Palliative Care Helped Family Face ‘The Awful, Awful Truth’
By Will Stone
May 5, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Elizabeth and Robert Mar would have celebrated 50 years of marriage in August. Instead, they died within a day of each other. Their two very different deaths illustrate how palliative care is changing to help patients and families cope with the coronavirus pandemic.
As Coronavirus Strikes, Crucial Data In Electronic Health Records Hard To Harvest
By Fred Schulte
April 30, 2020
KFF Health News Original
The U.S. government spent $36 billion computerizing health records, yet they’re of limited help in the COVID-19 crisis.
The Hidden Deaths Of The COVID Pandemic
By Markian Hawryluk
June 23, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Counting deaths caused by the coronavirus pandemic is easier said than done. Without widespread testing, officials must sort through presumed COVID deaths and those who died with infections rather than from them. Then there are the indirect deaths of people who died from circumstances created by the pandemic.
Por qué ni siquiera la presión presidencial podría acelerar las vacunas contra covid
By Liz Szabo Sarah Jane Tribble Arthur Allen Jay Hancock
January 26, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Miles de estadounidenses están muriendo a causa de covid-19, pero los esfuerzos para aumentar la producción de vacunas que potencialmente salvan vidas están en un callejón sin salida.
Workers Fired, Penalized for Reporting COVID Safety Violations
By Michelle Andrews
October 23, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Many workers are resisting what they feel are unsafe, unhealthy conditions as companies restart. A few states have passed laws specifically aimed at protecting workers who face COVID-related safety risks and retaliation for speaking up, but advocates say stronger federal protections are needed.
Vaccine Altruists Find Appointments for Those Who Can’t
By Anna Almendrala
March 11, 2021
KFF Health News Original
An army of volunteers help people who otherwise would have had difficulty securing a covid vaccination because of cumbersome computer or telephone registration systems.
Trump Wrongly Said Health Insurers Will Pay For All Coronavirus Treatment
By Shefali Luthra Amy Sherman, PolitiFact
March 13, 2020
KFF Health News Original
There are important distinctions between how insurance companies will cover the test and the treatment. This makes the president’s statement an exaggeration, at best.
Drugmakers Tout COVID-19 Vaccines To Refurbish Their Public Image
By Jay Hancock
May 18, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Vaccines and antivirals have long been an afterthought but Johnson & Johnson and other firms are widely publicizing how they might stop COVID 19.
CDC Turning Over Covid Case-Counting To Cruise Line Operators
July 19, 2022
Morning Briefing
Cruise lines will continue to report coronavirus cases to the agency, but they now have adequate tools to do it themselves, the CDC says. Meanwhile, even though covid cases are climbing across the U.S., some health experts are hesitant to “cry wolf.”
Coronavirus Threatens The Lives Of Rural Hospitals Already Stretched To Breaking Point
By Lauren Weber
March 21, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Almost half of the nation’s rural hospitals operate in the red on a good day. But amid the coronavirus pandemic, rural hospital CEOs warn that soon some may be unable to pay their workers. And their doors may close when the community most needs them.
COVID-19 abruma a las terapias intensivas en la frontera
By Heidi de Marco
June 5, 2020
KFF Health News Original
A pesar que la mayoría de los hospitales de California no tuvieron un aumento dramático de pacientes, algunas instalaciones cerca de la frontera con México se han visto desbordadas.
Indiana School Goes Extra Mile to Help Vulnerable Kids Weather Pandemic
By Giles Bruce
March 23, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Many students at Sarah Scott Middle School in Terre Haute, Indiana, deal with poverty, dysfunction and stress. Since the pandemic hit, teachers and administrators have struggled to give kids and families the support they need.
Coronavirus Crisis Opens Access To Online Opioid Addiction Treatment
By Phil Galewitz
April 23, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Under the national emergency, the government has waived a law that required patients to have an in-person visit with a physician before they could be prescribed drugs that help quell withdrawal symptoms, such as Suboxone. Now they can get those prescriptions via a phone call or videoconference with a doctor. That may give video addiction therapy a kick-start.
As Deaths Mount, Coronavirus Testing Remains Wildly Inconsistent In Long-Term Care
By Laura Ungar
May 12, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Testing for COVID-19 varies widely across nursing homes and assisted living facilities, even within the same states and communities — increasing the risks for some of America’s most vulnerable seniors.
Isolation, Disruption and Confusion: Coping With Dementia During a Pandemic
By Heidi de Marco
August 18, 2020
KFF Health News Original
COVID-19 has upended the lives of people with dementia, limiting their interactions with others and complicating matters for their caregivers.
Montana Sticks to Its Patchwork Covid Vaccine Rollout as Eligibility Expands
By Katheryn Houghton
Photos by Tailyr Irvine
April 5, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Montana’s overstretched counties and tribal governments have developed a mishmash of policies and plans that require ingenuity and mutual support to work. A reporting project by KHN, Montana Free Press and the University of Montana School of Journalism finds the biggest test of that disparate system looms as vaccine eligibility expands. Plus: a county-by-county guide to vaccine availability in Montana.
Sanders: In Coronavirus Relief Effort, Congress Fell Short On Paid Sick Leave
By Shefali Luthra
April 13, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Capitol Hill’s guarantee does not pertain to many “essential” workers.
Birx Tells Hill Panel White House Tried To Limit Covid Guidance To States
June 24, 2022
Morning Briefing
Dr. Deborah Birx, who served as the coronavirus coordinator for President Donald Trump, testified that administration officials were giving the president “dangerous ideas” about fighting the virus and withheld reports from states about the spread of covid.
California Is Overriding Its Limits on Nurse Workloads as Covid Surges
By April Dembosky, KQED
January 20, 2021
KFF Health News Original
As covid patients flood California emergency rooms, hospitals are increasingly desperate to find enough staffers to care for them all. But some nurses worry hospitals will use the pandemic as an excuse to permanently roll back their hard-won nurse-patient ratios.
Longtime Health Advocate Donna Shalala Loses House Reelection Race
By Emmarie Huetteman
November 5, 2020
KFF Health News Original
In a notable loss for Democrats, Shalala, who represented a Miami district, was defeated by Maria Elvira Salazar — a Republican former TV journalist who compared Democratic policy proposals to leftist oppression in countries like Cuba.
