Pharma & Tech 012622
CDC Tells Pharmacies to Give 4th Covid Shots to Immunocompromised Patients
Liz Szabo
The health agency and the White House acted in the wake of a KHN story about pharmacists refusing to give shots to patients with moderate to severe immune suppression.
Pharmacies Are Turning Away Immunocompromised Patients Seeking 4th Covid Shot
Liz Szabo
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention quietly changed its guidance to allow an extra shot in certain cases, but some pharmacy personnel are confused about who is eligible.
I Write About America’s Absurd Health Care System. Then I Got Caught Up in It.
Bram Sable-Smith
A KHN reporter had written for years about the people left behind by the absurdly complex and expensive U.S. health care system. Then he found himself navigating that maze as he tried to get his insulin prescription filled.
Why Medicare Doesn’t Pay for Rapid At-Home Covid Tests
Michelle Andrews
The laws governing Medicare don’t provide coverage for self-administered diagnostic tests, which is precisely what the rapid antigen tests are and why they are an important tool for containing the pandemic.
Biden Administration’s Rapid-Test Rollout Doesn’t Easily Reach Those Who Need It Most
Hannah Recht and Victoria Knight
Two rapid-testing initiatives the Biden administration released in the past week are inaccessible to some residents of multifamily housing, people who don’t speak English well, or those without internet access.
5 Things You Should Know About ‘Free’ At-Home Covid Tests
Damon Darlin
Telling insurance companies to pay for rapid covid-19 tests is just the latest covid-related cost the federal government expects them to bear. But who really ends up paying for it?
Officials Struggle to Regulate Pop-Up Covid Testing Sites — And Warn Patients to Beware
Michelle Andrews
High demand for covid screening and scarce supply have opened the door to bad actors, and officials in some states are sounding the alarm about dubious street testing operators that could put people’s personal data, their health or wallets at risk.
Families Complain as States Require Covid Testing for Nursing Home Visits
Judith Graham
Relatives say it is important they be allowed to go into nursing homes because staff shortages are affecting care. And many are still upset about lengthy separations from loved ones during lockdowns earlier in the pandemic.
How Not to Use Rapid Covid Tests
Julie Appleby and Phil Galewitz
Although at-home antigen testing remains a useful tool, experts warn it is often used inappropriately and can provide false confidence for people concerned about safety.
Patient, Beware: Some States Still Pushing Ineffective Covid Antibody Treatments
JoNel Aleccia
The top 12 states using antibody therapies produced by Regeneron and Lilly — which research shows don’t work against the omicron variant — include several Southern states with some of the nation’s lowest vaccination rates, but also California, which ranks among the top 20 for fully vaccinated residents.
Justices Block Broad Worker Vaccine Requirement, Allow Health Worker Mandate to Proceed
Julie Rovner
The Supreme Court temporarily blocked a federal rule requiring larger businesses to mandate employees be vaccinated or wear masks and undergo weekly testing. At the same time, however, it allowed a federal order that health care workers be vaccinated.
Vaccine Wars Ignite in California as Lawmakers Seek Stronger Laws
Angela Hart
Anti-vaccination activists say California’s Democratic lawmakers are helping strengthen their movement nationally by pushing for tougher vaccine requirements — without exemptions for religious or personal beliefs. But a new pro-vaccine lobbying force is vowing to fight back.
As Omicron Surges, Effort to Vaccinate Young Children Stalls
Rachana Pradhan and Hannah Recht
Just 18% of 5- to 11-year-olds are fully vaccinated, with rates varying significantly across the country, a KHN analysis of federal data shows. Pediatricians say the slow pace and geographic disparities are alarming, especially against the backdrop of record numbers of cases and pediatric hospitalizations.
Clinics Say State’s New Medicaid Drug Program Will Force Them to Cut Services
Samantha Young
On Jan. 1, California started buying prescription drugs for its nearly 14 million Medicaid enrollees, a responsibility that had primarily been held by managed-care insurance plans. State officials estimate California will save hundreds of millions of dollars by flexing its purchasing power, but some health clinics expect to lose money.
With Sexually Transmitted Infections Off the Charts, California Pushes At-Home Tests
Rachel Bluth
A new law makes California the first state to require that health insurance plans, including Medicaid, cover home STI tests. But some details still need to be worked out.
Medical Marijuana Users Brace for Shortages as Montana’s Recreational Market Opens
Justin Franz
Sales of recreational marijuana are underway, and dispensary owners say they’re not ready to meet the demand. That may mean problems for the 55,000 Montanans who hold medical marijuana cards.
App Attempts to Break Barriers to Bankruptcy for Those in Medical Debt
Blake Farmer, Nashville Public Radio
Medical bills are a leading reason people get stuck in a cycle of debt. Declaring bankruptcy is one lifeline, but attorney and court fees can put it out of reach. The nonprofit Upsolve created an app it calls the “TurboTax of bankruptcy” to help people hit the reset button and rebuild their financial lives.
Farmacias rechazan a pacientes con problemas inmunes que necesitan una cuarta dosis de la vacuna contra covid
Liz Szabo
Muchas farmacias no saben que los CDC han autorizado la cuarta dosis de la vacuna contra covid para personas con sistemas inmunes comprometidos.
Con récord de infecciones de transmisión sexual, California impulsa las pruebas caseras
Rachel Bluth
California se ha convertido en el primer estado en exigir que los seguros médicos cubran las pruebas caseras para infecciones de transmisión sexual (ITS) como el VIH, la clamidia y la sífilis.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Dealing With Drug Prices
Medicare officials tentatively plan to restrict the use of a controversial Alzheimer’s drug to only those patients participating in clinical trials, while the Department of Health and Human Services looks into lowering the monthly Medicare Part B premium. Meanwhile, covid confusion still reigns, as the Biden administration moves, belatedly, to make more masks and tests available. Joanne Kenen of Politico and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.
El plan de Biden para entregar pruebas gratis para covid no llega fácilmente a los más vulnerables
Hannah Recht and Victoria Knight
Desde el límite establecido en los pedidos de prueba hasta los idiomas disponibles en los sitios web, los programas pueden dejar fuera a muchas personas que no hablan inglés o no tienen acceso a Internet, así como a las que viven en hogares multigeneracionales.
Ask KHN-PolitiFact: Is My Cloth Mask Good Enough? The 2022 Edition
Victoria Knight
With the omicron variant surging throughout the U.S., many experts warn that a single-layer cloth mask is not enough protection. Instead, they recommend an upgrade: layering wardrobe masks with surgical masks or wearing an N95 or KN95 respirator.
Una prueba rápida negativa no significa que se está libre de covid
Julie Appleby and Phil Galewitz
Muchos ven a los kits caseros negativos como una "tarjeta de libertad". Pero puede haber errores, y también infecciones futuras.