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Opponents running to Joe Biden's left say his health plan for America merely "tinkers around the edges" of the Affordable Care Act. But a close read reveals some initiatives in Biden's plan that are so expansive they might have trouble passing even a Congress held by Democrats.

Radical Or Incremental? What's Really In Joe Biden's Health Plan

The Biden plan released this week is an update of the Affordable Care Act with controversial differences. Among them: a "public option" that covers abortion, and subsidized premiums for more people.

Back pain shouldn't stop you from cooking at home. Here's how to adapt

A new cookbook offers kitchen techniques that reduce physical exertion. It aims to make home cooking accessible again for those with chronic back pain.

The new exemptions will mostly apply to penalty payments tied to 2018 taxes and to the previous two years.

4 New Exemptions To The Tax Penalty For Lacking Health Insurance

Rule changes from the Trump administration offer exemptions for people in areas with only one marketplace plan, as well as for some who oppose abortion and can't find a health plan that excludes it.

Telemedicine is making it easier for inmates to be seen for special medical needs, like cancer or cardiac care.

When Inmates Need A Specialist, They Often See The Doctor By Video

Corrections officials are increasingly using remote appointments to handle specialized needs, such as psychiatric, cancer and cardiac care.

The same steep growth and use of big data that attracted venture capital cash to companies that administer Medicare Advantage plans have led to scrutiny of the companies by government officials. Federal audits estimate such plans nationwide have overcharged taxpayers nearly $10 billion annually.

Missouri Firm With Silicon Valley Ties Faces Medicare Billing Scrutiny

A federal audit and a whistleblower lawsuit allege that Medicare Advantage plans from the St. Louis-based Essence Group Holdings Corp. have significantly overcharged taxpayers.

Don Gregorio has lived all his life in the same home in Humacao, a city on Puerto Rico's eastern coast that was hard-hit by Hurricane Maria. Many of his old friends have since left for the mainland, the former carpenter says, and he feels very alone.

Listless And Lonely In Puerto Rico, Some Older Storm Survivors Consider Suicide

The electricity is back on across much of the island, but the disruption to community spirit continues. Isolation, anxiety and depression are up, as are suicides, especially among older adults.

Lorena Bradford (left), head of accessible programs at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., leads a session of the museum's <em>Just Us</em> program. The program gives adults with memory loss and their caregivers a chance to explore and discuss works of art in a small-group setting.

Family Caregivers Finally Get A Break — And Some Coaching

Across the U.S., community groups, hospitals and government agencies are stepping up to support the estimated 42 million stressed and strained family caregivers, who are often untrained and unpaid.

Sovereign Valentine, a personal trainer in Plains, Mont., needs dialysis for his end-stage renal disease. When he first started dialysis treatments, Fresenius Kidney Care clinic in Missoula charged $13,867.74 per session, or about 59 times the $235 Medicare pays for a dialysis session.

Dialysis Firm Cancels $524,600.17 Medical Bill After Journalists Investigate

This week, NPR profiled a Montana man who was billed nearly half a million dollars for 14 weeks of dialysis, after being caught in a dispute between insurer and the dialysis provider. Now he owes $0.

Mercy Hospital & Medical Center survived the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 ― but it lost the battle of modern health care economics. In July, Chicago's first hospital told regulators that it will end inpatient services as soon as February.

Some Urban Hospitals Face Closure Or Cutbacks As The Pandemic Adds To Fiscal Woes

Experts fear that the economic pressures of the COVID-19 crisis are helping push some urban hospitals over the edge at the very time they are most needed in low-income communities.

Denise and Richard Victor of Bloomfield Hills, Mich., have been missing their grandkids, whom they haven't seen since February. Before the pandemic, they had regular visits with grandsons (from left) Daren Cosola, Stirling Victor, Davis Victor and Lucas Cosola.

Too Little Or Too Much Time With The Kids? Grandparenting Is Tough In A Pandemic

Even as social restrictions ease in some spots, older adults remain extra-vulnerable to COVID-19. That means many families are facing hard choices — whether to hunker down together or apart.

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