Latest Morning Briefing Stories

In Rural America, Twisting Arms to Take a Covid Vaccine First Takes Trust

KFF Health News Original

In communities across the country, the Cooperative Extension System, the same organization that supports 4-H clubs nationally, is tapping its roots in rural communities to promote vaccines. But its approach to getting people vaccinated in many communities, including Cairo, Illinois, must be nuanced.

The Newest Disease Detection Tool for Covid and Beyond: Poop

KFF Health News Original

Hundreds of college campuses, cities and counties around California and the U.S. are exploring sewers for the newest data stream to track covid and other infectious diseases.

Mensaje del CEO de Pfizer al público: confíen en nosotros con el refuerzo de la vacuna contra covid

KFF Health News Original

Pfizer anunció su ensayo global de fase 3 sobre una tercera dosis a mediados de julio. La fecha de finalización de ese ensayo es en 2022. Los resultados de la fase 3 suelen ser necesarios antes de la aprobación oficial.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: The Senate Acts

KFF Health News Original

The U.S. Senate worked well into its scheduled August recess to pass a bipartisan infrastructure bill and a budget blueprint that outlines a much larger bill — covering key health priorities — to be written this fall. Meanwhile, the latest surge of covid is making both employers and schools rethink their opening plans. Joanne Kenen of Politico, Mary Ellen McIntire of CQ Roll Call and Yasmeen Abutaleb of The Washington Post join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also, for “extra credit,” the panelists suggest their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too.

Más embarazadas con covid en cuidados intensivos, expertos enfatizan que deben vacunarse

KFF Health News Original

La baja tasa de vacunación en este grupo es sorprendente, señalan médicos. Al 31 de julio, solo el 23% de las embarazadas habían recibido al menos una dosis de la vacuna contra el coronavirus, según estadísticas de los CDC.

Familias apoyan máscaras en las aulas, pero se oponen a la vacunación obligatoria

KFF Health News Original

Las fuertes opiniones públicas tienen lugar cuando la politización del debate sobre las máscaras en las aulas se vuelve más acalorada, coincidiendo con el inicio del año escolar, especialmente en Florida y Texas.

Public Favors Masks in Classrooms but Balks at Mandating Vaccinations for Students

KFF Health News Original

With schools reopening, poll finds two-thirds of parents support mandating masks for unvaccinated students, but resistance to vaccinating students remains high. “My child is not a test dummy,” one Black parent told pollsters. Some parents deferred the decision to their teens.

A Quarter of US Hospitals, and Counting, Demand Workers Get Vaccinated. But Not Here.

KFF Health News Original

Amid a surge in covid-19 cases driven by the highly contagious delta variant, nearly 1,500 health systems across the nation are requiring their employees to get vaccinated. In Montana and Oregon, that’s not an option.

‘The Vaccination Queen’: Nurse Practitioner Takes Covid Shots House to House in Puerto Rico

KFF Health News Original

Abigail Matos-Pagán, a critical care expert who has galvanized relief efforts after hurricanes and earthquakes, is on a mission to inoculate as many Puerto Rican residents as possible.

A California Bill Would Limit Protests at Vaccination Sites. Does It Violate the First Amendment?

KFF Health News Original

A proposal breezing through the state legislature would make it illegal to obstruct someone from getting a covid-19 shot, or any other vaccine, but some free speech experts say it goes too far.

“La reina de la vacunación”: enfermera lleva las dosis contra covid de casa en casa en Puerto Rico

KFF Health News Original

Abigail Matos-Pagán, experta en cuidados críticos que ha impulsado tareas de ayuda tras huracanes y terremotos, se ha propuesto vacunar al mayor número posible de residentes de Puerto Rico.

Déjà Vu? Consumers Scramble for Covid Tests in Hard-Hit Areas

KFF Health News Original

As the nation confronts the delta variant, many consumers are again facing delays getting tested. The problem appears most acute in the South and Midwest, where new infections are growing the fastest.

Hard Lessons From a City That Tried to Privatize Public Health

KFF Health News Original

Facing bankruptcy, Detroit largely dismantled its public health department in 2012, and the city essentially went two years without a government-run public health system. Five years later, this major American city offers a grim cautionary tale.

Clarity on Covid Count: Pandemic’s Toll on Seniors Extended Well Beyond Nursing Homes

KFF Health News Original

The latest research shows that although deaths in nursing homes received enormous attention, far more older adults who perished from covid lived outside of institutions. People with dementia and other severe neurological conditions, chronic kidney disease and immune deficiencies were hit especially hard.