Must-Reads Of The Week
By Rachel Bluth
June 26, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Easy-breezy guest writer Rachel Bluth fills you in on a healthy dose of news from this past week.
California’s Data Failures Stymie Efforts to Curb the Virus
By Anna Maria Barry-Jester Angela Hart
August 21, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Counties say the ripple effects of the state’s COVID-19 data failures are impeding their ability to slow the spread of the coronavirus, even as they must make life-or-death decisions about business and school reopenings.
States’ Face-Covering Mandates Leave Gaps in Protection
By Markian Hawryluk
November 19, 2020
KFF Health News Original
States vary in how they define face coverings in their mandates. But a bandanna or neck gaiter isn’t nearly as effective as a surgical or cloth mask. Public health experts say every state needs more standardization to protect against COVID-19.
DeSantis’ Executive Order Is Misleading About Lack of Scientific Support for Masking in Schools
By Victoria Knight
August 11, 2021
KFF Health News Original
The Florida governor’s order said schools couldn’t mandate that students wear masks and that the state could deny funding to school districts that didn’t comply.
Coronavirus Nurses Ask An Ebola Veteran: Is It OK To Be Afraid?
By Will Stone
April 16, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Martha Phillips traveled to Sierra Leone during the Ebola epidemic in 2014 to serve as a nurse. Now, she’s working on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic, advising her colleagues on how to stay safe.
As Big Pharma and Hospitals Battle Over Drug Discounts, Patients Miss Out on Millions in Benefits
By Sarah Jane Tribble Emily Featherston, InvestigateTV
November 16, 2021
KFF Health News Original
The number of pharmacies dispensing 340B discounted drugs soared to more than 31,000 this year. Drugmakers struck back by halting some discounts. Hospitals say they are losing millions of dollars — and cutting back services to patients — as a result.
Listen: Battling The Coronavirus While Reopening The Economy
April 17, 2020
KFF Health News Original
KHN’s Julie Rovner discusses the Trump administration’s blueprint for reopening the economy and its effect on public health on WBUR’s “On Point.”
COVID Data Failures Create Pressure for Public Health System Overhaul
By Harris Meyer
August 14, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Poor information-sharing between hospitals and public health agencies has hurt the response to the pandemic. Some health care systems and IT companies are making inroads, but an overhaul would cost billions.
Listen: Control of U.S. Senate Could Hinge on Obamacare Positions
September 1, 2020
KFF Health News Original
KHN senior Colorado correspondent Markian Hawryluk joined KUNC’s Erin O’Toole on “Colorado Edition” to discuss how the growing favorability of the Affordable Care Act could play a role in determining who wins control of the U.S. Senate this fall.
Scientists Warn Americans Are Expecting Too Much From a Vaccine
By Liz Szabo JoNel Aleccia
October 28, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Some argue that vaccines capable of preventing any COVID-19 symptoms should qualify for widespread use, but others want much larger trials to prove the vaccines can reduce hospitalizations or deaths.
Listen: A Bureaucratic Shuffle for Hospital COVID Data
July 16, 2020
KFF Health News Original
KHN’s Julie Rovner discusses the Trump administration plans to change how hospitals report their data on coronavirus cases and concerns among critics that may allow officials to use the material to make political points.
Tear-Gassing Protesters During An Infectious Outbreak ‘A Recipe For Disaster’
By Will Stone
June 5, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Health researchers are among the voices calling for police to stop using tear gas and pepper spray on protesters, because these chemical irritants can damage the body in ways that can spread the coronavirus and increase the severity of COVID-19. One example: Tear gas and pepper spray can sow confusion and panic in a crowd, causing people to rip off their masks and touch their faces, leading to more contamination.
Can Vaccination and Infection Rates Add Up to Reach Covid Herd Immunity?
By Carmen Heredia Rodriguez
March 17, 2021
KFF Health News Original
A financial research firm offered its take on when states might be reaching the sought-after status of herd immunity. But some experts say the analysis is oversimplified.
Nearly Half Of Americans Delayed Medical Care Due To Pandemic
By Elizabeth Lawrence
May 27, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Of those who went without seeing a doctor or other medical provider, 11% experienced a worsened medical condition, according to the poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation. In addition, nearly 40% said stress related to the coronavirus crisis has negatively impacted their mental health.
Listen: Pandemic Shifts Health Care And It May Be Hard To Get Genie Back In Bottle
June 17, 2020
KFF Health News Original
KHN’s Julie Rovner visits “Here & Now” to discuss the outlook for fundamental changes in the health care industry triggered by the coronavirus outbreak.
Efforts to Keep COVID-19 out of Prisons Fuel Outbreaks in County Jails
By Alex Sakariassen
September 29, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Montana sheriffs say the state’s decision to halt prison transfers has led to overcrowding that makes it difficult to quarantine inmates and clean facilities.
What Biden Can Do to Combat COVID Right Now
By Julie Rovner
November 23, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Although President-elect Joe Biden is free to meet with people who will be vital to carry out his administration’s fight against COVID, he and his transition team are blocked from conferring with federal officials because the Trump administration refuses to acknowledge Biden won the election. That could have a critical impact on Biden’s efforts to help fight the coronavirus.
COVID Crackdowns at Work Have Saved Black and Latino Lives, LA Officials Say
By Anna Almendrala
October 15, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Strict enforcement of coronavirus protocols at factories and shops where some of the worst outbreaks have occurred has reduced the racial and ethnic disparities in COVID deaths and illness, say public health officials. They want to expand the effort by creating workplace safety councils.
California Expands Privacy Protection to Public Health Workers Amid Threats
By Anna Maria Barry-Jester
September 24, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom expanded a confidential address program to public health officials in the wake of ongoing threats made against them tied to pandemic safety precautions such as masks and stay-at-home orders.
KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: Still Seeking A Federal Coronavirus Strategy
May 28, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Democrats were not impressed with the Trump administration’s COVID-19 national testing strategy document submitted to Congress this week. They say the pandemic requires more direction from the federal government, while the administration wants to give nearly all the responsibility to the states. Meanwhile, in an effort to shore up his base of senior voters, President Donald Trump has unveiled a plan to limit what those on Medicare must pay out-of-pocket for insulin. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Erin Mershon of STAT News and Joanne Kenen of Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss this and more. Also, Rovner interviews KHN’s Phil Galewitz, who wrote the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month” installment about a patient who thought he might have COVID-19, did everything right and got a big bill, anyway.
