Latest KFF Health News Stories
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Let the General Election Commence
Abortion and reproductive health issues headlined the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, as expected. But what Vice President Kamala Harris has in mind for other health policies as the Democratic nominee remains something of a mystery. Meanwhile, former President Donald Trump says he would not use the 19th-century Comstock Act to impose, in effect, a national ban on abortion, which angered his anti-abortion backers. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Joanne Kenen of Politico and Johns Hopkins University, and Shefali Luthra of The 19th join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF Health News’ Tony Leys, who reported and wrote the latest KFF Health News-NPR “Bill of the Month” feature about a woman who fought back after being charged for two surgeries despite undergoing only one.
Disability Rights Activist Pushes Government To Let Him Participate in Society
Garret Frey won a U.S. Supreme Court case as a teenager who needed assistance to attend high school. Now, he’s gained concessions under Iowa’s Medicaid program to help him live at home instead of in a care facility.
A Teen’s Murder, Mold in the Walls: Unfulfilled Promises Haunt Public Housing
For years, federal lawmakers have failed to deliver the money needed to fix derelict public housing, leaving tenants — mostly people of color and families with low incomes — living with mold and gun violence that has had lasting health consequences.
Biden Administration Blocks Two Private Sector Enrollment Sites From ACA Marketplace
Regulators have been under the gun to curb unauthorized Obamacare enrollment and switching of plans. Separately, a pending lawsuit was amended with additional defendants and new allegations regarding tactics to garner greater ACA sales commissions.
The Rapidly Evolving Field of Street Medicine
The rapidly evolving field of street medicine — the practice of providing health care to homeless people living outside — is getting a jolt in California with a new player: a medical group devoted exclusively to homeless people. And it’s actually making money. Sachin Jain, who worked on federal Medicaid policy during his tenure in […]
Patient Underwent One Surgery but Was Billed for Two. Even After Being Sued, She Refused To Pay.
A collection agency sought court authority to garnish a patient’s wages to pay a disputed surgery bill. But after the patient showed up in court to argue the bill was bogus, the judge declined to let the bill collector seize her money.
Cautious Optimism in San Francisco as New Cases of HIV in Latinos Decrease
New HIV diagnoses have decreased among Latinos in San Francisco, potentially marking the first time in five years that the group hasn’t accounted for the largest number of new cases. Public health experts express cautious optimism, but outreach workers warn that many Latinos still struggle to find testing and treatment.
San Francisco: cauteloso optimismo mientras bajan nuevos casos de VIH entre latinos
San Francisco estableció un modelo nacional de respuesta a la enfermedad. Lo hizo al construir una red de servicios de VIH para que los residentes pudieran acceder a pruebas gratuitas o de bajo costo, así como al tratamiento, independientemente de su seguro de salud o estatus migratorio.
En medio de las expulsiones de Medicaid, muchos estados deciden expandirlo
Esta ampliación de las afiliaciones en estos estados se producen en medio de la mayor conmoción en las casi seis décadas de historia del programa.
Traveling To Die: The Latest Form of Medical Tourism
Medical aid in death is legal in 10 states and the District of Columbia. But only Oregon and Vermont explicitly allow out-of-state people who are terminally ill to die with assistance there. So far, at least 49 people have made the trek while state legislation stalls elsewhere.
Inside the Political Fight To Build a Rural Georgia Hospital
Political drama involving a rural Georgia county reflects how state regulations that govern when and where hospitals can be built or expanded are evolving.
Bipartisan Effort Paves Way for Reviving Shuttered Hospitals in Georgia
“Certificate of need” laws, largely supported by the hospital industry, limit health facility construction in 35 states and Washington, D.C. Georgia lawmakers decided its law was complicating the reviving of two hospitals critical to their communities.
Harris-Walz Ticket Sharpens Contrast With Trump-Vance on Health Care
As Democrats convene in Chicago to make official their presidential and vice presidential nominees, Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz together are raising the prominence of health care as a 2024 election issue.
Journalists Discuss African Mpox Upsurge, EpiPen Alternative, and Medicaid Unwinding
KFF Health News and California Healthline staff made the rounds on national and state media this week to discuss topical stories. Here’s a collection of their appearances.
Inside Conservative Activist Leonard Leo’s Long Campaign To Gut Planned Parenthood
Anti-abortion groups and their allies secured a generational victory in 2022 when the Supreme Court overturned “Roe v. Wade.” A lawsuit in Texas demonstrates how those same forces threaten access to other health services, including birth control and screenings for cancer and sexually transmitted infections.
Amid Medicaid ‘Unwinding,’ Many States Wind Up Expanding
The end of pandemic-era Medicaid coverage protections coincided with changes in more than a dozen states to expand coverage for lower-income people, including children, pregnant women, and the incarcerated.
Most Black Hospitals Across the South Closed Long Ago. Their Impact Endures.
Taborian Hospital in Mound Bayou, Mississippi, was established to exclusively admit Black patients during a time when Jim Crow laws barred them from accessing the same health care facilities as white patients. Its closure underscores how hundreds of Black hospitals in the U.S. fell casualty to social progress.
Opioid Settlements Promise Mississippi a Windfall. What Happens Next?
Millions of dollars from national opioid settlements are pouring into Mississippi. The state and localities haven’t spent much yet. In many cases, how the money will be used is up in the air.
Kids Who Survived Super Bowl Shooting Are Scared, Suffering Panic Attacks and Sleep Problems
Six months after the Feb. 14 parade, parents of survivors under 18 years old say their children are deeply changed. In this installment of “The Injured,” we meet kids who survived the mass shooting only to live with long-term emotional scars.
Los niños son particularmente vulnerables al estrés de la violencia con armas de fuego, y 10 de las 24 que sufrieron heridas de bala en el desfile del 14 de febrero tenían menos de 18 años.
