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Latest KFF Health News Stories

What Happened When the Only ER Doctor in a Rural Town Got COVID

KFF Health News Original

Hospitals across the country are struggling as staffers get infected with the coronavirus. It’s especially tough for small, rural hospitals, where even one doctor out sick can upend patient capacity.

After a Deadly COVID Outbreak, Maryland County Takes Steps to Protect Health Workers

KFF Health News Original

Prince George’s County in Maryland is taking action after a coronavirus outbreak left veteran public health worker Chantee Mack dead and several colleagues with lasting medical problems. But some staffers say more still needs to be done to keep public health workers on the front lines of the COVID fight safe.

NYC Hospital Workers, Knowing How Bad It Can Get, Brace for COVID 2nd Wave

KFF Health News Original

Hospitals are in better shape now than in the spring, with more knowledge of how to handle COVID-19 and bigger stockpiles of protective equipment. Still, nurses worry about staffing shortages and unfilled jobs.

During ACA Open Enrollment, Picking a Plan Invites New COVID Complications

KFF Health News Original

COVID-19’s “long haulers” — patients with lingering effects of the disease — have joined the ranks of Americans with preexisting conditions. For those shopping for health coverage on the individual market, here’s help navigating an uncharted insurance landscape.

OSHA Let Employers Decide Whether to Report Health Care Worker Deaths. Many Didn’t.

KFF Health News Original

Four workers died at a facility with one of the largest U.S. outbreaks, but the Occupational Safety and Health Administration never conducted an inspection. It’s a pattern that’s played out across the nation, a KHN investigation finds.

Thousands of Doctors’ Offices Buckle Under Financial Stress of COVID

KFF Health News Original

Across the nation, primary care practices that were already struggling are closing, victims of the pandemic’s financial fallout. And this is reducing access to health care, especially in rural and other regions already short on doctors.

Why Employers Find It So Hard to Test for COVID

KFF Health News Original

COVID-19 cases are surging across the U.S., and most workplaces are still open for business. As workers fear catching the disease while on the clock, why aren’t more companies footing the bill for testing employees?

Rural Areas Send Their Sickest Patients to Cities, Straining Hospitals

KFF Health News Original

Critically ill rural patients are often sent to city hospitals for high-level treatment, and as their numbers grow, some urban hospitals are buckling under the added strain. Meanwhile, mask-wearing and other pandemic prevention measures remain spotty in rural counties.

New Legal Push Aims to Speed Magic Mushrooms to Dying Patients

KFF Health News Original

A proposal in Washington state would use right-to-try laws to allow terminally ill patients access to psilocybin — the famed magic mushrooms of America’s psychedelic ’60s — to ease depression and anxiety.

Need a COVID-19 Nurse? That’ll Be $8,000 a Week

KFF Health News Original

A shortage of nurses has turned hospital staffing into a sort of national bidding war, with hospitals willing to pay exorbitant wages to secure the nurses they need. That threatens to shift the supply of nurses toward more affluent areas.

Surging LA

KFF Health News Original

Eight months after California Healthline’s Heidi de Marco photographed LA under lockdown, she returned to the same iconic spots. Vehicle and foot traffic are up — as are coronavirus cases.

Trump’s Lame-Duck Status Leaves Governors to Wing It on COVID

KFF Health News Original

As coronavirus cases surge, state officials can’t afford to wait for a new president to take office before taking action. But some governors’ initiatives seem to be little more than policy tweaks or symbolic gestures.