Latest Morning Briefing Stories

The NFL Has Been Using an Unproven Measure to Get Players With Covid Back on the Field Fast

KFF Health News Original

Doctors and scientists are debating whether a little-known measure in covid testing should be used to distinguish who is infectious from who isn’t. The NFL adopted the practice, but laboratory professionals caution against its use.

Charts Paint a Grim Picture 2 Years Into the Coronavirus Pandemic

KFF Health News Original

The on-off nature of the pandemic “has led to a lot of the confusion and grumpiness,” says one expert. Another compares it to the exhaustion of the American public when hearing body counts during the Vietnam War.

Watch: California’s Top Health Adviser on Learning to Live With Covid

KFF Health News Original

KHN Senior Correspondent Samantha Young joined California Health and Human Services Secretary Mark Ghaly for an engaging conversation about how California moves forward in an environment in which covid persists, but at more manageable levels.

When Teens Blow Off Parents’ Pleas to Get Vaccinated, the Consequences Can Be Deadly

KFF Health News Original

Kennedy Stonum, a 17-year-old high school junior, resisted getting vaccinated against covid-19, as did 20-year-old Tyler Gilreath, whose mother had nagged him for months to get the shots. Both died.

La medicación para prevenir el VIH debe ser gratis, pero las aseguradoras siguen cobrándola

KFF Health News Original

Una norma federal estableció que los pacientes no debían pagar por la medicación para prevenir el VIH. Pero las aseguradoras siguen enviando facturas por los fármacos y servicios médicos asociados.

HIV Preventive Care Is Supposed to Be Free in the US. So, Why Are Some Patients Still Paying?

KFF Health News Original

The Department of Labor issued rules in July clarifying that health plans need to cover the costs of prescription drugs proven to prevent HIV infection, along with related lab tests and medical appointments, at no cost to patients. More than half a year later, the erroneous billing continues.

To Be One in a Million: ‘Who Thinks It’s Going to Be You?’

KFF Health News Original

Stan Thomas’ wife, Monica Melkonian, was one of only nine people in the U.S. confirmed to have died from vaccine-induced immune thrombotic thrombocytopenia, a rare side effect associated with the Johnson & Johnson covid vaccine. For the first time, Thomas shares her story of how excited she was to get the shot, how she died, and why he remains firmly pro-vaccine.

Covid Expert Joins Exodus Into Business, Where Science Parlays Into Profits

KFF Health News Original

Like others in academia or government who’ve served as public health advisers during the pandemic, Dr. Michael Mina traded his university role for a commercial venture. He recently took a top job at eMed, a startup that charges a premium price for monitoring at-home covid tests. Can experts do well by trying to do good?

Dangerous Levels of Lead Were Found in the Water of About Half the Schools Tested in Montana

KFF Health News Original

Officials testing water found high lead levels in more than 100 of the state’s nearly 600 school buildings. But as of mid-February, half the state’s schools had yet to provide samples.

‘American Diagnosis’: From Church Rock to Congress, Uranium Workers Are Still Fighting for Compensation

KFF Health News Original

This episode is the second half of a two-part series about uranium mining on the Navajo Nation. A coalition of Indigenous leaders and non-Native locals are lobbying Congress and fielding research to force the cleanup of abandoned uranium mining sites and expand federal compensation for workers harmed by the uranium industry.

J&J-Vaxxed, mRNA-Boosted, and Pondering a Third Shot

KFF Health News Original

Many of the nearly 17 million U.S. members of J&J Nation, myself included, are wondering whether to set aside the current official guidance and get a second booster. Some experts say: Chill out.

From Alabama to Utah, Efforts to Vaccinate Medicaid Enrollees Against Covid Run Into Obstacles

KFF Health News Original

Inoculation rates remain low despite massive outreach efforts and incentives from federal and state programs and Medicaid plan operators, leaving many low-income people vulnerable to the virus.

Por qué las embarazadas fueron rezagadas mientras se aceleraban las vacunas para la mayoría de la población

KFF Health News Original

Fueron excluidas de los ensayos clínicos, una decisión que expertos cuestionan. Las dudas sobre si recomendar la vacuna contra COVID a las embarazadas al parecer ha generado más enfermedad y muerte.

Health Care Firms Were Pushed to Confront Racism. Now Some Are Investing in Black Startups.

KFF Health News Original

A new investment fund launched by one of the few Black venture capitalists in health care is focused on backing Black entrepreneurs. And the investors include some of the biggest names in for-profit health care.

Para las personas con sistemas inmunes frágiles no hay retorno a la “normalidad”

KFF Health News Original

Personas con salud frágil y de alto riesgo denuncian que se les ignora. Mientras, el resto de la sociedad abandona las medidas de protección contra la pandemia, como el uso de la máscara y la distancia física.