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. Tommy Martino/Kaiser Health News hide caption
Overall in medical research, the proportion of participants with non-European ancestry is only about 20 percent, says Columbia University bioethicist Sandra Soo-Jin Lee. And that's a problem. Tek Image/Science Photo Library/Getty Images hide caption
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. 123light/Getty Images hide caption
The Trump administration has suggested buying a prescription drug is like buying a car — with plenty of room to negotiate down from the sticker price. But drug pricing analysts say the analogy doesn't work. tomeng/Getty Images hide caption
Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter begins closing statements during the opioid trial at the Cleveland County Courthouse in Norman, Okla., on Monday, July 15. It's the first public trial to emerge from roughly 2,000 U.S. lawsuits aimed at holding drugmakers accountable for the nation's opioid epidemic. Chris Landsberger/The Oklahoman hide caption
Medicare Advantage plans, administered by private insurance companies under contract with Medicare, treat more than 22 million seniors — more than 1 in 3 people on Medicare. Roy Scott/Ikon Images/Getty Images hide caption
Physicians complain that there's not yet a standard drug-pricing tool available to them that includes the range of medicine prices each of their patients might face — one that takes into account their particular pharmacy choice and health insurance plan. Exdez/Getty Images hide caption
R. Alan Pritchard, one of two attorneys for Methodist Le Bonheur Healthcare, heads into Shelby County General Sessions Court Wednesday in Memphis. He asked the court to drop more than two dozen cases as the hospital reviews its collection policies. Andrea Morales for MLK50 hide caption
An employee at a Methodist University Hospital is being sued by her employer for unpaid medical bills incurred before they hired her. Andrea Morales for MLK50 hide caption
Daisha Smith says she only realized she had been sued over her hospital bill when she saw her paycheck was being garnished. "I literally have no food in my house because they're garnishing my check," she says. Olivia Falcigno/NPR hide caption
Patients operated on by surgeons who display rude or unprofessional behavior toward colleagues tend to have higher rates of post-surgical complications. FangXiaNuo/Getty Images hide caption
Gov. Ron DeSantis signed Florida's prescription drug importation program into law last week at The Villages, a large retirement community outside Orlando. Florida Governor's Press Office hide caption
A new Texas law aims to protect patients like Drew Calver, pictured here with his wife, Erin, and daughters, Eleanor (left) and Emory, in their Austin, Texas, home. After being treated for a heart attack in April 2017, Calver, a high school history teacher, got a surprise medical bill for $108,951. Callie Richmond for KHN hide caption
In many rural areas, helicopters are the only speedy way to get patients to a trauma center or hospital burn unit. As more than 100 rural hospitals have closed around the U.S. since 2010, the need for air transport has only increased. Ollo/Getty Images hide caption