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Many U.S. hospitals are conserving critical intravenous fluid supplies to cope with a shortage that may last months. Some hospital administrators say the shortage accelerated their plans to change IV fluid hydration protocols altogether.
Women with serious pregnancy complications who were denied abortion care have turned to state courts after appeals to state lawmakers to clarify medical exceptions have largely failed.
With his term soon to expire, Social Security chief Martin O’Malley’s efforts to address the agency’s overpayments to beneficiaries remain incomplete.
Research has generally shown that drinking fluoridated water at the recommended levels is safe and beneficial for oral health, especially in children. But many people feel that more research is needed to better understand whether and when health risks kick in.
KFF Health News and California Healthline staff made the rounds on national and local media in recent weeks to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
Pregnant women are being asked to make large cash payments months before they deliver their babies. Some patient advocates worry this billing practice allows providers to hold treatment hostage.
KFF Health News senior correspondents Fred Clasen-Kelly and Renuka Rayasam discuss how government decisions undermine Black health.
With Republicans now set to control the White House, Senate, and House of Representatives starting in January, their health agenda remains unclear. What is clear, however, is that just about anything could be on the table, from Medicare, Medicaid, and the Affordable Care Act, to drug prices and public health. Meanwhile, anti-abortion groups are preparing to fight the implementation of abortion rights ballot measures just passed by voters in seven states. Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post, Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Plus, for “extra credit,” the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week that they think you should read, too.
As federal health scientists await a potential takeover by RFK Jr. and other medical skeptics in the second Trump administration, some are preparing résumés or retirement papers.
The child tax credit passed by Congress at the height of covid has expired, but states and localities are trying to fill the gap with their own programs and funding. In Michigan, Rx Kids already covers every family with a new baby in Flint. Now, other communities aim to follow.
California health officials began providing protective clothing to farmworkers months before the state’s first bird flu transmission to humans was announced in October. It’s a reminder of the state’s struggle to remain prepared for health threats amid multibillion-dollar deficits.
Meet the tech worker on a quest to use artificial intelligence to combat denials for coverage from patients’ health plans.
After the fall of “Roe v. Wade,” thousands of out-of-state patients traveled to Maryland for abortion care. The state is trying to diversify who can offer that care. Providers in the first training class say their new skills are especially needed in rural areas.
Freedom of Information Act case targets HHS inspector general’s reviews of billions of dollars in health plan overpayments.
Diverse networks of friends, former co-workers, neighbors, and extended family are often essential sources of support for older adults living alone. Often it is the elderly caring for the elderly.
With the arrival in California of dengue, a dangerous mosquito-borne disease present mainly in more tropical climates, public health authorities are deploying a range of strategies to beat back the Aedes mosquitoes that spread the virus.
Despite widespread support for protecting abortion rights, voters said the cost of gas, housing, food, and health care was more important to their choice for president.
