Hospitals

A bipartisan group of senators has been working on a plan to protect patients from unexpected medical bills. Disagreements within the health care industry could thwart those efforts.

A public hospital in Los Angeles gets over 1,000 unidentified patients a year. Most are quickly ID'd, but some require considerable gumshoe work — a task often complicated by medical privacy laws.

Hospital-owned clinics that are miles away should be reimbursed at the same rates as an independent doctor, but not more, Medicare says. That new rule could save taxpayers $380 million in 2019.

U.S. hospitals are under mounting pressure to address violence against health care staff by patients and visitors. Nearly half of emergency doctors say they've been physically assaulted at work.

Celina, Tenn., has long lured retirees, with its scenic hills and affordability. These newcomers help fuel the local economy. But a recent hospital closure makes the town a harder sell.

A new report offers the first comprehensive assessment of water, sanitation and hygiene in health-care facilities in low- and middle-income countries.

Hospitals and nursing homes in California and Illinois think that regional cooperation — and a particular soap — could help them all gain the upper hand against deadly superbugs.

Now that Colorado has expanded Medicaid coverage to include more low-income residents, hospitals are better off financially. But that hasn't stopped them from shifting costs to other insured patients.

Some states have begun using Medicare reimbursement rates to recalibrate how they pay hospitals. If the gamble pays off, more private-sector employers could start doing the same thing.

The government used a 2009 financial stimulus package to move the country from paper medical charts to electronic records. Care was supposed to get better, safer and cheaper. It hasn't worked out.

Legislation introduced in Texas this week would force the state's health care providers and health insurers to mediate payment disputes before they send bills to patients.

An animal lover stopped to feed a hungry-looking stray cat outside Everglades National Park in Florida. The cat bit her finger; then treatment for a possible rabies infection bit her pocketbook.