Blake Farmer, Nashville Public Radio

@flakebarmer

Mientras baja la vacunación contra covid, partes de EE.UU. están lejos de la meta del 70%

KFF Health News Original

El 4 de julio no fue la celebración que esperaba el presidente Joe Biden. La nación no alcanzó el objetivo de la Casa Blanca de dar al menos una primera dosis de la vacuna contra covid al 70% de los adultos para el Día de la Independencia.

For Kurdish Americans in Nashville, a Beloved Leader’s Death Prompts Vaccine Push

KFF Health News Original

Some immigrant groups are closing the ethnic gap on COVID-19 shots. For many Kurdish Americans, their fears about vaccination are entangled with their experiences in refugee camps after fleeing Iraq.

Are You Old Enough to Get Vaccinated? In Tennessee, They’re Using the Honor System

KFF Health News Original

In most Tennessean counties, residents currently eligible to get the coronavirus vaccine are health care workers, long-term care residents and people 75 and older. But don’t expect strict enforcement.

Hospital Bills for Uninsured COVID Patients Are Covered, but No One Tells Them

KFF Health News Original

The CARES Act provides funding that pays the bills for uninsured COVID-19 patients. But the death of a young man in Nashville shows some patients don’t know about the program until it’s too late.

Wear a Mask. If Only It Were That Simple.

KFF Health News Original

Health experts agree masks are the cheapest, best weapon against the coronavirus pandemic. But how should mask-wearing be enforced? Mandates? Fines? Polite requests? It’s hard to figure out what works as President Donald Trump’s behavior keeps the debate alive over whether they should be worn at all.

COVID Vaccine Trials Move at Warp Speed, But Recruiting Black Volunteers Takes Time

KFF Health News Original

The National Institutes of Health has suggested minorities should be overrepresented in COVID-19 vaccine trials — perhaps at rates that are double their percentage of the U.S. population. But efforts to recruit patients from racial minority groups are just beginning, while some trials have already advanced to phase 3.

Will Labor Day Weekend Bring Another Holiday COVID Surge?

KFF Health News Original

Epidemiologists are having a hard time predicting whether Labor Day will be like the Fourth of July and Memorial Day, when celebrations fanned the flames in coronavirus hot spots around the South and West.

El Congreso dijo que los tests de COVID-19 debían ser gratuitos, pero ¿quién paga?

KFF Health News Original

A fines de marzo, el Congreso aprobó dos leyes, que esencialmente establecieron no solo que las pruebas para COVID tenían que estar cubiertas, sino que los pacientes no debían pagar un centavo.

Congress Said COVID-19 Tests Should Be Free — But Who’s Paying?

KFF Health News Original

Some large employers interpreted themselves as exempt from new federal laws that say tests for the coronavirus should be free to patients. Large academic medical centers are holding back from sending bills to these patients to avoid a backlash over surprise billing.

Tennessee’s Secret To Plentiful Coronavirus Testing? Picking Up The Tab

KFF Health News Original

Just about anyone who wants a coronavirus test in the state of Tennessee can get one. How? The state got buy-in and lots of participation from private labs by assuring them it will pay them.