Extended-Stay Hotels, a Growing Option for Poor Families, Can Lead to Health Problems for Kids
By Andy Miller Renuka Rayasam
Updated October 16, 2024
Originally Published October 11, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Extended-stay hotels are often a last resort for low-income families trying to avoid homelessness. But hotel living can lead to — or exacerbate — various physical and mental health issues for children, say advocates for families and researchers who study homelessness.
San Francisco Tries Tough Love by Tying Welfare to Drug Rehab
By Ronnie Cohen
May 13, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Facing an overdose epidemic and public fury over conditions on the streets, famously tolerant San Francisco will start requiring welfare recipients to undergo drug screening, and treatment if necessary, to receive cash public assistance.
Presidential Election Could Decide Fate of Extra Obamacare Subsidies
By Andy Miller
May 30, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Most states that saw enrollment in the Obamacare marketplace double from 2020 to 2024 are in the South. But the enhanced federal subsidies that attracted people with $0 premiums and low out-of-pocket costs will expire next year.
California Lawmakers Debate Sending Local Health Inspectors Into Immigration Facilities
By Vanessa G. Sánchez
July 30, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Immigration is regulated by the federal government, but California lawmakers may give local public health inspectors the authority to inspect privately operated immigration detention facilities, citing complaints and lawsuits from detainees alleging inadequate medical care and unsanitary conditions.
Biden Is Right About $35 Insulin Cap but Exaggerates Prior Costs for Medicare Enrollees
By Samantha Putterman, PolitiFact
April 5, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Most Medicare enrollees likely were not paying a monthly average of $400 — as President Joe Biden stated — before the insulin cap took effect. However, because costs and other factors result in widely varying prices, some Medicare enrollees might have paid that much in a given month.
Indiana Weighs Hospital Monopoly as Officials Elsewhere Scrutinize Similar Deals
By Samantha Liss
June 14, 2024
KFF Health News Original
If Indiana officials approve a proposed hospital merger in western Indiana in the coming months, the state will have its first hospital monopoly created by a “Certificate of Public Advantage.” Other such deals have resulted in government reports documenting diminished care in Tennessee and North Carolina.
Happening in Springfield: New Immigrants Offer Economic Promise, Health System Challenges
By Stephanie Armour
October 10, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Donald Trump put Springfield, Ohio, in a harsh spotlight by spreading misinformation about its legal Haitian population. But what is really happening in this small city is a microcosm of the health care challenges immigration hot spots throughout the country are facing.
Exclusive: Social Security Chief Vows to Fix ‘Cruel-Hearted’ Overpayment Clawbacks
By Fred Clasen-Kelly
March 13, 2024
KFF Health News Original
New Social Security Commissioner Martin O’Malley is promising to change how the agency reclaims billions of dollars it wrongly pays to beneficiaries, saying the existing process is “cruel-hearted and mindless.”
Native Americans Have Shorter Life Spans. Better Health Care Isn’t the Only Answer.
By Arielle Zionts
April 17, 2024
KFF Health News Original
Social services, such as parenting classes and economic development programs, can help increase the life spans of Native Americans, some health experts say. But insurers don’t always cover these services.
The New Vaccines and You: Americans Better Armed Than Ever Against the Winter Blechs
By Amy Maxmen
October 13, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Flu, covid, and respiratory viruses kill thousands of Americans each year, but the latest batch of vaccines could save lives.
‘I’m So Burned Out’: Fighting to See a Specialist Amplified Pain for Riverside County Woman
By Molly Castle Work
October 10, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Teresa Johnson has been in extreme pain for more than a year after what she believes was a severe allergic reaction to iodine. Her Medi-Cal plan approved her referral to a specialist, but it took her numerous phone calls, multiple complaints, and several months to book an appointment.
Watch: The Mysterious Death of a Congressman’s Wife
September 6, 2022
KFF Health News Original
KHN senior correspondent Samantha Young appeared on CBS News to discuss her reporting on the death of Lori McClintock, the wife of U.S. Rep. Tom McClintock (R-Calif.). She died after ingesting white mulberry leaf, according to the Sacramento County coroner. Young also explained her reporting process on Twitter and TikTok.
What Happens to Health Programs if the Federal Government Shuts Down?
By Julie Rovner
September 27, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Medicare and Medicaid shouldn’t be affected, but confusion can be expected.
Drivers in Decline: A Shortage of Volunteers Complicates Access to Care in Rural America
By Christina Saint Louis
October 24, 2022
KFF Health News Original
Public transit is already insufficient in rural areas, leaving residents with few options as they travel greater distances to access health care. But older residents who depend on volunteer drivers to get them to appointments face another challenge: The number of those volunteers is declining.
A New Covid Booster Is Here. Will Those at Greatest Risk Get It?
By Amy Maxmen
September 15, 2023
KFF Health News Original
The CDC says everyone over 6 months old should get the new covid booster. But the emergency response mechanisms that supported earlier vaccine campaigns are gone. As one expert wonders: How to get boosters to people beyond Democrats, college graduates, and those with high incomes?
Readers and Tweeters Defend the Rights of Adults With Disabilities
April 28, 2023
KFF Health News Original
KFF Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
California’s $12 Billion Medicaid Makeover Banks on Nonprofits’ Buy-In
By Angela Hart
May 16, 2024
KFF Health News Original
California’s Medicaid program is relying heavily on community groups to deliver new social services to vulnerable patients, such as security deposits for homeless people and air purifiers for asthma patients. But many of these nonprofits face staffing and billing challenges and haven’t been able to deliver services effectively.
Why It’s So Tough to Reduce Unnecessary Medical Care
By Markian Hawryluk
November 13, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Treatments that don’t help patients, and may even harm them, are difficult to eliminate because they can be big sources of revenue.
California Is Investing $500M in Therapy Apps for Youth. Advocates Fear It Won’t Pay Off.
By Molly Castle Work
Illustration by Lydia Zuraw
Updated April 26, 2024
Originally Published April 26, 2024
KFF Health News Original
California launched two teletherapy apps as part of the governor’s $500 million foray into health technology with private companies. But the rollout has been so slow that one company has yet to make its app available on Android, and social workers worry youths who need clinical care won’t get referrals.
New Alzheimer’s Drug Raises Hopes — Along With Questions
By Judith Graham
August 11, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Clinics serving Alzheimer’s patients are working out the details of who will get treated with the new drug Leqembi. It won’t be for everyone with memory-loss symptoms.
