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HealthQ is a health series from reporters Cara Anthony and Blake Farmer, approachable guides to an unapproachable health care system. It’s a collaboration between Nashville Public Radio and KFF Health News.
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New DOJ Guidance Could Give States Cover To Cut Disability Services
A new rule from the Justice Department upends a 25-year-old interpretation of federal disability law. Advocates fear it could result in cuts to services that help many disabled Americans live at home instead of in institutions.
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Listen to the Latest ‘KFF Health News Minute’
The "KFF Health News Minute" brings original healthcare and health policy reporting from our newsroom to the airwaves each week.
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Violence Against Healthcare Workers and Staffing Shortages Fuel Hospital Strikes
Healthcare workers at a Michigan hospital have been on strike since last September. Violence on the job is one reason behind it, with federal data showing hospital workers are seven times as likely to be injured on the job due to violent acts as members of the general working population.
By Lynn Arditi -
A Federal Policy Is Complicating How Organizations Battle the Opioid Crisis
Drug test strips are credited with saving lives, but a new policy will limit how funds can be used for them. Advocates of harm reduction strategies who responded to a mass overdose in Baltimore say distributing them will get harder. Federal officials say the strips enable drug use.
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Many States Cover Doula Care, but Access to a ‘Birthing Bestie’ Is Often Out of Reach
Virginia Medicaid started covering doula care four years ago. But logistical and administrative challenges leave many expectant parents without the support of a doula.
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Medicaid Work Rule Leaves Homeless People in the Cold
Conservatives who have long pushed for Medicaid work requirements often said vulnerable people would get a pass. But the federal government’s list of exemptions left off homeless people.
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Baltimore Is Rethinking What It Means To Call 911 — And Who Responds
The city wants to stop health crises before they happen and is creating a new service to do that when people call 911.
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Pediatricians and Health Departments Sidestep Trump’s CDC on Vaccine Guidance
When the Trump administration upended years of vaccine advice, it left pediatricians in a quandary. Many say they can no longer direct families to the CDC as a trusted source of information. So some are creating their own.
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Nurses Chase Cyclospora, Aided by Interviews, Fast-Food Receipts — And the Messy Details
Yes, they’ve heard all the poop jokes. Public health staffers are painstakingly tracing the sources of this massive outbreak, combing through fast-food orders and lettuce purchases as they listen to people’s lengthy, messy stories about their illness.
By Kate Wells -
The Newest Federally Recognized Tribe Wants Better Healthcare. It May Be On Its Own.
North Carolina's Robeson County, where most of the tribe’s citizens live, ranks as one of the worst counties in the U.S. for health disparities. After securing federal recognition, Lumbee tribal leaders will have to decide how to address them.
By Andrew Jones -
Federal Loan Caps Add Barriers — And Likely Debt — for Healthcare Students
The government will cap how much graduate students may borrow in federal loans. The new policy could leave many at the mercy of private lenders with higher interest rates. The borrowing limits will affect students pursuing expensive healthcare careers, and some worry they may impede efforts to diversify the healthcare workforce.
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‘The Child Is Terrified’: Doctors on the Front Lines of a Measles Comeback Speak Out
Hear from six pediatricians in measles hot spot Utah as the U.S. faces infection levels not seen in over three decades and prepares to lose its status as a country that eliminated the dangerous disease.
By Amy Maxmen -
Lawmakers Look To Make Abortion Shield Laws Less Dependent on Who’s Governor
California’s laws still leave extradition decisions related to reproductive rights and gender-affirming care to its governor. But as states with abortion bans target California physicians who prescribe abortion pills across state lines, Democrats want to lock in protections for doctors, no matter who the next governor is.
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New Medicaid Work Rule Means More Opportunities To Lose Coverage
A work requirement is coming to Medicaid. Sam Whitehead tells WAMU’s “Health Hub” how to keep your coverage — and who’s exempt from the new rule.
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HealthQ Special: Caregiving in the Sandwich Generation
Join the conversation as the HealthQ team explores the messiness, humor, and satisfaction that comes with caregiving when you’re sandwiched between aging parents and growing kids.
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These Church Members Disagree on Politics. Together They’re Wiping Out Medical Debt.
Trinity Moravian Church, a politically diverse congregation in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, has been raising money to retire medical debt in the surrounding community.
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Trouble Getting Weight Loss Drugs Covered by Insurance? Here’s What To Know
If your doctor prescribes a GLP-1 medication for weight loss but your insurance won’t cover it, you have options.
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Worried About Your Aging Parents? Welcome to the Caregiving Club
Being a caregiver can start long before you go to a doctor appointment with a loved one or move your parents into your house. The HealthQ team explores how embracing the role matters — and how the recognition and support that come next can ease a difficult season of life.
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Sandwiched Between Caring for Kids and Aging Parents? Reach Out for Resources
Squeezed between their young children and aging parents, the sandwich generation is juggling a lot. KFF Health News Midwest correspondent Cara Anthony discusses embracing her identity as a caregiver and which resources are available to Washington, D.C., residents caring for family members.
By Cara Anthony -
More Americans Are Surviving Cancer. But the Mental Health Challenges Can Persist.
Amid advancements in treatment and screening, more Americans are surviving the disease. But many are left with psychological scars, such as lingering anxiety and depression.