Michelle Andrews

In Bustling NYC Federal Building, HHS Offices Are Eerily Quiet

KFF Health News Original

Public health experts and advocates say that Health and Human Services regional offices, like the one in New York City, form the connective tissue between the federal government and locally based services.

Fast Action From Bystanders Can Improve Cardiac Arrest Survival. Many Don’t Know What To Do.

KFF Health News Original

In 9 of 10 cases, a person in cardiac arrest will die because help doesn’t arrive quickly enough. With CPR and, possibly, a shock from an automated external defibrillator, survival odds double. But Americans lack confidence and know-how to handle these interventions.

In New York, Providers Must Put Patient Costs on the Table

KFF Health News Original

The governor’s fiscal year 2026 budget revises a law designed to limit unexpected bills that can put people at risk for unfair medical billing practices and reduce medical debt. Consumer groups say it doesn’t go far enough.

It’s a Bird. It’s a Plane. It’s a Medical Response Drone.

KFF Health News Original

What if the first responder on the scene of a cardiac arrest were a drone carrying an automated external defibrillator? When every second counts, public safety professionals are increasingly eyeing drones — which can fly 60 miles an hour and don’t get stuck in traffic — to deliver help faster than an ambulance or EMT. […]

Like Doctors, More Nurse Practitioners Are Heading Into Specialty Care

KFF Health News Original

If your doctor can’t see you now, maybe the nurse practitioner can. Nurse practitioners have long been a reliable backstop for the primary-care-physician shortfall, which is estimated at nearly 21,000 doctors this year and projected to get worse. But easy access to NPs could be tested in coming years. Even though nearly 90 percent of […]

Funding Instability Plagues Program That Brings Docs to Underserved Areas

KFF Health News Original

A medical residency program designed to train future primary care physicians in outpatient rather than hospital settings has proved an effective means to bring doctors to rural and underserved areas. But it hinges on unpredictable congressional funding.

The Lure of Specialty Medicine Pulls Nurse Practitioners From Primary Care

KFF Health News Original

Nurse practitioners have been viewed as a key to addressing the shortage of primary care physicians. But data suggests that, just like doctors, they are increasingly drawn to better-paying specialties.

As Republicans Wrestle With IVF, the Biden Administration Expands Benefits

KFF Health News Original

While Republican lawmakers try to walk a fine line on in vitro fertilization — expressing support for the popular procedure, even as some of their supporters argue life begins at conception — the federal government expanded fertility benefits for millions of workers this year, including up to $25,000 a year for IVF. Many employers have […]

Feds Join Ranks of Employers with Generous Fertility Benefits

KFF Health News Original

Starting this year, federal employees can choose plans that cover a broad menu of fertility services, including up to $25,000 annually for in vitro fertilization procedures. At the same time, politics around IVF and reproductive health have become a central issue in the current election-year debate.