North Carolina Archives

Health Programs Are at Risk as Debt Ceiling Cave-In Looms

Episode 296

May 4, 2023

A warning from the Treasury Department that the U.S. could default on its debt as soon as June 1 has galvanized lawmakers to intervene. But there is still no obvious way to reconcile Republican demands to slash federal spending with President Joe Biden’s demand to raise the debt ceiling and save the spending fight for a later date. Meanwhile, efforts to pass abortion bans in conservative states are starting to stall as some Republicans rebel against the most severe bans. Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico, Rachel Cohrs of Stat, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KFF Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.

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A photo of the exterior of Atrium Health Carolinas Medical Center.

Diagnosis: Debt

Biden Administration Issues New Warning About Medical Credit Cards

Americans paid an estimated $1 billion in deferred interest on medical debt in just three years, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau reports. The agency warns against medical credit cards, which are often pitched right in doctors’ offices.

By Noam N. Levey

May 4, 2023

A photo of a hospital building with a sign that reads, "BayCare."

How a 2019 Florida Law Catalyzed a Hospital-Building Boom

In Wesley Chapel, Fla., near Tampa, residents will soon have three general hospitals within a five-minute drive. The new construction is part of a hospital-building boom across Florida unleashed almost four years ago, when the state dropped a requirement that companies obtain government approval to open new hospitals.

By Phil Galewitz, Lauren Sausser, and Daniel Chang

April 26, 2023

A photo of officials visiting public health workers.

US Officials Want to End the HIV Epidemic by 2030. Many Stakeholders Think They Won’t.

The federal government’s ambitious plan to end the HIV epidemic, launched in 2019, has generated new ways to reach at-risk populations in targeted communities across the South. But health officials, advocates, and people living with HIV worry significant headwinds will keep the program from reaching its goals.

By Daniel Chang and Sam Whitehead

April 24, 2023

A photo of a woman handing over an insurance card.

The Big Squeeze: More Enrollees and Smaller Networks Plague Some ACA Plans

Despite record enrollment in health insurance plans under the Affordable Care Act, some consumers who bought coverage and agents who helped them do so have had a tough start to the new year: Many say it’s hard to find an in-network doctor or hospital.

By Julie Appleby

April 6, 2023

What the Health? From KFF Health News

A Judicial Body Blow to the ACA

Episode 291

March 30, 2023

A federal judge in Texas has dealt a big setback to the Affordable Care Act. The same judge who tried in 2018 to declare the entire ACA unconstitutional has now ruled that the law’s main provisions for preventive care are unconstitutional and, therefore, unenforceable nationwide. Also this week, North Carolina became the 40th state to expand Medicaid under the ACA. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Rachel Cohrs of Stat, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join KHN chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.

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A woman in a light blue denim shirt looks directly at the camera holding a purple picture frame. The photo she is holding shows her son, a young man with a backwards cap, reclining on a couch.

Payback: Tracking Opioid Cash

$50 Billion in Opioid Settlement Cash Is on the Way. We’re Tracking How It’s Spent.

Spending the money effectively and equitably is a tall order for state and local governments, and a lack of transparency in the process is already leading to fears of misuse.

By Aneri Pattani

March 30, 2023

A photo of A.C. Shilton posing with a sheep outside.

Truly Random Drug Testing: ADHD Patients Face Uneven Urine Screens and, Sometimes, Stigma

Doctors have no national standards on when to order urine tests to check whether adult ADHD patients are properly taking their prescription stimulants. Some patients are subjected to much more frequent testing than others.

By Arielle Zionts

March 28, 2023

A photo shows a man standing for a portrait outside his home. He is holding a cane.

Reentry Programs to Help Former Prisoners Obtain Health Care Are Often Underused

More than 600,000 people are released from prisons every year, many with costly health conditions but no medications, medical records, a health care provider, or insurance.

By Renuka Rayasam

March 8, 2023

A photo shows an older man being helped into a wheelchair by a nurse.

Montana Seeks to Insulate Nursing Homes From Future Financial Crises

Lawmakers are considering creating standards to set Medicaid reimbursement rates. But industry observers wonder whether the move would be too little, too late to bolster a beleaguered industry.

