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Infant mortality rates across the South are by far the worst in the U.S. A look at South Carolina — where multimillion-dollar programs aimed at improving rates over the past 10 years have failed to move the needle — drives home the challenge of finding solutions, especially in rural communities.
No one told a Washington state woman she was racking up massive out-of-pocket charges during a month-long emergency stay in an Oregon hospital. For six months, she and her husband were haunted by looming debt — and bill collectors.
KHN gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
Fresh produce prescription programs are getting a boost in Montana as a way of helping people with chronic conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure. The approach may be a model for other rural states to promote healthy eating in food deserts.
Nearly half of large employers report that increasing numbers of their workers were using mental health services, according to a KFF annual employer survey. Yet almost a third of those employers said their health plan’s network didn’t have enough behavioral health care providers for employees to have timely access to the care they need.
Unaccredited companies promise to help veterans file for disability benefits. But unlike the thousands of service representatives who have been vetted and approved by the Department of Veterans Affairs to provide aid, these “medical consultants” or “coaches” operate with no restrictions on how much they can charge.
KHN gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
After the Department of Health Care Services canceled Medi-Cal contract awards under pressure from major insurers, some consumer advocates question the administration’s willpower to improve care in the safety-net program.
CMS advanced two proposed changes that could affect Medicare Advantage plans. One would allow the government to recover past overpayments. As a result, it could reduce those insurers’ profits, leading them to increase enrollees' out-of-pocket costs or reduce benefits. But it's inaccurate to characterize the changes as "cuts."
More states are moving to specialized managed-care contracts solely to handle medical and behavioral services for foster kids. But child advocates, foster parents, and even state officials say these and other care arrangements are shortchanging foster kids’ health needs.
When the pandemic began, senior service agencies hustled to rework health classes to include virtual options for older adults. Now that isolation has ended, virtual classes remain. For seniors in rural areas, those classes have broadened access to supervised physical activity.
In a few weeks, pandemic-era emergency boosts to SNAP benefits, formerly known as food stamps, will be rolled back across 32 states, putting more pressure on food pantries to fill the gaps and exacerbating challenges for rural areas, where a greater share of people are enrolled in the program compared with metro areas.
State employees could receive checks ranging from $50 to thousands of dollars if they choose the right provider.
Mayor Eric Adams’ announcement this year to provide abortion pills free of charge at four of New York’s sexual health clinics is the city’s latest move on abortion access. Other jurisdictions are also taking steps.
Many Americans with intellectual and developmental disabilities do not have long-term plans for when family members can no longer care for them. Families, researchers, and advocates worry that has set the stage for a crisis in which people with disabilities could end up living in institutional settings.
Many small-town care facilities that remain open are limiting admissions, citing a lack of staff, while a wave of others shutter. That means more patients are marooned in hospitals or placed far away from their families.
A conversation about how the lessons from the victory over smallpox could be applied to public health challenges today.
A recent report detailing problems with Florida’s patchwork mental health system had reached conclusions nearly identical to those of a similar report from more than 20 years ago. The echoes between the findings are unmistakable. And Florida isn’t the only state struggling with the criminalization of mental illness, a lack of coordination between providers, and insufficient access to treatment.
The recent declaration by President Donald Trump that taming unexpected medical bills would be a top priority for his administration echoed through the halls of Congress.
A proposed state law with bipartisan, bicameral support is on the move in Texas. It would force hospitals and insurers to settle surprise bills — instead of relying on patients to start the mediation process. The KHN/NPR "Bill of the Month" series is a catalyst for the effort.
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