The independent source for health policy research, polling, and news.
101-120 of 243 results
School districts in California and around the country face a long-standing shortage of nurses, mostly because of tight budgets. But some districts are finding creative ways to reduce the problem.
With the nation's opioid crisis, urine testing has become a booming business and is especially lucrative for doctors who operate their own labs, a Kaiser Health News investigation finds. And dozens of practitioners have earned "the lion’s share" of their Medicare income exclusively from urine drug screens.
A Kaiser Health News analysis of federal inspection records shows that nursing home inspectors labeled mistakes in infection control as serious for only 161 of the 12,056 homes they have cited since 2014.
Dental hygienists who treat frail and elderly residents in nursing homes and other facilities are dropping out of California’s publicly funded dental program for the poor because of recent changes that cut their pay and create more administrative hurdles.
Eight teaching centers in California aim to train and retain doctors in medically underserved areas such as California’s Central Valley. They are among 57 such institutions across the country that may soon receive a boost in funding from Congress.
Fed up with high hospital costs and limited competition, Santa Barbara County sends willing employees out of town for better bargains. Local governments are slowly joining private employers in aggressively seeking out the best care for the lowest price.
A program that provides $400 million in federal funding for the visits expires next month. Advocates and providers hope it will be reauthorized with a higher level of funding — but some worry that might not happen.
Although homeless shelters provide lifesaving protection from the winter’s cold, they also act as incubators for diseases like influenza.
The state has made a huge dent in diesel pollution from freight trucks. But critics fear exemptions in a new law will stall progress, especially endangering the health of children and seniors near ports.
Tighter Medicaid budgets could jeopardize states’ home-based services that help older adults and disabled people live in their homes instead of more expensive nursing homes.
LogistiCare often shows up late, if at all, and compromises patient safety, according to a public interest firm’s lawsuit. The company says the allegations are inaccurate.
So far, 72 affected babies have been born in the continental U.S. One young mother, infected in Mexico last year, and her infant face an uncertain future in rural Washington.
U.S. hospice agencies promise to be available around-the-clock to help patients dying in their homes. But a Kaiser Health News investigation shows that in an alarming number of cases, that promise is broken.
Armed with strict guidelines and motivated by sheer urgency, a specialized team of nurses makes the rounds, seeking to thwart the No. 1 killer in U.S. hospitals.
Anticipating a broader immigration crackdown, undocumented families are hiring lawyers and scrambling to make contingency plans for their seriously ill U.S.-born kids.
As the planet warms, wildfires such as the latest disastrous blazes in Northern California have increased in frequency and scope. Beyond the environmental effects, people suffer health repercussions that can be disabling and even deadly.
An NIH-funded network of hospitals uses advanced genetic science and nationwide collaboration to diagnose rare and sometimes undiscovered diseases.
Medicare and insurers struggle to oversee a booming business in testing urine samples. In some cases, pain doctors’ lack of follow-through can turn fatal.
As a fountain of nonprofit milk banks emerge, one woman's abundant supply can fill another's yawning demand. But critics fear that poor women will sell start selling their milk for survival, depriving their own babies of vital nutrients.
A San Diego program helps chronically ill people avoid the hospital by teaching them how to better manage their diseases and telling them what to expect in their final years. Other health providers and insurers around the country are trying similar approaches.
© 2026 KFF