Listen: How Hospitals Are Preparing For Surge In COVID-19 Patients
March 27, 2020
KFF Health News Original
With coronavirus cases growing at a faster rate than anticipated, hospitals are scrambling to boost medical supplies and beds.
New Single-Payer Bill Intensifies Newsom’s Political Peril
By Angela Hart Rachel Bluth
February 19, 2021
KFF Health News Original
With the introduction of a single-payer bill Friday, a group of California Democratic lawmakers set the terms of the health care debate in the Capitol this year. The move puts Gov. Gavin Newsom in a delicate political position, threatening to alienate voters as he faces a likely recall election.
As Demand for Mental Health Care Spikes, Budget Ax Set to Strike
By Matt Volz
February 5, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Legislators in statehouses across the U.S. face the dual challenge of budgeting in a covid-crippled economy while planning for the pandemic’s long-term effects on mental health and substance abuse services.
Surging Health Care Worker Quarantines Raise Concerns As Coronavirus Spreads
By Jenny Gold
March 9, 2020
KFF Health News Original
The number of U.S. health care workers who have been ordered to self-quarantine because of potential exposure to the new coronavirus is rising at an exponential pace. Many experts say something has to change.
After COVID-19: Doctors Ponder Best Advice As Patients Recover From Coronavirus
By Carmen Heredia Rodriguez
April 6, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Doctors are making decisions about a patient’s recovery with an incomplete understanding of the disease caused by the coronavirus. Although federal officials have issued general guidelines, physicians said they can’t offer recovered patients who aren’t retested any guarantees about whether they could transmit the virus.
Spurred by Pandemic, Little Shell Tribe Fast-Tracks Its Health Service Debut
By Katheryn Houghton
February 19, 2021
KFF Health News Original
As the newest federally recognized tribe, the Little Shell Tribe of Chippewa Indians of Montana is starting from scratch to deliver health care to members. While covid-19 has been devastating, it has sped up the tribe’s ability to build a clinic. Yet, lacking a reservation, the tribe faces challenges reaching its scattered members.
Companies Pan for Marketing Gold in Vaccines
By Sarah Kwon
February 19, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Some assisted living facilities, pharmacy chains and health care providers are luring new customers with covid shots.
Physicians Fear For Their Families As They Battle Coronavirus With Too Little Armor
By Laura Ungar
March 27, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Doctors sent an impassioned, desperate letter to Congress describing the lack of protective equipment across the country — from masks to respirators to gowns to goggles. They’re using equipment from construction sites and home-repair stores or wearing the same mask from patient to patient. And they worry about what exposure without sufficient protection means for them and their families.
On The Eve Of Retirement, VA Nurse Succumbs To COVID-19
By Melissa Bailey
April 15, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Nurse Divina “Debbie” Accad had cared for veterans for over 25 years and was set to retire in April. But after contracting the novel coronavirus, she spent her final 11 days on a ventilator — and didn’t survive past March.
Hard Bargain: Biden and Congress Agree on Basic Relief, but Chasms Remain on Covid Plan
By Emmarie Huetteman
February 4, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Agreement between the president and Republican senators on funding for basic public health matters such as vaccine distribution and covid testing was an easy target. That money can’t move out, though, until accord is reached on some of the president’s big-ticket economic plans.
‘I Wanted to Go in There and Help’: Nursing Schools See Enrollment Bump Amid Pandemic
By Michelle Andrews
February 18, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Enrollment in baccalaureate nursing programs reportedly grew nearly 6% percent in 2020.
Biden’s Covid Challenge: 100 Million Vaccinations in the First 100 Days. It Won’t Be Easy.
By Victoria Knight
January 20, 2021
KFF Health News Original
But keeping campaign promises regarding the nation’s covid response will go beyond stepping up the rollout of the vaccines.
‘Terrible Role-Modeling’: California Lawmakers Flout Pandemic Etiquette
By Samantha Young Rachel Bluth
September 14, 2020
KFF Health News Original
As California workers and schoolchildren struggled to work from home, state lawmakers met in person. And as their legislative session came to a close in late August, they broke COVID rules: They huddled, let their masks slip below their noses, removed their masks to drink coffee — and required a new mom to vote in person while toting her hungry newborn.
For EMTs, There’s No ‘Rule Book’ For Facing A Pandemic And Protests At Once
By Carmen Heredia Rodriguez
June 9, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Emergency medical technicians, who have been on the front lines against the coronavirus, also play a key role in helping provide care during protests sparked by the death of George Floyd.
Listen: What Counts In Measuring The Full COVID Death Toll? It’s Complicated
June 26, 2020
KFF Health News Original
KHN senior Colorado correspondent Markian Hawryluk joined KUNC’s Erin O’Toole on “Colorado Edition” and appeared on WNHN’s “The Attitude with Arnie Arnesen” to discuss his recent story on how difficult it is to measure the full death toll from the pandemic.
Racial Status And The Pandemic: A Combustible Mixture
By Anna Almendrala
May 13, 2020
KFF Health News Original
The novel coronavirus is affecting black Americans disproportionately, which some community leaders and public health experts say is not surprising. So why didn’t anyone sound an alarm?
As Problems Grow With Abbott’s Fast COVID Test, FDA Standards Are Under Fire
By Rachana Pradhan
June 22, 2020
KFF Health News Original
After the FDA issues a public warning about the test, one of its senior officials says point-of-care coronavirus tests can miss 20% of cases and still be considered useful. Public health experts are split.
Médicos forenses buscan rastros de COVID-19 en muertes inexplicables
By Michelle Andrews
May 19, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Durante la pandemia, muchas personas enfermas se quedaron en casa y murieron en sus hogares en lugar de ir a hospitales abrumados por pacientes con coronavirus.
Family Caregivers, Routinely Left Off Vaccine Lists, Worry What Would Happen ‘If I Get Sick’
By Judith Graham
February 16, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Tens of thousands of middle-aged sons and daughters — too young to qualify for a vaccine — care for older relatives with serious ailments and want to get the shots to protect their loved ones and themselves.
Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes
By Brianna Labuskes
May 8, 2020
KFF Health News Original
Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health care policy stories each week, so you don’t have to.
