Health Care Heartaches: Your Winning Health Policy Valentines

By KFF Health News Staff

Illustration by Oona Zenda

February 13, 2026

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<br /> <span class="byline">KFF Health News Staff and Oona Zenda</span><br /> <span class="byline photographer"><br /> <span>Illustration by <a href="https://kffhealthnews.org/news/author/oona-tempest/"><strong>Oona Zenda</strong></a></span> </span></p> <p>Health policy has never looked so flirtatious. Every year, our readers send us valentines that make us swoon, laugh, and occasionally clutch our insurance cards. And in 2026, you did not hold back. You wrote about overcharging, rising insurance, AI in health care, and more.</p> <p>Here are some of our favorites, starting with the poem that stole our hearts like a $0 billing balance — and then was turned into a cartoon by KFF Health News staff illustrator Oona Zenda.</p> <h2><strong>1st Place</strong></h2> <p><strong>Runner-Up</strong></p> <p>A box of chocolates?A dozen roses?Just the usual Valentine’s occurrence.I’d rather Cupid chip in for my rising insurance.</p> <p><strong>– Laura Wagner</strong> </p> <p><strong>Other Newsroom Favorites</strong> </p> <p>Damn, girl.Are you a menopause expert?Because it’s been impossible to find you.</p> <p><strong>– Priya Bathija</strong></p> <p>Feeling lonely on Valentine’s with no PCPI call all the offices, but no one can see me.My insurance suggests telehealth to thicken the plot,but with no one around, I’ll seek care from an AI robot.</p> <p><strong>– Sara Culley</strong></p> <p>Roses are red,Violets are blue,If I had to choose health insurance or my house,I wouldn’t know what to do.</p> <p><strong>– Thy-Ann Nguyen</strong> </p> <p>
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