By Keely Larson

Feb. 24, 2023

A digital illustration of a Black person's hand writing the chemical structure of imidazolidinyl urea on a bathroom mirror with pink lipstick.

States Seek Crackdown on Toxic Ingredients in Cosmetics to Close Gaps in Federal Oversight

Washington state regulators found formaldehyde, lead, and arsenic in lipstick, powder foundations, skin lotions, and hair products marketed to and popular with women of color. Now legislators there are seeking to ban the products and, like at least a dozen other states, make up for lax federal rules.

By Michael Scaturro

Feb. 23, 2023

A Law Was Meant to Free Sick or Aging Inmates. Instead, Some Are Left to Die in Prison.

The First Step Act was supposed to help free terminally ill and aging federal inmates who pose little or no threat to public safety. But while petitions for compassionate release skyrocketed during the pandemic, judges denied most requests.

By Fred Clasen-Kelly

Feb. 21, 2023

An illustration shows two diagrams of green dots connected by lines, suggesting connected data networks. Floating between those networks are 3D models of viruses.

Congress Told HHS to Set Up a Health Data Network in 2006. The Agency Still Hasn’t.

Since 2006, federal officials have been charged with setting up a network to let various parts of the U.S. health system share information during emergencies. It still hasn’t been built or even planned, even after the communication and data-sharing failures put on display during the pandemic.

By Sam Whitehead

Feb. 9, 2023

Patients for Profit: How Private Equity Hijacked Health Care

Some Addiction Treatment Centers Turn Big Profits by Scaling Back Care

Private equity groups are cashing in on rising rates of alcohol and drug addiction in the U.S. But they aren’t necessarily investing in centers with the best treatment standards, and they often cut extra services.

By Renuka Rayasam and Blake Farmer, Nashville Public Radio

Jan. 31, 2023

Unmet Needs: Critics Cite Failures in Health Care for Vulnerable Foster Children

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.

By Andy Miller and Rebecca Grapevine

Jan. 25, 2023

Lauren Overman, who has strawberry blonde hair with bangs and wears a loose orange sweater, is sitting outside at a picnic table. Green grass and blue sky are visible behind her. She looks directly at the camera with a smile.

In North Carolina, More People Are Training to Support Patients Through an Abortion

In the months since Roe v. Wade was overturned, training groups in North Carolina have seen an uptick in interest from people wanting to become abortion doulas.

By Claire Donnelly, WFAE

Jan. 5, 2023

Navigating Aging

Weighing Risks of a Major Surgery: 7 Questions Older Americans Should Ask Their Surgeon

How do older adults know when the potential benefits from surgery are worth the risks? And what questions should they ask as they try to figure this out? Our columnist asks experts for guidance.

By Judith Graham

Jan. 3, 2023

A photo shows a group of people gathered outside, holding petitions, asking passersby to sign them.

Why Medicaid Expansion Ballots May Hit a Dead End After a Fleeting Victory in South Dakota

Since 2017, Medicaid expansion has been adopted in seven states where a question was placed directly on the ballot. But campaign leaders say that strategy may not work in Florida and Wyoming, where Republican opposition remains strong.

By Rachana Pradhan and Daniel Chang

Dec. 16, 2022

A photo illustration shows images of a business executive in a suit, a stack of money, a vial of blood from a lab test and a column from a spreadsheet with text showing various medical industries.

Patients for Profit: How Private Equity Hijacked Health Care

KHN Investigation: The System Feds Rely On to Stop Repeat Health Fraud Is Broken

A months-long KHN examination of the system meant to bar fraudsters from Medicaid, Medicare, and other federal health programs found gaping holes and expansive gray areas through which banned individuals slip to repeatedly bilk taxpayer-funded programs.

By Sarah Jane Tribble and Lauren Weber

Dec. 12, 2022

In Rural America, Deadly Costs of Opioids Outweigh the Dollars Tagged to Address Them

Some people say it’s reasonable for densely populated areas to receive more settlement funds, since they serve more of those affected. But others worry this overlooks rural communities disproportionately harmed by opioid addiction.

By Aneri Pattani and Rae Ellen Bichell

Dec. 12, 2022

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