Latest KFF Health News Stories
Decades of National Suicide Prevention Policies Haven’t Slowed the Deaths
Despite years of national strategies to address the suicide crisis in the U.S., rates continue to rise. A chorus of researchers and experts say the interventions will work — but that they’re simply not being adopted by state and local governments.
Patients Suffer When Indian Health Service Doesn’t Pay for Outside Care
The Indian Health Service has a program that can pay for outside appointments when patients need care not offered at agency-funded sites. Critics say money shortages, complex rules, and administrative fumbles often block access, however.
En medio de las expulsiones de Medicaid, muchos estados deciden expandirlo
Esta ampliación de las afiliaciones en estos estados se producen en medio de la mayor conmoción en las casi seis décadas de historia del programa.
Amid Medicaid ‘Unwinding,’ Many States Wind Up Expanding
The end of pandemic-era Medicaid coverage protections coincided with changes in more than a dozen states to expand coverage for lower-income people, including children, pregnant women, and the incarcerated.
Native American Public Health Officials Are Stuck in Data Blind Spot
For decades, state and federal agencies have restricted or delayed tribes and tribal epidemiology centers from accessing public health data, a blackout that leaves health workers in Native American communities cobbling together information to guide their work, including tracking devastating disease outbreaks.
Colorado Dropped Medicaid Enrollees as Red States Have, Alarming Advocates for the Poor
Colorado defended its high disenrollment rates following the covid crisis by saying that what goes up must come down. Advocates and researchers disagree.
Colorado expulsó a beneficiarios de Medicaid como si fuera un estado republicano
Es el único estado demócrata entre un grupo de estados republicanos con altas tasas de desafiliación, que incluye a Idaho, Montana, Texas y Utah, en un proceso de Medicaid que comenzó en la primavera de 2023.
Health Worker for a Nonprofit? The New Ban on Noncompete Contracts May Not Help You
Provider groups are disappointed that the Federal Trade Commission’s new rule may not protect those who work for nonprofit hospitals and health care facilities, which employ the largest number of medical professionals.
Addiction Treatment Homes Say Montana’s Funding Fixes Don’t Go Far Enough
Montana has created a voucher program to help cover room and board costs at low-intensity residential programs for people with addiction. Those running the homes say bridging that care is urgent but that the program’s funding falls far below the need.
Congress Likely to Kick the Can on Covid-Era Telehealth Policies
With an end-of-year deadline and a presidential election approaching, payment rules that fueled rapid expansion of telehealth in the United States face a last-minute congressional decision.
Montana, an Island of Abortion Access, Preps for Consequential Elections and Court Decisions
A 25-year-old state Supreme Court ruling protects abortion rights in conservative Montana. That hasn’t stopped Republicans and anti-abortion advocates from trying to institute a ban.
The Powerful Constraints on Medical Care in Catholic Hospitals Across America
The expansion of Catholic hospitals nationwide leaves patients at the mercy of the church’s religious directives, which are often at odds with accepted medical standards.
Food Sovereignty Movement Sprouts as Bison Return to Indigenous Communities
Native American leaders see bison herds and ancestral gardens as ways to bring healthy eating to their people.
Muchos estados todavía no financian la exitosa línea 988 para crisis de salud mental
Según un análisis de KFF de datos de la línea de Prevención del Suicidio y Crisis, desde el verano pasado el 988 recibió casi 5 millones de contactos, incluyendo llamadas, textos y mensajes de chat.
Despite Successes, Addiction Treatment Programs for Families Struggle to Stay Open
Residential addiction treatment programs that allow parents to bring their children along have been recognized for their success. But a mix of logistical challenges and low reimbursement rates mean they struggle to stay afloat.
Most States Have Yet to Permanently Fund 988. Call Centers Want Certainty.
For rural Americans, who live in areas often short of mental health services and die by suicide at a far higher rate than urbanites, the federally mandated crisis phone line is one of the few options to connect with a crisis counselor.
More States Drop Sales Tax on Disposable Diapers to Boost Affordability
Last month, Florida joined a growing number of states in banning sales taxes on diapers to make them more affordable for older adults and families with young children. Though diapers are essential for many, they are not covered by food stamps. Nor are incontinence products for older adults typically covered by Medicare. The cost can easily add up on a fixed income.
Colorado Becomes the First State to Ban So-Called Abortion Pill Reversals
The controversial practice of administering progesterone to people after they have taken the abortion pill mifepristone may be coming to an end in Colorado. Pills have emerged as the latest front in the war over abortion since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last summer.
Banning Noncompete Contracts for Medical Staff Riles Hospitals
It’s about the money — on both sides — as arguments swirl about patient safety, rising prices, and paying back on-the-job training.
Montana Considers Allowing Physician Assistants to Practice Independently
The bill, modeled on laws in North Dakota and Wyoming, is opposed by doctors who say it would let physician assistants practice outside the scope of their training.
