Weekly Edition: April 2, 2021
Lost on the Frontline: Explore the Database
By The Staffs of KFF Health News and The Guardian
As of Wednesday, the KHN-Guardian project counted 3,607 U.S. health worker deaths in the first year of the pandemic. Today we add 39 profiles, including a hospice chaplain, a nurse who spoke to intubated patients "like they were listening," and a home health aide who couldn't afford to stop working. This is the most comprehensive count in the nation as of April 2021, and our interactive database investigates the question: Did they have to die?
Beating the Pavement to Vaccinate the Underrepresented — And Protect Everyone
By Anna Almendrala
In poor neighborhoods and desert towns, community activists — some unpaid — are signing up hard-to-reach people for vaccination appointments. Experts say these campaigns are key to building the country’s immunological armor against new outbreaks.
In California, Blue Shield’s Vaccination Takeover Fixes What Wasn’t Broken
By Rachel Bluth
Rural Mendocino County had finally figured out its vaccination program. But now the community clinics that helped make it happen are changing course as Blue Shield of California takes over the state vaccine program.
‘It Didn’t Really Stick With Me’: Understanding the Rural Shrug Over Covid and Vaccines
By Sarah Jane Tribble
Fort Scott, Kansas, was hit hard by the pandemic, and it no longer has a hospital. But residents remain skeptical about the impact of the coronavirus.
‘I Can Breathe Again’: Older Adults Begin to Test Freedom After Covid Vaccinations
By Judith Graham
Whether it’s making plans to hug their grandchildren, scheduling long-overdue medical appointments or just petting the neighbor’s dog, seniors are inching back to a lifestyle they’ve missed during the pandemic.
Ask KHN-PolitiFact: How Can Covid Vaccines Be Safe When They Were Developed So Fast?
By Carmen Heredia Rodriguez
Experts say there's nothing new about the research underpinning the covid vaccines and that they were tested in more participants than many other approved vaccines.
Covid Vaccine Hesitancy Drops Among All Americans, New Survey Shows
By Emmarie Huetteman
A nationwide poll released by KFF also revealed which arguments are most compelling to persuade people to get a shot — and which ones are unlikely to work.
Battle Brews Over Neutral Zone Where Border-Crossing Parties Rendezvous, Risking Infection
By Joanne Silberner
Peace Arch Park on the U.S.-Canadian border has become a rare place where families and friends on either side of the border can see one another in person. But it raises questions on covid safety as the two countries handle the pandemic differently.
Backed by Millions in Public and Private Cash, Rapid Covid Tests Are Coming to Stores Near You
By Hannah Norman
Over-the-counter covid tests could help speed the economy’s recovery, allowing students and workers to test themselves at home and get quick results. Could they become as ubiquitous as toothpaste and cold remedies on store shelves, or will demand dry up as the nation gets vaccinated?
Durango’s Covid ‘Cowboy’ Rounds Up Spring Break Scofflaws, Lines ’Em Up for Shots
By Rae Ellen Bichell
The city of Durango has hired an actor to bring his Old West acting skills to tackle a current problem: the Wild West of spring break, in which visitors from states such as Texas and Oklahoma flock to town. The “lawman” cajoles them into wearing masks while vaccinators stand ready for out-of-town visitors.
Dramatic Drop in Common Viruses Raises Question: Masks Forever?
By Blake Farmer, Nashville Public Radio
Hospitalizations are down 62% for childhood respiratory illnesses, a study shows. Masking and social distancing are keeping a variety of viruses in check this flu season.
Scientists Seek Covid Treatment Answers in Cheap, Older Drugs
By Esther Landhuis
Philanthropies are funding studies of cheap, existing medications like the antidepressant fluvoxamine as covid treatments. But early hype about hydroxychloroquine and other repurposed drugs leaves researchers leery of hasty conclusions.
In His Continued Sparring With Fauci, Sen. Rand Paul Oversimplified the Science
By Julie Appleby
The Kentucky lawmaker was right that a recent study offered evidence that vaccination and previous infection appear to neutralize covid-19. But experts say that doesn’t mean people should be complacent.
Analysis: How the US Invested in the War on Terrorism at the Cost of Public Health
By Elisabeth Rosenthal
After 9/11, as our defenses against international and bioterrorism hardened, our defenses against infectious diseases shrank. By the time a deadly virus arrived on our shores last year, nearly two-thirds of Americans were living in counties that spend more than twice as much on policing as they spend on public health.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Planning for Round Two
The ink is barely dry on the recent covid relief bill, but Democrats in Congress and President Joe Biden are wasting no time gearing up for their next big legislative package. Meanwhile, predictions of more states expanding Medicaid have proved premature. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Rachel Cohrs of Stat and Kimberly Leonard of Business Insider join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, Rovner interviews KHN’s Lauren Weber, who reported the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month” episode.
Indiana’s Medicaid Expansion — Designed by Pence and Verma — Panned in Federal Report
By Phil Galewitz
Indiana’s program seeks to give expansion enrollees “skin in the game,” requiring that they pay small monthly premiums and manage health savings accounts.
Getting a Prescription to Die Remains Tricky Even as Aid-in-Dying Bills Gain Momentum
By Katheryn Houghton
Access to physician-assisted death is expanding across the U.S., but the procedure remains in Montana’s legal gray zone more than a decade after the state Supreme Court ruled physicians could use a dying patient’s consent as a defense.
It’s Not Just QAnon. Democrats and Independents Also Want to Recall California’s Governor.
By Angela Hart and Samantha Young
Gov. Gavin Newsom is painting the effort to remove him from office as a partisan power grab. But among the tens of thousands of Californians who signed the recall petition are Democrats and independent voters frustrated by his pandemic policies, from school closures to vaccine distribution.
Web Event: The Crucial Role of Home Health Workers, Unsung Heroes of the Pandemic
Watch an intimate conversation about this workforce, which provides vital care to vulnerable people. Our panel included those doing the work and those who rely on them, as well as expert insight on improving the jobs, honoring the care and paying for it all.
Journalists Dish on Vaccination Loopholes and Alliances
KHN and California Healthline staff made the rounds on national and local media this week to discuss their stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
