Latest KFF Health News Stories
Know of a health care worker who died of COVID 19? KHN and The Guardian are going to document the lives of U.S. workers who succumbed during the crisis. These are the frontline health workers who risk their lives to care for the sick and keep our health care facilities running. Please share their stories here.
Perspectives: Until Patient Advocates Get On Board, Lowering Drug Prices Is A Tough Sell
Read recent commentaries about drug-cost issues.
Are Efforts To Curb High Drug Prices Really Stalled Amid Pandemic?
Read about the biggest pharmaceutical development and pricing stories from the past week in KHN’s Prescription Drug Watch roundup.
Opinion writers weigh in on these coronavirus crisis issues and others.
Media outlets report on news from Wyoming, Michigan, Wisconsin, California, Georgia and Vermont.
Courts have been slow to extend the same benefit to young people who are incarcerated that they’re allowing for some adults. Staff members and youths at facilities in at least a half-dozen states have tested positive. In Washington, D.C., a staff member in the juvenile justice system has died.
As hospitals pause some services, workers trained in specialty areas have little to do even as staffing needs surge amid the crisis. Hospitals are trying to train those providers and recruit retirees as well to handle the expected influx of patients. In other health-care worker news: hazard pay, mask shortages, child care concerns, and more.
The staff told ABC News that they were caught off guard by the rapid spread at Canterbury Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center near Richmond, which has suffered the worst loss of life to coronavirus of any nursing home in the U.S. Nursing home news is from Massachusetts, Florida, and Pennsylvania, as well.
The Trump administration seems to be doing little to let Americans know they can sign up for health insurance through the exchanges if they lost their jobs because of the pandemic. Meanwhile, some states take steps to help people get on Medicaid during this tumultuous time. But in states where the program hasn’t been extended, Americans are struggling.
Bishop Who Held Services Despite Virginia’s Shutdown Order Dies Of COVID-19
Gerald O. Glenn preached to dozens of worshipers in late March, saying “I firmly believe that God is larger than this dreaded virus.” His death comes amid tensions between some church officials and state leaders as they push back against the shutdown orders.
The anti-abortion movement seized the opportunity presented by the pandemic and encouraged red states to declare abortion a non-essential procedure. The decisions have provoked a flurry of court cases, but many women remain stuck and scared about what to do.
China’s Attempts To Heal Battered International Reputation Yields Mixed Results
In some places, China’s efforts to help countries fight their own outbreaks have backfired. “They know when the dust settles and people turn their eye toward whether Beijing was responsible, it’s going to be a very difficult situation,” said Nadège Rolland, a senior fellow at the National Bureau of Asian Research. In other global news, England’s death total is 15% higher than previously reported.
Many of the precautions that are being taken to ensure Americans’ safety during the pandemic–such as stay-at-home orders–fall flat for the homeless population, though many are among the most vulnerable people in the country. In other public health news: social-distancing shaming, teeth pain, canceled procedures, minority data, and more.
New Studies Point To Ways Marketing Of Oxycontin Had More Severe Consequences
Freedom of Information requests allowed the opening of unsealed documents from settled lawsuits in Florida, Washington and West Virginia showing how the distributions of opioids was nearly twice as high in states where regulations made it easier to market. Other news on the epidemic is on a report about Walmart allegedly hiding from consumers that it was under criminal investigation.
Deadly Storms In South A Harsh Reminder Of The Difficulties That Come With Dueling Catastrophes
Tornadoes and severe weather storms left dozens dead in southern states that have been braced for a surge of the coronavirus. The disaster response will be severely hampered by the pandemic that is already devouring resources and attention.
Census Bureau Asks For Four-Month Delay In Delivering Data Because Of Coronavirus Disruptions
The move raised some red flags for Democrats and experts who worry about the secrecy surrounding the 2020 census, which stands in sharp contrast to previous ones, as well as limited support for the count that they’ve seen. A lengthy delay in reporting census figures to the states could throw a wrench into at least some states’ efforts to draw new political maps.
The government has started to lower the number of detainees being held, but advocates and lawyers say that not enough is being done to protect the vulnerable population. “We don’t have any social distance within us,” said the detainee. “We are just living by the grace of God.” Meanwhile, states appeal to the Supreme Court justices to block Trump administration rules that penalize legal immigrants from seeking public benefits.
USS Theodore Roosevelt Sailor Dies From Coronavirus Complications, Four Others Hospitalized
Nearly 600 sailors from the aircraft carrier tested positive for COVID-19. The chief petty officer who died was in his 40s. Other news on the Navy reports on an outbreak among the crew of the hospital ship Mercy.
Americans Should Brace For Some Minor Disruptions In Food Chain As Processing Plant Workers Fall Ill
Industry experts insist that the disruptions will be more a matter of inconvenience–such as not having the same amount of variety–rather than severe shortages. Meanwhile, the increased demand from shoppers strains food banks just when they need resources the most. And Amazon fires two employees who were outspoken critics of the company’s warehouse conditions.
Some Ironclad Best Medical Practices Tossed Out The Window In Face Of COVID-19’s Chaotic Destruction
Doctors talk about what they would have liked to know about the progression of the illness a month ago when they started treating severe cases. In other news: rationing care, viral loads and the life span of the virus.
