Dangerous Levels of Lead Were Found in the Water of About Half the Schools Tested in Montana
About half of Montana schools that had tested their water by mid-February under a new state rule had high levels of lead, according to state data. But the full picture isn’t clear because fewer than half of the state’s school buildings had provided water samples six weeks after the deadline. For many schools with high […]
Covid Expert Joins Exodus Into Business, Where Science Parlays Into Profits
Millions of free covid-19 rapid tests arriving in Americans’ mailboxes are long-awaited vindication for Dr. Michael Mina, who, as a Harvard assistant professor, had been advocating for two years that the best way to limit covid is to identify it quickly, cheaply, and widely with rapid antigen tests so infected people know to isolate themselves. […]
Biden’s Blanket Statement — ‘No More Surprise Billing’ — Doesn’t Quite Cover It
“Millions of hardworking Americans will no longer have to worry about unexpected medical bills.” President Joe Biden, in a Feb. 10 speech about lowering health care costs. During a Feb. 10 speech about lowering health care costs, President Joe Biden made a sweeping declaration that Americans would no longer need to worry about surprise medical […]
J&J-Vaxxed, mRNA-Boosted, and Pondering a Third Shot
Yes, we are all exhausted by the covid pandemic. Flummoxed by the constantly shifting science and guidelines. Worried about a succession of scary new variants, each with its own name, like hurricanes. But a sizable minority — nearly 17 million U.S. residents, including me — has its own special quandary. Our initial vaccine was Johnson […]
‘American Diagnosis’: From Church Rock to Congress, Uranium Workers Are Still Fighting for Compensation
Can’t see the audio player? Click here to listen. Click here for a transcript of the episode. Episode 4: Abandoned Mines, Abandoned Health – Part II People living on and near the Navajo Nation have been grappling with the legacy of 40-plus years of uranium mining. According to Environmental Protection Agency cleanup reports and congressional […]
Vacunados con J&J, reforzados con ARNm, y pensando en la tercera dosis
Sí, todos estamos agotados por la pandemia de covid. Desconcertados por los constantes cambios en la ciencia y en las directrices. Preocupados por la sucesión de nuevas y temibles variantes, cada una con su propio nombre, como los huracanes. Pero una minoría considerable —casi 17 millones de residentes en los Estados Unidos, entre los que […]
The Demise of Single-Payer in California Trips Up Efforts in Other States
SACRAMENTO — Single-payer health care didn’t stand a chance in California this year. Even in this deep-blue bastion, Democratic lawmakers shied away from legislation that would have put state government in charge of health care and taxed Californians heavily to do so — a massive transformation that would have forced them to take on the […]
From Alabama to Utah, Efforts to Vaccinate Medicaid Enrollees Against Covid Run Into Obstacles
Medicaid enrollees continue to get vaccinated against covid at far lower rates than the general population despite vigorous outreach efforts by government officials and private organizations to get low-income people inoculated, according to data from several states. That leaves many Medicaid enrollees — who tend to be sicker than those with private insurance — at […]
Plan to Fix Postal Service Shifts New Retirees to Medicare — Along With Billions in Costs
A congressional effort to fix the nation’s deteriorating mail service may come at the expense of an even bigger and more complicated problem: Medicare solvency. The Postal Service Reform Act of 2022 would help shore up post office finances by ending the unusual and onerous legal requirement to fund 75 years of retirement health benefits […]
Health Care Firms Were Pushed to Confront Racism. Now Some Are Investing in Black Startups.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Marcus Whitney stands out in Nashville’s $95 billion health care sector as an investor in startups. In addition to co-founding a venture capital firm, he’s organized an annual health tech conference and co-founded the city’s professional soccer club. And, often, he’s the only Black man in the room. So in summer 2020, […]