Latest Morning Briefing Stories

Wildfire Smoke Is Here to Stay. Here’s How to Clean the Air Inside Your Home.

KFF Health News Original

There are many ways to cleanse indoor air of dangerous smoke particles, which are particularly harmful to people with chronic respiratory and cardiac conditions. Some are expensive, but cheap alternatives exist.

Firefighters on Front Lines, No Strangers to Risk, Push Back Against Covid Vaccine Mandates

KFF Health News Original

Among the people still reluctant to get vaccinated — and pushing against mandates — are firefighters, many of whom also respond to medical calls as paramedics and EMTs and have witnessed the ravages of the pandemic firsthand.

These Schools Use Weekly Testing to Keep Kids in Class — And Covid Out

KFF Health News Original

Coronavirus outbreaks have shuttered K-12 classrooms across the U.S., affecting tens of thousands of K-12 students. To avoid the same fate, some school districts are tapping federal dollars to set up testing programs and step up their vigilance against the virus.

Low Wages and Pandemic Gut Staffing Support for Those With Disabilities

KFF Health News Original

Group homes and facilities that serve people with intellectual and developmental disabilities were hurting for staffers before the pandemic. Now the nationwide job crunch and pandemic pressures are making it even worse.

Mounting Covid Deaths Fuel School Bus Drivers’ Fears

KFF Health News Original

Since August, school bus drivers and monitors have died of covid-19 in at least 10 states, including Georgia and Florida. Masks are required on school buses, but enforcing the rules in districts without school mask mandates is especially hard to do.

California Moves on Climate Change, but Rejects Aggressive Cuts to Greenhouse Emissions

KFF Health News Original

Drought, wildfires, extreme heat: California lawmakers cast climate change as the culprit in an emerging series of public health threats, setting aside billions to help communities respond. But they stopped short of more aggressively reducing the state’s share of the greenhouse emissions warming the planet.

The Checkup Is in the Mail? Soliciting Letter Carriers to Help Deliver Health Care

KFF Health News Original

Here’s an out-of-the-box idea: Have letter carriers spend less time delivering mail and take time to perform home visits and basic health checks on the growing population of frail and elderly.

Will ‘Dr. Disinformation’ Ever Face the Music?

KFF Health News Original

Some of the top spreaders of spurious covid-19 and vaccine information are physicians with active medical licenses. Are medical oversight boards ready to step up to stop them?

At an Overrun ICU, ‘the Problem Is We Are Running Out of Hallways’

KFF Health News Original

Billings Clinic in Montana is past the tipping point as it looks for places to add intensive care unit beds and is on the cusp of rationing care to deal with the surge of sick covid patients in a state with significant anti-vaccination sentiment.

The Solution to Au Pairs’ Health Coverage Gaps May Be Simple: ACA Plans

KFF Health News Original

Private agencies that bring young adults to the U.S. to care for children generally offer basic health insurance, but plans may exclude many types of necessary care. What the agencies might not mention is that au pairs are eligible to enroll in comprehensive coverage on the Affordable Care Act marketplaces and likely qualify for premium subsidies that would make the insurance affordable.

La máscara de tela, ¿es suficiente para proteger contra la variante delta?

KFF Health News Original

Las máscaras siguen siendo una pieza fundamental en la lucha contra la pandemia, porque las personas se infectan principalmente con el SARS-CoV-2, el virus que causa covid-19, al inhalar pequeñas partículas de aerosol que permanecen en el ambiente y las gotas respiratorias que se producen al toser y estornudar.

Científicos analizan los sistemas inmunes únicos de los niños mientras más son víctimas de covid

KFF Health News Original

Aunque no hay evidencia de que la variante delta cause una enfermedad más grave, el virus es tan infeccioso que los niños están siendo hospitalizados en gran número, principalmente en estados con bajas tasas de vacunación.

Covid-Overwhelmed Hospitals Postpone Cancer Care and Other Treatment

KFF Health News Original

Patients with advanced cancer and heart disease are among those who have had to have surgeries and other treatments delayed and rescheduled as a high number of critically ill, unvaccinated covid patients strain the medical system.