Death and Redemption in an American Prison
More than a quarter century after an inmate helped start a hospice program in one of the nation鈥檚 most notorious prisons, he is trying to spread the idea.
The Powerful Constraints on Medical Care in Catholic Hospitals Across America
The expansion of Catholic hospitals nationwide leaves patients at the mercy of the church鈥檚 religious directives, which are often at odds with accepted medical standards.
蘑菇影院 Health News' 'What the Health?': Biden Wins Early Court Test for Medicare Drug Negotiations
A federal district court judge dismissed a lawsuit attempting to invalidate the Biden administration鈥檚 Medicare prescription-drug price negotiation program. But the suit turned on a technicality, and several more court challenges are in the pipeline. Meanwhile, health policy pops up in Super Bowl ads, as Congress approaches yet another funding deadline. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join 蘑菇影院 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, for 鈥渆xtra credit,鈥 the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week they think you should read, too.
States Target Health Insurers鈥 鈥楶rior Authorization鈥 Red Tape
Doctors, patients, and hospitals have railed for years about the prior authorization processes that health insurers use to decide whether they鈥檒l pay for patients鈥 drugs or medical procedures. The Biden administration announced a crackdown in January, but some state lawmakers are looking to go further.
GoFundMe Has Become a Health Care Utility
Resorting to crowdfunding to pay medical bills has become so routine, in some cases health professionals recommend it.
Colorado Moves to Connect Agricultural Workers With Mental Health Resources
Advocates say two bills under consideration could help migrant communities but that more needs to be done.
Halfway Through 鈥楿nwinding,鈥 Medicaid Enrollment Is Down About 10 Million
While more Medicaid beneficiaries have been purged in the span of a year than ever before, enrollment is on track to settle at pre-pandemic levels.
Is Housing Health Care? State Medicaid Programs Increasingly Say 鈥榊es鈥
States are using their Medicaid programs to offer poor and sick people housing services, such as paying six months鈥 rent or helping hunt for apartments. The trend comes in response to a growing homelessness epidemic, but experts caution this may not be the best use of limited health care money.
Congressman Off-Base in Ad Claiming Fauci Shipped Covid to Montana Before the Pandemic
Facts don鈥檛 support claims by a likely Republican Senate candidate that a federal research laboratory in Montana infected bats with a coronavirus from China before the covid-19 outbreak.
Possibility of Wildlife-to-Human Crossover Heightens Concern About Chronic Wasting Disease
A response is ramping up to a potential spillover of the neurological disease to humans from deer, elk, and other animals.
Colorado Legal Settlement Would Up Care and Housing Standards for Trans Women Inmates
A soon-to-be-finalized legal settlement would offer transgender women in Colorado prisons new housing options, including a pipeline to the Denver Women鈥檚 Correctional Facility. The change comes amid a growing number of lawsuits across the country aimed at improving health care access and safety for incarcerated trans people.
Is the Nation鈥檚 Primary Care Shortage as Bad as Federal Data Suggest?
Federal policymakers have been trying for a long time to lure more primary care providers to understaffed areas. The Biden administration boosted funding in 2022 to address shortages and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) pushed sweeping primary care legislation in 2023. But when 蘑菇影院 Health News set out last year to map where the primary care workforce shortages really are 鈥 and where […]
More 鈥楴avigators鈥 Are Helping Women Travel to Have Abortions
After the U.S. Supreme Court ended the federal right to an abortion and many states banned the procedure, reproductive health care organizations hired dozens of people to help patients arrange travel and pay for care.
Montana Vows Changes to Avoid Delayed Contracts. Some Health Providers Still Await Back Pay.
The head of Montana鈥檚 health department said the agency is catching up on a months-long backlog of contracts with organizations that connect people to medical care that left organizations without pay, halted some services, and triggered job cuts.
Where Are the Nation鈥檚 Primary Care Providers? It鈥檚 Not an Easy Answer
Politicians keep talking about fixing primary care shortages. But flawed national data leaves big holes in how to evaluate which policies are effective.
Native American Communities Have the Highest Suicide Rates, Yet Interventions Are Scarce
Native Americans die by suicide at a higher rate than any other racial or ethnic group, yet research into effective and culturally appropriate interventions is uncommon.
As climate change-driven wildfires increasingly choke large parts of the United States with smoke each summer, new research shows residents in long-term care facilities are being exposed to dangerously poor air, even those who don鈥檛 set foot outside during smoke events.
Montana鈥檚 Effort to Expand Religious Exemptions to Vaccines Prompts Political Standoff
The dispute between state lawmakers and health department officials could delay a broader package of child care licensing changes until 2025.
Rural Hospitals Are Caught in an Aging-Infrastructure Conundrum
Small, community hospitals face challenges in paying for the capital improvement projects they need to stay open.
Hoping to Clear the Air in Casinos, Workers Seek to Ban Tobacco Smoke
Casinos in several states are fighting efforts to ban smoking, and trying to roll back existing anti-smoking laws. One planned facility even moved outside a city鈥檚 limits because of voter-approved smoking restrictions.
