Latest KFF Health News Stories
In Hard-Hit Areas, COVID’s Ripple Effects Strain Mental Health Care Systems
In areas hit hard by the coronavirus, such as Detroit, behavioral health care workers have been overburdened and forced to scale back services at the same time people battling mental health disorders became more stressed and anxious.
Pandemic Presents New Hurdles, And Hope, For People Struggling With Addiction
Relaxed regulations in response to the pandemic means more access to addiction treatment medications. But recovery programs are accepting fewer people, and the danger of overdose remains high.
Nearly Half Of Americans Delayed Medical Care Due To Pandemic
Of those who went without seeing a doctor or other medical provider, 11% experienced a worsened medical condition, according to the poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation. In addition, nearly 40% said stress related to the coronavirus crisis has negatively impacted their mental health.
Casi la mitad de las personas han retrasado su atención médica por la pandemia
La mayoría espera recibir atención en los próximos tres meses. Casi el 40% dijo que el estrés relacionado con el coronavirus ha afectado negativamente su salud mental.
‘We Miss Them All So Much’: Grandparents Ache As The COVID Exile Grinds On
The pandemic has forced millions of families to weigh the risks of vulnerable grandparents getting too close to their beloved grandchildren — against the heartache of staying away.
Readers And Tweeters: Doctors Weigh In On Telemedicine Costs
Kaiser Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
Must-Reads Of The Week From Brianna Labuskes
Newsletter editor Brianna Labuskes wades through hundreds of health care policy stories each week, so you don’t have to.
Economic Blow Of The Coronavirus Hits America’s Already Stressed Farmers
At the start of the spring planting season, farmers across the U.S. heartland were already trying to recover from last year’s flooding amid worsening economic conditions when the pandemic struck. Farm bankruptcies and suicides continue to climb. A lack of mental health resources in rural America makes finding help more complicated.
California To Widen Pipeline Of Psychiatric Nurse Practitioners
The nursing schools at UCLA, UCSF and UC-Davis have joined hands in a new one-year online training program for mental health care as a surge of patients is expected due to the social isolation and economic impact of COVID-19.
The Challenges Of Keeping Young Adults Safe During The Pandemic
Even while playing the role of quarantine enforcer for your teens and 20-somethings, recognize that they are as anxious and worried as you are — and with good reason.
Lawmaker Pushing Mental Health Reform: It’s ‘More Needed Than Ever’
Gov. Gavin Newsom has asked lawmakers to pare down their legislative wish lists and focus on the state’s coronavirus response. But state Sen. Jim Beall plans to forge ahead with his mental health care proposals, including a measure to create a state mental health parity requirement.
Coronavirus Crisis Opens Access To Online Opioid Addiction Treatment
Under the national emergency, the government has waived a law that required patients to have an in-person visit with a physician before they could be prescribed drugs that help quell withdrawal symptoms, such as Suboxone. Now they can get those prescriptions via a phone call or videoconference with a doctor. That may give video addiction therapy a kick-start.
Coronavirus Nurses Ask An Ebola Veteran: Is It OK To Be Afraid?
Martha Phillips traveled to Sierra Leone during the Ebola epidemic in 2014 to serve as a nurse. Now, she’s working on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic, advising her colleagues on how to stay safe.
‘I Wasn’t Eating’: Senior Twin Sisters Battle Pandemic Anxiety Together
Twins Edna Mayes and Ethel Sylvester, 92, are relying on each other through the pandemic, in which one of the hidden dangers is to their mental health.
California’s New Attack On Opioid Addiction Hits Old Roadblocks
State officials in California have achieved some success in promoting the use of medication-assisted treatment for people with opioid addictions, but they are bumping up against familiar resistance and constraints.
Addiction Is ‘A Disease Of Isolation’ — So Pandemic Puts Recovery At Risk
People in recovery from drug or alcohol addiction have to weather a new storm of depression, anxiety and isolation during the pandemic, just as the social supports of Alcoholics Anonymous and other 12-step programs move online.
Coronavirus Has Upended Our World. It’s OK To Grieve.
To weather uncertain times, it’s important to acknowledge and grieve losses — even if they seem small in the scheme of the global pandemic, psychologists and grief experts say.
Take A Deep Breath: Making Risk-Based Decisions In The Coronavirus Era
There’s an array of recommendations about how to adjust our lives to reduce the spread of the novel virus. All are motivated by the same guiding principle: The better the public does in these efforts, the better off everyone will be.
As Youth Suicides Climb, Anguished Parents Begin To Speak Out
The suicide rate for children ages 10 to 14 almost tripled in a decade and is still rising. As parents grapple with loss, some turn to activism.
They Fell In Love Helping Drug Users. But Fear Kept Him From Helping Himself.
Sarah and Andy fell in love while working to keep drug users from overdosing. But when his own addiction reemerged, Andy’s fear of returning to prison kept him from the best treatment.
