Follow the Money

New Medicare Payment Rules Take Effect In 2027

Doctors who bill Medicare will be paid at lower conversion factors, and drugmakers and noncitizen patients face new requirements after Health and Human...

Government Operations

Federal Agency Eliminates 25 Child Support Regulatory Sections

State and tribal child support agencies will see 25 federal regulatory sections removed from the books starting Nov. 30 under a final rule the...

Government Operations

Federal Agency Proposes Easing Rules for State Block Grants

States and tribal grantees receiving federal block grants for energy assistance, social services, and mental health programs would face fewer administrative...

Legislation

SNAP Work Rules and Funding Changes Reshape Federal Food Aid

Changes to federal food assistance are expanding work requirements, restricting eligibility for some immigrants and shifting more program costs to states,...

Politics

Social Security Trust Fund Projected To Be Depleted by 2032

The Social Security Old-Age and Survivors Insurance (OASI) trust fund is projected to be depleted in 2032, at which point ongoing revenues would cover only...

Politics

Proposed Rule Strips Noncitizen Eligibility for Four Tax Credits

Treasury and the IRS have proposed a rule that would, for the first time, classify the refundable portions of four federal tax credits as federal public...

Social Welfare

New Eligibility Rules Proposed For Health Insurance Marketplace Enrollees

Health insurance Marketplace applicants and enrollees would face new eligibility and verification checks before coverage begins, under a proposal the...

Agriculture

Agriculture Department Proposes New Card Security Rules

Households that receive federal food assistance would face new SNAP EBT security requirements under a USDA proposal to replace magnetic-stripe benefit cards...

Social Welfare

Medicare Rule Targets Drug Copays and PBM Payments

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) proposed eliminating generic-drug copays for about 6 million low-income Medicare enrollees and barring...

Social Welfare

Clergy Act Opens New Window to Reverse Social Security Exemption

Clergy members who once opted out of Social Security permanently now have a time-limited chance to reverse that decision, according to a new Congressional...

Social Welfare

Health Insurance Markets Provide Fewer Choices For Enrollees

Private health insurance market concentration generally increased from 2011 through 2024, leaving enrollees with potentially fewer insurer choices and...

Social Welfare

Medicare Part D Premium Trial Shortened, Prompts Calls To Reverse

The Trump administration terminated the Medicare Part D Premium Stabilization Demonstration in 2026, cutting short a program designed to run through plan...

Politics

Social Security Retirement Age Questioned as Early Claiming Drops

Early Social Security claiming has dropped sharply over the past 15 years, even as proposals to raise the Social Security retirement age remain an ongoing...

Legislation

Medicaid Coverage Gap for Disabled Adult Children Faces Congress

Some adults with disabilities who would otherwise qualify for Supplemental Security Income (SSI) can lose access to SSI-based Medicaid because of the way...

Congress

Sen. Marshall Faces Headwinds in Fight to Stay in Office

Sen. Roger Marshall (R-KS) is a Republican U.S. senator from Kansas who is in a fierce fight to stay on as incumbent. He faces Adam Hamilton, a...

Social Welfare

U.S. Paid Family Leave Access Remains Uneven, Voluntary

Access to paid family and medical leave in the United States is uneven and largely voluntary on the corporate side, with no federal mandate requiring...

Health

Most Improper Medicaid Payments Due To Lack Of Documents, Not Fraud

The total amount of Medicaid fraud is unknown, according to a new Congressional Research Service report. However, the research distinguishes fraud from the...