Latest KFF Health News Stories
Black Americans Still Suffer Worse Health. Here’s Why There’s So Little Progress.
The United States has made almost no progress in closing racial health disparities despite promises, research shows. The government, some critics argue, is often the underlying culprit.
Tossed Medicine, Delayed Housing: How Homeless Sweeps Are Thwarting Medicaid’s Goals
As California cities crack down on homeless encampments in the wake of a U.S. Supreme Court ruling authorizing fines and arrests, front-line workers say such sweeps are undercutting billions in state and federal Medicaid spending meant to stabilize people’s health and get them off the streets.
Un grupo médico atiende a personas que viven en la calle… y gana dinero
Estos médicos, enfermeros y trabajadores sociales se están desplegando en las calles de Los Ángeles para ofrecer atención médica y servicios sociales a las personas sin hogar: soldados de un nuevo modelo de negocio que está arraigándose en comunidades de toda California.
A California Medical Group Treats Only Homeless Patients — And Makes Money Doing It
Healthcare in Action, a California medical group that exclusively serves homeless people, has tapped into growing demand and funding for street medicine services. Three years in, the innovative nonprofit is raking in revenue and serving thousands of people who otherwise might flock to the hospital for high-cost care.
Medicare Stumbles Managing a Costly Problem — Chronic Illness
Nearly a decade ago, Medicare launched a program to help the two-thirds of beneficiaries with chronic conditions by paying their doctors an additional monthly fee to coordinate their care. The strategy has largely failed to live up to its potential; only about 4 percent of potentially eligible beneficiaries in the traditional Medicare program are enrolled, […]
An Arm and a Leg: Wait, Is Insulin Cheaper Now?
Did the price of insulin go down? It’s not quite that simple. On this episode of “An Arm and a Leg,” producer Emily Pisacreta explores recent changes to the cost of the diabetes medication.
El altísimo costo de tener una enfermedad autoinmune en Estados Unidos
A pesar de ser muy frecuentes, encontrar ayuda para muchas enfermedades autoinmunes puede resultar frustrante y costoso.
Many Autoimmune Disease Patients Struggle With Diagnosis, Costs, Inattentive Care
Despite the prevalence of autoimmune conditions, like the thyroid disease Hashimoto’s, sometimes finding help can prove frustrating as well as expensive. There are often no definitive diagnostic tests, so patients may rack up big bills as they search for confirmation of their condition and for treatment options.
How the Thyroid Gland Mystifies Doctors and Patients
This illustrated report has been adapted from a KFF Health News article, “Many Autoimmune Disease Patients Struggle With Diagnosis, Costs, Inattentive Care” by Andy Miller, with artwork by Oona Tempest.
Many People Living in the ‘Diabetes Belt’ Are Plagued With Medical Debt
The “Diabetes Belt,” as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, comprises 644 mostly Southern counties where diabetes rates are high. Of those counties, KFF Health News and NPR found, more than half also have high levels of medical debt.
California’s Medicaid Experiment Spends Money to Save Money — And Help the Homeless
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s ambitious experiment in health care is supposed to cut costs as it fills the needs of hard-to-reach people. The program’s start is chaotic and limited, but it shows promise.
Con el fin de la emergencia sanitaria, personas con covid de largo plazo se sienten abandonadas
A un paso del fin de la emergencia nacional de salud pública en mayo, muchas personas con síntomas prolongados de covid se sienten abandonadas por legisladores que están ansiosos por dar vuelta la página.
As Pandemic Emergencies End, People Battling Long Covid Feel ‘Swept Under the Rug’
Millions of Americans suffer from long covid, which can have debilitating physical effects, including fatigue and difficulty breathing. Yet many patients feel they’re on their own.
Fatigue Is Common Among Older Adults, and It Has Many Possible Causes
Persistent fatigue — the feeling of having no energy — can contribute to frailty and affects 40% to 74% of older patients with chronic illness. Yet its causes can be elusive.
Readers and Tweeters Are Horrified by Harm Tied to Dental Device
KHN gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
Fresh Produce Is an Increasingly Popular Prescription for Chronically Ill Patients
Fresh produce prescription programs are getting a boost in Montana as a way of helping people with chronic conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure. The approach may be a model for other rural states to promote healthy eating in food deserts.
¿Ayudan las nuevas guías sobre opioides a los pacientes con dolor crónico?
Las recomendaciones dejaron a muchos pacientes lidiando con las consecuencias para la salud mental y física de la reducción rápida de la dosis o la suspensión abrupta de los medicamentos que habían estado tomando durante años, lo que conlleva riesgos de abstinencia, depresión e incluso suicidio.
New CDC Opioid Guidelines: Too Little, Too Late for Chronic Pain Patients?
In November, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released new guidelines for prescribing opioids for pain, allowing physicians more flexibility. But doctors, patients, and advocates wonder if the updated standards will be too little, too late to help chronic pain patients in a country still focused on fighting the ongoing opioid crisis.
A Law Was Meant to Free Sick or Aging Inmates. Instead, Some Are Left to Die in Prison.
The First Step Act was supposed to help free terminally ill and aging federal inmates who pose little or no threat to public safety. But while petitions for compassionate release skyrocketed during the pandemic, judges denied most requests.
Cleanup Workers Got Sick After Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill. They Want BP to Pay.
After the BP Deepwater Horizon oil spill in 2020, Rodney Boblitt’s job was to patrol a 14-mile stretch of coastline in the Florida Panhandle looking for signs of oil washing ashore. Today, the 54-year-old is among thousands of other cleanup workers who are experiencing health issues and suing BP. But proving their health conditions were caused by the oil has been challenging.
