States

Latest KFF Health News Stories

Muchas familias con cobertura de empleador inasequible ahora son elegibles para subsidios de Covered California

KFF Health News Original

El gobierno federal ha corregido recientemente una controversial norma del Departamento del Tesoro vinculada a la Ley de Cuidado de Salud a Bajo Precio (ACA), que denegaba la ayuda a muchas familias cuya cobertura basada en sus trabajos se salía de sus presupuestos.

Public Health Agencies Try to Restore Trust as They Fight Misinformation

KFF Health News Original

As public health departments work on improving their message, the skepticism and mistrust often reserved for covid-19 vaccines now threaten other public health priorities, including flu shots and childhood vaccines.

Colorado Considers Changing Its Red Flag Law After Mass Shooting at Nightclub

KFF Health News Original

In El Paso County, where five people were killed in a mass shooting at a nightclub in November, officials have filed relatively few emergency petitions to temporarily remove a person’s guns, with scant approvals.

Survivors of Gangs and Gun Violence, These Women Now Help Others Navigate Grief

KFF Health News Original

As teens, these three women lived amid street gangs around East St Louis, Illinois. Now, as adults, they support the families who have lost loved ones to gun violence. And because of their past, some residents trust them more than they do the police.

‘Caged … For No Fault of Your Own’: Detainees Dread Covid While Awaiting Immigration Hearings

KFF Health News Original

Covid remains a threat for the roughly 30,000 people in the country’s network of immigration facilities. But ICE continues to flout its own pandemic protocols, an extension of the facilities’ poor history of medical care.

ER Doctors Call Private Equity Staffing Practices Illegal and Seek to Ban Them

KFF Health News Original

Doctors, consumer advocates, and some lawmakers are looking forward to a California lawsuit against private equity-backed Envision Healthcare. The case is part of a multistate effort to enforce rules banning corporate ownership of physician practices.

The Case of the Two Grace Elliotts: A Medical Billing Mystery

KFF Health News Original

A health system charged a woman for a shoulder replacement at a hospital across the country that she had not visited for years. She didn’t receive the care, but she did receive the bill — and the medical records of a stranger.

The Official Who Investigates Suspicious Deaths in Your Town May Be a Doctor — Or Not

KFF Health News Original

Across the country, there are no consistent requirements for the officials who investigate suspicious and unexpected deaths. Some have no medical training, others are doctors trained in forensic pathology. Washington, California, Illinois, and Georgia are among the states that have recently attempted to make changes — with mixed success.

HIV Outbreak Persists as Officials Push Back Against Containment Efforts

KFF Health News Original

Research shows offering clean syringes to people who misuse IV drugs is effective in combating the spread of HIV. But an epidemiologist and advocates say state and local officials in West Virginia, home to one of the worst HIV outbreaks in recent years, have taken measures that render syringe exchange less accessible.

Para combatir la violencia con armas de fuego, artista convierte las balas en arte

KFF Health News Original

Según datos de los Centros para el Control y la Prevención de Enfermedades, a nivel nacional, más de 47,000 personas murieron por heridas de bala en 2021: la cifra más alta desde principios de la década de 1990.

To Combat Gun Violence, This Artist Turns Ammunition Into Art

KFF Health News Original

In a city plagued by gun violence, Mykael Ash is turning ammunition into art. Ash, who lives in East St. Louis, Illinois, frequently walks through parts of the city where bullet shells aren’t hard to find. The shell casings represent a cycle of inequality, Ash says, and the art he makes with it serves as a call to action.

Why Medicaid Expansion Ballots May Hit a Dead End After a Fleeting Victory in South Dakota

KFF Health News Original

Since 2017, Medicaid expansion has been adopted in seven states where a question was placed directly on the ballot. But campaign leaders say that strategy may not work in Florida and Wyoming, where Republican opposition remains strong.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Health Spending? Only Congress Knows

KFF Health News Original

Top negotiators in Congress have agreed to a framework for government spending into next year, but there are details to iron out before a vote — such as the scheduled Medicare payment cuts that have providers worried. Also, the Biden administration reopens its program allowing Americans to request free covid-19 home tests, as hopes for pandemic preparedness measures from Congress dim. Rachel Cohrs of Stat, Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, and Rebecca Adams of KHN join KHN’s Mary Agnes Carey to discuss these topics and more. Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too.