Latest KFF Health News Stories
States Allow In-Person Nursing Home Visits As Families Charge Residents Die ‘Of Broken Hearts’
Half the states are rolling back strict policies that have kept family members out of nursing homes because of fears of spreading the coronavirus.
Ex-West Virginia Health Chief Says Cuts Hurt Virus Response
The former West Virginia public health leader forced out by the governor says decades-old computer systems and cuts to staff over a period of years had made a challenging job even harder during a once-in-a-century pandemic.
KHN executive editor Damon Darlin wades through mounds of health care policy stories — so you don’t have to.
Colorado, Like Other States, Trims Health Programs Amid Health Crisis
Across the country, the recession has cut state revenues at the same time the COVID-19 pandemic has increased costs, forcing state lawmakers into painful decisions about how to balance their budgets. Health care is one of the targets even in the midst of a health care crisis.
KHN’s ‘What The Health?’: ‘Open The Schools, Close The Bars’
While COVID-19 cases continue to surge in more than half the country, the Trump administration has decided its top priority is for schools to open for in-person learning this fall. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court hands Trump a victory in a case to limit the reach of the birth control benefit under the Affordable Care Act. Joanne Kenen of Politico, Mary Ellen McIntire of CQ Roll Call and Kimberly Leonard of Business Insider join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss this and more. Also, Rovner interviews KHN’s Sarah Varney about the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month.”
Más pruebas para COVID, pero esperas demasiado largas por los resultados
Con la demanda en alza, los resultados de las pruebas para COVID-19 están tardando hasta 10 días, lo que dificulta los esfuerzos de salud pública para frenar la propagación.
La tasa de vacunación contra la culebrilla aumenta, pero muchos quedan atrás
Un nuevo informe de los Centros para el Control y Prevención de Enfermedades (CDC) revela que el porcentaje de vacunación es mucho más bajo entre las minorías.
As COVID Testing Soars, Wait Times For Results Jump To A Week — Or More
The delays can be excruciating, with some extreme cases running more than 20 days. People getting tested at urgent care centers, community health centers, pharmacies and state-run drive-thru or walk-up sites are often waiting a week or more to find out if they tested positive for the coronavirus.
Amid Surge, Hospitals Hesitate To Cancel Nonemergency Surgeries
Unlike earlier in the year, most hospitals are not proactively canceling elective surgeries, even in some places seeing spikes in coronavirus patients.
Behind The Byline: ‘Everybody Hit Record’
Check out KHN’s video series — Behind The Byline: How The Story Got Made. Come along as journalists and producers offer an insider’s view of health care coverage that does not quit.
Could Trump’s Push To Undo The ACA Cause Problems For COVID Survivors? Biden Thinks So.
The speech by the presumptive Democrat presidential nominee was delivered the same day the Trump administration reaffirmed its support of a lawsuit that would invalidate all of the Affordable Care Act, including the law’s preexisting condition protections.
Shingles Vaccination Rate Soars But Leaves Many Behind
A federal study finds 35% of people 60 and older were vaccinated for shingles by 2018, up from 7% in 2008, but low-income people and those who are Black or Hispanic are far less likely to get vaccinated.
¿Funcionarán las aplicaciones de rastreo para COVID?
Para que los celulares puedan ayudar a frenar la propagación del coronavirus, muchas personas deben usar las aplicaciones. Y eso todavía está en duda.
High Court Allows Employers To Opt Out Of ACA’s Mandate On Birth Control Coverage
In a 7-2 ruling in a case involving the Little Sisters of the Poor, the court said employers with a “religious or moral objection” to contraceptives should not be forced to insure women for those services.
In Texas, Individual Freedoms Clash With Efforts To Slow The Surge Of COVID Cases
In Houston, now a hot spot for COVID cases, not everyone agrees on how to deal with the pandemic.
Analysis: How A COVID-19 Vaccine Could Cost Americans Dearly
The United States is the only developed nation unable to balance cost, efficacy and social good in setting prices.
COVID Cuts A Lethal Path Through San Quentin’s Death Row
Executions have been on hold in California since 2006, stalled by a series of legal challenges. But COVID-19 is proving a lethal presence on San Quentin’s death row.
COVID-Tracking Apps Proliferate, But Will They Really Help?
Public health authorities had hoped digital technology would supplement the work of contact tracers seeking to control the spread of COVID-19. But technical uncertainties and public health failures have dimmed the apps’ potential.
‘Please Tell Me My Life Is Worth A LITTLE Of Your Discomfort,’ Nurse Pleads
Health care workers on the front lines of the COVID crisis have spent exhausting months working and self-quarantining off-duty to keep from infecting others, including their families. Encountering people who indignantly refuse face coverings can feel like a slap in the face.
COVID Catch-22: They Got A Big ER Bill Because Hospitals Couldn’t Test For Virus
Americans who had coronavirus symptoms in March and April are getting big hospital bills — because they were not sick enough to get then-scarce COVID tests. Some insurers say they are trying to correct these bills, but patients may have to put up a fight.