Covid Immunity Through Infection or Vaccination: Are They Equal?
By Arthur Allen
October 8, 2021
KFF Health News Original
As scientists argue whether a previous bout of covid offers the same amount of protection as vaccinations, people turn to the courts to decide.
Despite All the Talk, Covid Vaccination Does Not Infect People With Shingles
By Julie Appleby
April 30, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Covid-19 vaccinations do not infect recipients with shingles or any form of herpes virus, despite some misleading headlines.
Mental Health Services Wane as Insurers Appear to Skirt Parity Rules During Pandemic
By Emmarie Huetteman
April 30, 2021
KFF Health News Original
A report from the Government Accountability Office paints a picture of an already strained behavioral health system struggling after the pandemic struck to meet the treatment needs of millions of Americans with conditions like alcohol use disorder and post-traumatic stress disorder.
In California Nursing Homes, Omicron Is Bad, but So Is the Isolation
By Linda Marsa
January 31, 2022
KFF Health News Original
Omicron infections are surging in residential care facilities, causing massive sickouts among staff members and an uptick in hospitalizations and deaths. The latest visitor restrictions and testing requirements are also compounding the isolation that residents have suffered for almost two years.
What Does Approval of the Pfizer Vaccine for Teens and Preteens Mean for My Child?
By Carmen Heredia Rodriguez
May 14, 2021
KFF Health News Original
The federal government has extended the emergency use of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine to preteens and young adolescents, adding nearly 17 million more Americans to the pool of those eligible to be immunized against covid-19.
Readers and Tweeters Sound Alarm Over Nurse’s Homicide Trial
April 15, 2022
KFF Health News Original
KHN gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Countdown to Shutdown
September 21, 2023
Podcast
Congress appears to be careening toward a government shutdown, as a small band of House conservatives vow to block any funding for the fiscal year that begins Oct. 1 unless they win deeper cuts to health and other domestic programs. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump continues to roil the GOP presidential primary field, this time with comments about abortion. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Rachel Cohrs of Stat, and Tami Luhby of CNN join KFF Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also, for “extra credit,” the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week they think you should read, too.
How Covid Has Changed Our Movement, as Revealed by Your Cellphone
By Phillip Reese
March 16, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Californians are venturing out to shop, dine and work far more now than a year ago, when state officials issued the first sweeping stay-at-home order. But we’re still sticking to home way more than before the pandemic, according to mobile phone tracking data.
Women Now Drink as Much as Men — And Are Prone to Sickness Sooner
By Aneri Pattani
June 9, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Young women have closed the gender gap for excessive drinking. And that was before the pandemic. The trend is particularly troubling because women are at greater risk for blackouts, liver disease, cardiovascular diseases and certain cancers linked to alcohol use.
DeSantis Advances Questionable Link Between Lockdowns and Despair
By Phil Galewitz
February 24, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Experts agreed there’s no definitive evidence to back up the Florida governor’s assertion.
Thousands Got Exactech Knee or Hip Replacements. Then, Patients Say, the Parts Began to Fail.
By Fred Schulte
October 10, 2023
KFF Health News Original
In a torrent of lawsuits, patients accuse Florida device maker Exactech of hiding knee and hip implant defects for years. The company denies the allegations.
An Arm and a Leg: Wait, What’s a PBM?
By Dan Weissmann
July 13, 2023
Podcast
Pharmacy benefit managers, or PBMs, are companies that negotiate the prices of prescription drugs. Hear about their role in raising drug prices and the ongoing efforts to regulate this complex industry.
A Daily Pill to Treat Covid Could Be Just Months Away, Scientists Say
By JoNel Aleccia
September 24, 2021
KFF Health News Original
At least three promising antiviral treatments for covid-19 are being tested in clinical trials, with results expected as soon as late fall or winter.
Scientists Seek Covid Treatment Answers in Cheap, Older Drugs
By Esther Landhuis
March 29, 2021
KFF Health News Original
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.
Black and Hispanic Americans Suffer Most in Biggest US Decline in Life Expectancy Since WWII
By Liz Szabo
June 24, 2021
KFF Health News Original
The pandemic will undermine Americans’ health for years. Even those not infected by the coronavirus could suffer health problems related to poverty, job loss, eviction — or all of the above.
Unraveling the Mysterious Mutations That Make Delta the Most Transmissible Covid Virus Yet
By Liz Szabo
July 28, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Scientists are trying to piece together why the delta variant so readily infects unvaccinated Americans, spewing 1,000 times more virus particles.
Racism Derails Black Men’s Health, Even as Education Levels Rise
By Virginia Anderson
May 19, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Researchers who study health among various racial and ethnic groups, as well as the social factors that influence health outcomes, say the findings suggest that the power of discrimination to harm Black men’s health may be more resistant than previously understood.
Pandemic Leads Doctors to Rethink Unnecessary Treatment
By Bruce Alpert
May 25, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Covid-caused delays in medical treatments and surgeries are producing data for health care providers to take another look at what’s needed and what isn’t.
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Let’s Talk About the Weather
July 20, 2023
Podcast
It’s been the summer of broken weather records around the world — for heat, rain, and wildfire smoke — advertising the risks of climate change in a big way. But, apparently, it’s not enough to break the logjam in Washington over how to address the growing climate crisis. Meanwhile, in Texas, women who were unable to get care for pregnancy complications took their stories to court, and Congress gears up to — maybe — do something about prescription drug prices. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Shefali Luthra of The 19th, and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join Julie Rovner, KFF Health News’ chief Washington correspondent, to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Meena Seshamani, the top administrator for the federal Medicare program.
Mysterious Ailment, Mysterious Relief: Vaccines Help Some Covid Long Haulers
By Will Stone
April 16, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Scientists who study the post-illness syndrome are taking a close look at patients’ reports of this unexpected benefit of the vaccine.