Latest News On Study

Latest KFF Health News Stories

Widely Used Hospital Gowns Show Signs of Exposing Workers to Infection

KFF Health News Original

Isolation gowns are supposed to protect health care workers from splattered bodily fluids. But new studies suggest that too much liquid seeps through some disposable gowns, creating a risk of infection.

It’s Hot Outside — And That’s Bad News for Children’s Health

KFF Health News Original

An article in the New England Journal of Medicine takes a sweeping look at how heat — which can be a byproduct of air pollution and climate change — adversely affects people’s health, especially that of kids.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Taking a Shot at Gun Control

KFF Health News Original

The U.S. House passed a package of bills seeking to keep some guns out of the hands of children and teenagers, but its fate in the Senate remains a big question mark. Meanwhile, the Federal Trade Commission takes on drug and hospital prices. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, and Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Cori Uccello of the American Academy of Actuaries about the most recent report from Medicare’s trustees board.

Losing Sleep Over the Pandemic? Work Flexibility May Be a Boon for Night Owls’ Health

KFF Health News Original

Many sleep scientists maintain that people who prefer to stay up late could improve their mental and physical health by synchronizing their natural sleep cycles with workday demands. The flexible work schedules that came with covid’s work-from-home trend, according to one new study, backs up this idea.

Covid and Schizophrenia: Why This Deadly Mix Can Deepen Knowledge of the Brain Disease

KFF Health News Original

Recent studies from around the world have found that people with schizophrenia are as much as five times as likely to die from covid-19 as the general population. Scientists think the findings suggest schizophrenia is not just a disease of the brain, but also a disease of the immune system.

Wartime Trauma Hits Close to Home for Scholar of Dementia

KFF Health News Original

The federal government is putting up $7.2 million for a study into the correlation between war trauma and dementia in Vietnamese immigrants. Oahn Meyer, an associate professor at the University of California-Davis who is leading the study, wonders whether her mother’s dementia is linked to trauma she suffered during the Vietnam War.

How Low Can They Go? Rural Hospitals Weigh Keeping Obstetric Units When Births Decline

KFF Health News Original

Many small hospitals have shuttered their labor and delivery units as births decline. For those who resist the trend, some studies suggest that hospitals with low deliveries are more likely to see complications for patients. Doctors and public health experts say there is no magic number to determine when it is best to close an obstetrics unit.

6 Months to Live or Die: How Long Should an Alcoholic Liver Disease Patient Wait for a Transplant?

KFF Health News Original

In a practice dating to the 1980s, many hospitals require people with alcohol-related liver disease to complete a period of sobriety before they can be added to the waiting list for a liver. But this thinking may be changing.

Hospitals, Insurers Invest Big Dollars to Tackle Patients’ Social Needs

KFF Health News Original

Eager to control costs, health systems and insurers are trying to address patients’ social needs such as food insecurity, transportation and housing. Yet, after years of testing, there’s slim evidence these efforts pay off.