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Return To Sender: A Single Undeliverable Letter Can Mean Losing Medicaid

Colorado, like a number of states, is struggling to deal with returned mail sent out by its Medicaid, SNAP and other aid programs. Now people could lose benefits after just a single piece of returned mail.

Taking The Cops Out Of Mental Health-Related 911 Rescues

Denver is considering adopting a new 911 alternative used in Eugene, Ore., that allows mental health and medical professionals, not police officers, to respond to some emergency calls, saving money and de-escalating situations with mentally ill people.

Why Hospitals Are Getting Into The Housing Business

Hospital systems now invest in housing to help some of their most frequent patients. This allows them to safely discharge patients who otherwise would have no place to go, freeing up beds for sicker patients and saving the hospitals money.

Firing Doctor, Christian Hospital Sets Off National Challenge To Aid-In-Dying Laws

In Colorado case, the right to aid a cancer patient’s death runs up against faith-based hospital policies. As more states have passed laws, about 1 in 6 acute care beds nationally is in a hospital that is Catholic-owned or -affiliated.

Why Red Wyoming Seeks The Regulatory Approach To Air Ambulance Costs

Wyoming is taking on expensive air ambulance bills by trying to expand Medicaid to cover transport for all patients. This is a big change: a red state seeking to control what’s been a growing free-market bonanza.

How #MeToo Is Changing Sex Ed Policies — Even In Red States

Liberalized sex education policies are being considered in more states, even traditionally conservative ones, as more female lawmakers take office and legislators react to the #MeToo movement.

Obesity Plagues Hispanics And Blacks In Colorado, Nation’s ‘Healthiest’ State

Obesity prevention does not get much attention in Colorado, often billed as the healthiest state. Yet more than 1 in 4 black or Hispanic residents are obese, as state and federal public health spending fuels other needs.

If You Smoke Pot, Your Anesthesiologist Needs To Know

Colorado is on the front lines in dealing with how marijuana use affects surgery. Lessons learned on operating tables and in recovery rooms have prompted calls for more research on marijuana nationwide.

Medicaid Expansion Boosts Hospital Bottom Lines — And Prices

Colorado officials say hospitals are better off financially after the state expanded coverage to more low-income residents, but that hasn’t stopped them from shifting more costs to other insured patients.

Aspiring Doctors Seek Advanced Training In Addiction Medicine

Once a tiny specialty that drew mostly psychiatrists, addiction medicine is expanding its accredited training to include primary care residents and “social justice warriors” who see it as a calling.

Utah Voters Approved Medicaid Expansion, But State Lawmakers Are Balking

Political fights over health care continue to flare. In Utah, angry voters say lawmakers are disregarding their wishes by trying to limit the scope of a ballot referendum that expanded Medicaid.

How Sen. Orrin Hatch Changed America’s Health Care

Utah’s Orrin Hatch is leaving the Senate, after 42 years. The Republican led bipartisan efforts to provide health care to more kids and AIDS patients. He also thrived on donations from the drug industry.