Biden Rule Cleared Hurdles to Lifesaving HIV Drug, but in Georgia Barriers Remain
A new rule requires insurers to improve coverage of PrEP, which can prevent HIV, but Georgians face challenges getting the drug.
Across the South, Rural Health Care Has Become ‘Trendy.’ Medicaid Expansion Has Not.
State legislatures nationwide, including several in the South, are spending millions to improve rural health outcomes and access. For years, though, most Southern states have refused billions of federal dollars to provide public health insurance to more low-income adults. That isn’t likely to change with Trump back in office.
Little Tracking, Wide Variability Permeate the Teams Tasked With Stopping School Shootings
Several states require schools to assemble teams of law enforcement and education officials to identify students who could become mass shooters and intervene before it’s too late. But some experts say the efforts often face a lack of guidance and significant pressure, putting them at risk of maligning innocent students.
Journalists Analyze Issues of the Day: RFK Jr., Bird Flu, L.A. Fires
KFF Health News journalists made the rounds on national and local media recently to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
Reporter Assesses Rise in Vaccine Exemptions, Gives Other Stories To Watch in 2025
KFF Health News Southern correspondent Sam Whitehead made the rounds on local radio recently to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of his appearances.
Childhood Vaccination Rates, a Rare Health Bright Spot in Struggling States, Are Slipping
Mississippi, Tennessee, and West Virginia — states with some of the worst health outcomes — also have some of the highest childhood vaccination rates. But doctors and health officials worry a rising tide of vaccine skepticism is causing those public health bright spots to dim.
Defensores, médicos, investigadores, y funcionarios de salud pública temen que estos logros en algunos estados como Mississippi y Tennessee estén desapareciendo.
Journalists Wrap Up 2024 With Topics From Trump 2.0 to Frustration With Health Industry
KFF Health News staff made the rounds on national and local media in the last two weeks to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
Democratic Senators Ask Watchdog Agency To Investigate Georgia’s Medicaid Work Rule
A group of Democratic senators asked the Government Accountability Office to examine a Georgia program that requires some Medicaid enrollees to work, study, or volunteer 80 hours a month for coverage. They cited KFF Health News’ reporting, which has documented the program’s high costs and low enrollment.
Journalists Dig Into Vaccine Debate and America’s Obesity Rates
KFF Health News staff made the rounds on national and local media in recent weeks to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
Georgia Said It Would Fix Care for the Disabled Years Ago. It’s Still Not Done.
In recent decades, the Justice Department has sued several states for unnecessarily confining people with disabilities in places such as state psychiatric hospitals, nursing homes and segregated workspaces. Such treatment violates a key part of the Americans With Disabilities Act — as affirmed in the 1999 Olmstead decision from the Supreme Court: that people with […]
Georgia’s Work Requirement Slows Processing of Applications for Medicaid, Food Stamps
Georgia’s ability to process applications for Medicaid and other public benefits has lagged since the launch of Republican Gov. Brian Kemp’s “Pathways” Medicaid work requirement, leaving Georgia with persistently slow Medicaid application processing times.
With Trump on the Way, Advocates Look to States To Pick Up Medical Debt Fight
Patient and consumer advocates fear a new Trump administration will scale back federal efforts to expand financial protections for patients and shield them from debt.
Florida’s Deloitte-Run Computer System Cut Off New Moms Entitled to Medicaid
Florida discovered a glitch in its Deloitte-run Medicaid eligibility system. The problem, alleged in court testimony, led to new mothers wrongly losing their insurance coverage.
Georgians With Disabilities Are Still Being Institutionalized, Despite Federal Oversight
For nearly 15 years, the feds have had oversight of Georgia’s treatment of people with mental illness and developmental disabilities. Observers say the state still jeopardizes some of its most marginalized residents by not meeting the terms of its settlement with the Justice Department.
Social Security Tackles Overpayment ‘Injustices,’ but Problems Remain
With his term soon to expire, Social Security chief Martin O’Malley’s efforts to address the agency’s overpayments to beneficiaries remain incomplete.
Journalists Examine Health Care for Native Americans and Recent Food Recalls
KFF Health News and California Healthline staff made the rounds on national and local media in recent weeks to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
7 of 10 States Backed Abortion Rights. But Little To Change Yet.
Voters in 10 states weighed in on abortion rights this election. Despite the results supporting abortion rights in seven of those states, much of the abortion landscape on abortion won’t change much immediately, as medical providers navigate the legal hurdles that remain.
PBM Math: Big Chains Are Paid $23.55 To Fill a Blood Pressure Rx. Small Drugstores? $1.51.
Criticism of prescription drug middlemen has intensified recently in the wake of a federal agency’s actions and legislative reform attempts. Georgia Republican Gov. Brian Kemp, though, vetoed a related bill that would have helped independent pharmacies, citing the unfunded cost of the move.
Patients Are Relying on Lyft, Uber To Travel Far Distances to Medical Care
Uber and Lyft have become a critical part of the nation’s infrastructure for transporting ailing people from their homes — even in rural areas — to medical care sites in major cities such as Atlanta.
