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Latest KFF Health News Stories

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': On Abortion Rights, Ohio Is the New Kansas

Podcast

Nearly a year to the day after Kansas voters surprised the nation by defeating an anti-abortion ballot question, Ohio voters defeated a similar, if cagier, effort to limit access in that state. This week, they rejected an effort to raise the threshold for approval of future ballot measures from a simple majority, which would have made it harder to protect abortion access with yet another ballot question come November. Meanwhile, the number of Americans without health insurance has dropped to an all-time low, though few noticed. Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico, Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post, and Emmarie Huetteman of KFF Health News join KFF Health News’ chief Washington correspondent, Julie Rovner, to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Kate McEvoy, executive director of the National Association of Medicaid Directors, about how the “Medicaid unwinding” is going, as millions have their eligibility for coverage rechecked.

Lost Medicaid Health Coverage? Here’s What You Need to Know

KFF Health News Original

Patient advocates are tackling the “overwhelming task” of connecting people with health insurance as millions lose coverage due to the end of pandemic protections on Medicaid eligibility.

As a Union Pushes to Cap Hospital CEO Pay, It’s Accused of Playing Politics

KFF Health News Original

A union is asking Los Angeles city voters to cap hospital executive pay at the U.S. president’s salary. However, hospitals accuse the union of using the proposal as political leverage, and policy experts question whether the policy, if enacted, would be workable.

Pioneering Study Links Testicular Cancer Among Military Personnel to ‘Forever Chemicals’

KFF Health News Original

The military first documented health concerns surrounding chemicals known as PFAS decades ago yet has continued to use firefighting foam made with them. Despite scores of lawsuits by its personnel and high rates of testicular cancer among troops, it has been slow to investigate a connection.

What One Lending Company’s Hospital Contracts Reveal About Financing Patient Debt

KFF Health News Original

Within two years of North Carolina’s public university system going into business with AccessOne to finance patients’ payment plans, nearly half of its patients were in loans that charged interest. As federal scrutiny increases on lenders, KFF Health News is sharing that contract and others obtained through public records requests.

As Many American Cities Get Hotter, Health Systems Face Off Against Heatstroke

KFF Health News Original

With millions of Americans suffering under relentless heat waves this summer, more people are seeking medical attention for heat-related illnesses. As temperatures get more extreme, hospitals, fire departments, and ambulance crews are preparing to treat more patients for heat exhaustion and heatstroke.

Repeating History: California County Plugs Budget Gap With Opioid Settlement Cash

KFF Health News Original

State attorneys general vowed that opioid settlement funds — unlike the tobacco settlement of the 1990s — would go toward tackling the underlying crisis. But in Mendocino County, officials have found a way to use some of its share to help fill a budget shortfall — a throwback to what agreement architects hoped to avoid.

Mujeres negras sopesan riesgos emergentes de alisadores para el cabello “adictivos”

KFF Health News Original

Los alisadores pueden contener carcinógenos, como agentes liberadores de formaldehído, ftalatos y otros compuestos que alteran el sistema endócrino, según estudios de los Institutos Nacionales de Salud.

Black Women Weigh Emerging Risks of ‘Creamy Crack’ Hair Straighteners

KFF Health News Original

Social and economic pressures have long compelled Black girls and women to straighten their hair. But mounting evidence shows chemical straighteners — products with little regulatory oversight — may pose cancer and other health risks.

To Protect a Mother’s Health: How Abortion Ban Exemptions Play Out in a Post-‘Roe’ World

KFF Health News Original

Florida’s six-week abortion law allows exemptions in cases of rape, incest, and human trafficking, and to save the health or life of the mother. But the recent history of such exemptions in other states suggests that very few women will be able to take advantage of them.