Pain Clinics Made Millions From ‘Unnecessary’ Injections Into ‘Human Pin Cushions’
Pain MD, which once ran as many as 20 clinics across three states, gave chronic-pain patients about 700,000 total injections near their spines, according to court documents. Last year, federal prosecutors proved at trial that the shots were medically unnecessary and part of an extensive fraud scheme.
Republican States Claim Zero Abortions. A Red-State Doctor Calls That ‘Ludicrous.’
In several red states, officials say few or no abortions happened in 2023, raising alarm among researchers about the politicization of vital statistics.
Voters Backed Abortion Rights but State Judges Have Final Say
Though abortion rights supporters prevailed on ballot measures in seven of the 10 states where abortion was up for a vote on Nov. 5, the state supreme courts voters have elected indicate legal fights to come aren’t clear-cut.
As Nuns Disappear, Many Catholic Hospitals Look More Like Megacorporations
The nation’s Catholic health systems were largely founded and led by nuns with a mission to serve the sick regardless of their creed or financial means. Today, no nuns run any U.S. Catholic health system, while many of these hospitals pull in billions, according to their financial reports.
Dentists Are Pulling ‘Healthy’ and Treatable Teeth To Profit From Implants, Experts Warn
Americans are getting dental implants more than ever — and at costs reaching tens of thousands of dollars. Experts worry some dentists have lost sight of the soul of dentistry: preserving and fixing teeth.
How North Carolina Made Its Hospitals Do Something About Medical Debt
State officials threatened to withhold public money from hospitals, pioneering a strategy that could become a national model.
Abortion Clinics — And Patients — Are on the Move, as State Laws Keep Shifting
Clinics in states where most abortions are legal, such as Kansas and Illinois, are reporting an influx of inquiries from patients hundreds of miles away — and are expanding in response. Despite the Supreme Court’s overturning of federal protections in 2022, abortions are now at their highest numbers in a decade.
Inside Conservative Activist Leonard Leo’s Long Campaign To Gut Planned Parenthood
Anti-abortion groups and their allies secured a generational victory in 2022 when the Supreme Court overturned “Roe v. Wade.” A lawsuit in Texas demonstrates how those same forces threaten access to other health services, including birth control and screenings for cancer and sexually transmitted infections.
Social Media Bans Could Deny Teenagers Mental Health Help
Congress and state legislatures are considering age bans and other limits for Instagram and TikTok out of concern that they harm kids’ mental health. But some researchers and pediatricians question whether there’s enough data to support that conclusion.
‘I Feel Dismissed’: People Experiencing Colorism Say Health System Fails Them
Colorism — a form of prejudice and discrimination in which lighter skin is favored over darker skin — has been associated with mental health conditions such as depression, low self-esteem, and anxiety. But skin tone often goes unaddressed with therapists and clinical specialists.
Why Millions Are Trying FDA-Authorized Alternatives to Big Pharma’s Weight Loss Drugs
Although Novo Nordisk and Lilly lump together the pharmacies that compound semaglutide and tirzepatide with internet cowboys selling fake drugs, there is a distinction. The FDA has offered Americans little clarity about the vast gray and black markets for the drugs.
Fake Therapist Fooled Hundreds Online Until She Died, State Records Say
A Florida woman with no training in mental health services pretended to be a licensed social worker during online therapy sessions with Brightside Health patients.
How Primary Care Is Being Disrupted: A Video Primer
Under pressure from increased demand, consolidation, and changing patient expectations, the model of care no longer means visiting the same doctor for decades.
Why Even Public Health Experts Have Limited Insight Into Stopping Gun Violence in America
After the 1996 Dickey Amendment halted federal spending on research into firearms risks, a small group of academics pressed on, with little money or political support, to document the nation’s growing gun violence problem and start to understand what can be done to curb the public health crisis.
Lawsuits Claim South Carolina Kids Underwent Unnecessary Genital Exams During Abuse Investigations
Lawsuits allege that several children under 18 in South Carolina have undergone examinations of their private parts during child abuse investigations — even when there were no allegations of sexual abuse. There’s a growing consensus in medicine that genital exams can be embarrassing, uncomfortable, and even traumatic.
Do We Simply Not Care About Old People?
Recently, thousands of older Americans have been dying weekly of covid. But most Americans aren’t wearing masks in public, a move that could prevent infections. Many at-risk seniors aren’t getting antiviral therapies, and older adults in nursing homes aren’t getting vaccines. Why?
Woman Petitions Health Insurer After Company Approves — Then Rejects — Her Infusions
Even people with good insurance aren’t guaranteed affordable care, as this KFF Health News follow-up to one patient’s saga shows.
Deep Flaws in FDA Oversight of Medical Devices, and Patient Harm, Exposed in Lawsuits and Records
Thousands of medical devices are sold, and even implanted, with no safety tests.
Mysterious Morel Mushrooms at Center of Food Poisoning Outbreak
Federal officials issued their first guidelines on preparing morel mushrooms after a deadly food poisoning outbreak in Montana, noting the toxins in the delicacy aren’t fully understood.
‘Forever Chemicals’ Found in Freshwater Fish, Yet Most States Don’t Warn Residents
At least 17 states have issued PFAS-related fish consumption advisories, KFF Health News found. But with no federal guidance, what is considered safe to eat varies significantly among states, most of which provide no regulation.
