Latest News On Illinois

Latest KFF Health News Stories

No-Cancel Culture: How Telehealth Is Making It Easier to Keep That Therapy Session

KFF Health News Original

No-shows for behavioral health appointments have been a long-standing problem, with up to 60% skipped. Now telehealth, fueled by the pandemic, makes it easier for people dealing with depression and other mental health issues to make it to their appointments at a time when such care is in high demand. But teletherapy creates other challenges.

For Spring Season, Young Athletes Get Back in the Game Despite Covid Risk

KFF Health News Original

With schools opening up classrooms, millions of young athletes are also getting out on fields and courts. But pandemic precautions and delays are spurring conflicts among parents, coaches and doctors.

Firefighters — ‘Health Care Providers on a Truck’ — Signal Pandemic Burnout

KFF Health News Original

Grappling with stagnant pay and a lack of personal protective equipment, firefighters are even more frustrated to find they are lower down the vaccine priority list than health care workers despite serving on the front lines of the medical system.

Lack of Covid Data on People With Intellectual Disabilities ‘Comes With a Body Count’

KFF Health News Original

People with intellectual and developmental disabilities are more likely to have medical conditions that make covid especially dangerous. But a lack of federal tracking means no one knows how many people in disability group housing have fallen ill or died from the virus.

An Urban Hospital on the Brink Vs. the Officials Sworn to Save It

KFF Health News Original

The wealthy corporation that owns Chicago’s Mercy Hospital says it must close the hospital because it’s losing money. A government board says no. The corporation still has the upper hand.

Homeless Shelters Grapple With COVID Safety as Cold Creeps In

KFF Health News Original

During the pandemic, shelters are having to change the way they do things to prevent the virus from spreading among the vulnerable homeless population. Now, as winter weather moves in, there’s less room at the shelters for those in need — threatening to leave many, literally, out in the cold.

Urban Hospitals of Last Resort Cling to Life in Time of COVID

KFF Health News Original

Rural hospitals have been closing at a quickening pace in recent years, but a number of inner-city hospitals now face a similar fate. Experts fear that the economic damage inflicted by the COVID pandemic is helping push some of these urban hospitals over the edge at the very time their services are most needed.

Coronavirus Crisis Disrupts Treatment For Another Epidemic: Addiction

KFF Health News Original

The coronavirus has forced drug rehabilitation centers to scale back operations or temporarily close, leaving people who have another potentially deadly disease — addiction — with fewer opportunities for help.

A Switch To Medicaid Managed Care Worries Some Illinois Foster Families

KFF Health News Original

Illinois is moving thousands of children into its Medicaid managed-care program. Proponents say the approach can cut costs while increasing access to care. But after a phase-one rollout of the new health plans caused thousands to temporarily lose coverage, some question whether it’s the right move.

Ink Rx? Welcome To The Camouflaged World Of Paramedical Tattoos

KFF Health News Original

Doctors specialize in the science of healing, but tattoo artist Eric Catalano specializes in the art of it. The single father of three does up to eight reconstructive medical tattoos for free each “Wellness Wednesday” in his small Illinois shop, drawing in nails on finger amputees, mocking up belly buttons after tummy tucks and fleshing out lips on a woman mauled by a dog.