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Marshall Allen

Marshall Allen was previously a reporter at ProPublica investigating the cost and quality of our health care.

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Marshall Allen was a reporter at ProPublica investigating the cost and quality of our health care. He is one of the creators of ProPublica’s Surgeon Scorecard, which published the complication rates for about 17,000 surgeons who perform eight common elective procedures. Allen’s work has been honored with several journalism awards, including the Harvard Kennedy School’s 2011 Goldsmith Prize for Investigative Reporting and coming in as a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for local reporting for work at the Las Vegas Sun, where he worked before coming to ProPublica in 2011. Before he was in journalism, Allen spent five years in full-time ministry, including three years in Nairobi, Kenya. He has a master’s degree in Theology.

Coronavirus

Mueren en la lista de espera

En el condado de Los Ángeles, y en todo el país, médicos han tenido que decidir quién recibe un tratamiento para COVID-19 que salva vidas, y quién no.

Coronavirus

Dying on the Waitlist

In Los Angeles County and around the country, doctors have had to decide who gets a lifesaving COVID-19 treatment and who doesn’t.

Health Insurance Hustle

Lavish Bonus? Luxury Trip? Health Benefits Brokers Will Have to Disclose What They Receive From the Insurance Industry

Employers trust brokers to guide them to the best value, but conflicts of interest abound. Tucked into the coronavirus relief bill, a new federal requirement will mandate more transparency.

Coronavirus

The Family Court Judge Who Threatened a Mother With Contempt of Court for Getting Her Child a COVID-19 Test

Timothy Grendell thought coronavirus precautions were overblown, and made sure people knew it. In one case he forbade a mother from getting her children tested for COVID-19. Then one of them had to go to the emergency room.

Coronavirus

How Your Brain Tricks You Into Taking Risks During the Pandemic

Experts who study the way we think and make decisions say that it can be more than politics driving our decision-making this year. The unprecedented nature of the pandemic undermines how we process information and assess risk. Need proof? Look around.

“Trumpcare” Does Not Exist. Nevertheless Facebook and Google Cash In on Misleading Ads for “Garbage” Health Insurance.

The thousands of “Trumpcare” ads Facebook and Google have published show that the shadowy “lead generation” economy has a happy home on the platforms — and even big names like UnitedHealthcare take part.

Coronavirus

A Doctor Went to His Own Employer for a COVID-19 Antibody Test. It Cost $10,984.

Physicians Premier ER charged Dr. Zachary Sussman’s insurance $10,984 for his COVID-19 antibody test even though Sussman worked for the chain and knows the testing materials only cost about $8. Even more surprising: The insurer paid in full.

Coronavirus

Cellphone Data Shows How Las Vegas Is “Gambling With Lives” Across the Country

Las Vegas casinos, open for months now, are a likely hotbed for the spread of COVID-19. For many reasons, contact tracing has proved next to impossible as tourists return to homes across the U.S.

Coronavirus

How a $175 COVID-19 Test Led to $2,479 in Charges

A global pandemic ravaging America is no time to forget the first rule of American health care: There is no set price. One out-of-network medical provider in Texas seeks permission from patients to charge fees as high as six-figures to their insurance.

Coronavirus

What Parents Should Know About Coronavirus as Kids Return to Babysitters, Day Cares and Camps

You never planned on raising kids during a pandemic, and there are no easy decisions. ProPublica scoured the latest research and talked to seven infectious disease and public health experts to help think through the issues facing parents.