Latest News On Louisiana

Latest KFF Health News Stories

Social Media Bans Could Deny Teenagers Mental Health Help

KFF Health News Original

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.

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Harris in the Spotlight

Podcast

For the 2024 campaign, Joe Biden is out, and Kamala Harris is in. As the vice president makes moves toward the top of the Democratic presidential ticket, health policy is resurging as a campaign issue. Meanwhile, Congress tries — and again fails — to make timely progress on the annual government spending bills as abortion issues cause delays. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Stephanie Armour of KFF Health News, and Rachel Cohrs Zhang of Stat join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Anthony Wright, the new executive director of Families USA, about his plans for the organization and his history working with Harris on health topics. 

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.

Psychoactive Drugs Are Having a Moment. The FDA Will Soon Weigh In.

KFF Health News Original

Mounting evidence suggests psychoactive drugs including LSD, ketamine, mushrooms, and MDMA can be powerful treatments for severe depression and PTSD. But not everyone is convinced. And even if such drugs gain FDA approval, safety protocols could render them extremely expensive.

The Case of the Armadillo: Is It Spreading Leprosy in Florida?

KFF Health News Original

A single Central Florida county reported 13% of all U.S. leprosy cases in 2020. Researchers have teamed up to investigate whether armadillos are passing the bacteria that cause the disease to humans — which is especially concerning as the animals expand their range farther north.

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Anti-Abortion Hard-Liners Speak Up

Podcast

While Republican candidates in many states downplay their opposition to abortion, the most vehement wing of the movement, which helped overturn Roe v. Wade — those who advocate prosecuting patients, outlawing contraception, and banning IVF — are increasingly outspoken. Meanwhile, some state legislatures continue to advance new restrictions, like a proposal moving in Louisiana to include abortion medications mifepristone and misoprostol on the list of the most dangerous drugs. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins schools of public health and nursing and Politico Magazine join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Shefali Luthra of The 19th about her new book on abortion in post-Roe America, “Undue Burden.”

What Florida’s New 6-Week Abortion Ban Means for the South, and Traveling Patients

KFF Health News Original

Florida has served as a haven for Southern pregnant women with little or no access to abortions. But the Florida Supreme Court upheld a six-week abortion restriction that begins in May — so now women across much of the South seeking abortions will have to look farther afield.

Your Doctor or Your Insurer? Little-Known Rules May Ease the Choice in Medicare Advantage

KFF Health News Original

Disputes between hospitals and Medicare Advantage plans are leading to entire hospital systems suddenly leaving insurance networks. Patients are left stuck in the middle, choosing between their doctors and their insurance plan. There’s a way out.

A New Orleans Neighborhood Confronts the Racist Legacy of a Toxic Stretch of Highway

KFF Health News Original

New federal funds aim to address an array of problems created by highway construction in minority neighborhoods. These are economic, social, and, perhaps above all, public health problems. In New Orleans’ Treme neighborhood, competing plans for how to deal with harm done by the Claiborne Expressway reveal the challenge of how to mitigate them meaningfully.

America Worries About Health Costs — And Voters Want to Hear From Biden and Republicans

KFF Health News Original

The presidential election is likely to turn on the simple question of whether Americans want Donald Trump back in the White House. But health care tops the list of household financial worries for adults from both parties.

Pregnancy Care Was Always Lacking in Jails. It Could Get Worse.

KFF Health News Original

A lack of oversight and standards for pregnancy care in jails is becoming more problematic as the number of incarcerated women rises and abortion restrictions put medical care further out of reach.

States Target Health Insurers’ ‘Prior Authorization’ Red Tape

KFF Health News Original

Doctors, patients, and hospitals have railed for years about the prior authorization processes that health insurers use to decide whether they’ll pay for patients’ drugs or medical procedures. The Biden administration announced a crackdown in January, but some state lawmakers are looking to go further.