Markian Hawryluk

Markian Hawryluk was a senior Colorado correspondent for KFF Health News until he retired in January 2024.

@MarkianHawryluk

Colorado abre período especial para tener seguro de salud por omicron y un incendio forestal

KFF Health News Original

Funcionarios estatales anunciaron la apertura de un período especial de inscripción hasta el 16 de marzo, abierto para todos los residentes de Colorado sin seguro, independientemente de si fueron afectados por el fuego o por covid-19.

Deep Roots Help This Chicago Pharmacist Avoid Creating Another Drugstore Desert

KFF Health News Original

Predominantly Black and Hispanic urban areas are more likely than white neighborhoods to see local pharmacies close and are more likely to be pharmacy deserts. In Chicago, one pharmacist is bucking the trend, operating the drugstore his father opened in the 1960s in a Black neighborhood.

Local Pharmacists Fill Rx Void as Big Brands Pull Out of Rural Areas

KFF Health News Original

Stores like Walmart and Shopko opened pharmacies in small towns, either buying out the local pharmacy or driving it out of business. What happens when those chains later withdraw, leaving communities with no pharmacy?

Seeking Refills: Aging Pharmacists Leave Drugstores Vacant in Rural America

KFF Health News Original

Independent pharmacists who want to retire often have trouble attracting new pharmacists to take over their practices, particularly in rural areas. That can cause smaller towns to lose their pharmacies. With many pharmacists near retirement, the problem may only get worse.

Cómo las comunidades rurales están perdiendo sus farmacias

KFF Health News Original

Las farmacias de las esquinas, que alguna vez estuvieron tanto en las grandes ciudades como en los pueblos rurales, están desapareciendo de muchas áreas del país, dejando a unos 41 millones de estadounidenses en lo que se conoce como “desiertos de farmacias”, sin fácil acceso a las farmacias.

How Rural Communities Are Losing Their Pharmacies

KFF Health News Original

More than 1,000 independent rural pharmacies have closed since 2003, leaving 630 communities with no retail drugstore. As 41 million people stuck in pharmacy deserts make do, the remaining drugstores struggle to survive.

Pharmacies Face Extra Audit Burdens That Threaten Their Existence

KFF Health News Original

Pharmacy benefit managers have curtailed in-person audits of pharmacy claims during the pandemic, switching to virtual audits done by computer. That has markedly increased the number of claims they can review — and the chances for payment denials — squeezing pharmacies and bringing in more cash for the benefit companies.

Bus Stop by Bus Stop, Denver-Area Officials Microtarget Vaccine Hesitancy

KFF Health News Original

Using detailed maps that show vaccination rates down to the ZIP code or census tract level, health departments highlight areas of greater Denver where vaccinations lag behind state or county averages, then partner with community organizations to overcome barriers. Can this be a model for President Joe Biden’s “neighborhood by neighborhood” approach?

How One Rural Town Without a Pharmacy Is Crowdsourcing to Get Meds

KFF Health News Original

As more independently owned community pharmacies close, a Colorado town is crowdsourcing ways of getting prescription medicines delivered to those who can’t travel the long distance to the closest pharmacy. But even those stopgap measures don’t always work.

What a Difference a Year Makes in Colorado’s Case for a Public Option Plan

KFF Health News Original

Before the pandemic, Colorado was building momentum to pass what’s known as a “public option” health plan that would lower insurance premiums and force hospitals to accept lower payments. But now with hospitals and health care providers enjoying support as front-line heroes in the pandemic, state legislators have stripped the option from their bill.