latest legal battle over the Affordable Care Act, and Wednesday’s ruling is almost certain […]

Peggy Dula was driving two of her siblings on an unfamiliar road in Illinois when she pulled into an intersection and crashed into a truck. All three were taken to a nearby hospital, and though Peggy was the least injured, her ambulance bill was almost three times her sister’s bill. CBS Mornings spotlighted this Bill of […]

Can’t see the audio player? Click here to listen. Negotiating medical bills is often possible. It sounds hard — and it can be — but what if we got it down to a science? Mapped out all the moves ahead of time? Jared Walker and his team at the nonprofit Dollar For are running a big experiment to […]

When Dani Yuengling felt a lump in her right breast last summer, she tried to ignore it. She was 35, the same age her mother had been when she received a breast cancer diagnosis in 1997. The disease eventually killed Yuengling’s mom in 2017. “It was the hardest experience, seeing her suffer,” said Yuengling, who […]

[UPDATED on Aug. 25] SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California is trying to ease the pain of vasectomies by making them free for millions of residents. Federal law and state law require most health insurers to cover prescription contraceptives at no cost to the patient. But those provisions apply to only 18 FDA-approved birth control options for […]

Letters to the Editor is a periodic feature. We welcome all comments and will publish a selection. We edit for length and clarity and require full names. A Cure for Ambulance Sticker Shock This is a comment about your recent story on ambulance surprise bills (“The Ambulance Chased One Patient Into Collections,” July 27). In the story, three […]

“Every day was tough. Every day, I’m thinking about what I owe, how am I going to get out of this? Tough.” Terri Logan Terri Logan, 42, Spartanburg, South Carolina Approximate Medical Debt: $1,400, now $0 Medical Issue: Premature childbirth What Happened: Two months ahead of her due date with her second daughter, Terri Logan […]

“My doctor saved my life, but my medical bills are stealing from my children’s lives.” Jeni Rae Peters Jeni Rae Peters, 44, Rapid City, South Dakota Approximate Medical Debt: More than $30,000 Medical Issue: Breast cancer What Happened: Jeni Rae Peters’ budget has always been tight. But Peters, a single mom and mental health counselor, […]

Soon after giving birth to a daughter two months premature, Terri Logan received a bill from the hospital. She recoiled from the string of numbers separated by commas. Logan, who was a high school math teacher in Georgia, shoved it aside and ignored subsequent bills. She was a single mom who knew she had no […]