The Boom in Out-of-State Telehealth Threatens In-State Providers
HELENA, Mont. — When the Hazelden Betty Ford Foundation began offering telehealth services in Montana in early February, the nation’s largest nonprofit addiction treatment provider promised quality care for far-flung residents without their even having to leave home. That promise was what Montana and more than 40 other states had in mind when they temporarily […]
To Extract More Doses per Vial, Vaccinators Put Squeeze on FDA to Relax Vaccine Handling Advice
President Joe Biden has promised enough covid vaccine to immunize every willing adult by June 1. But right now, the gap between supply and demand is so dramatic that vaccinators are discovering ways to suck the final drops out of each vaccine vial — if federal regulators will let them. Pharmacists involved in the covid […]
‘Explained by KHN’: Consumer Concerns About the Covid Vaccines
The twists and turns of the American health system can sometimes leave people lost, confused and looking for answers. We’ve created a new video series — “Explained by KHN” — in which our correspondents and editors answer common health care and health policy questions. As promising news about the development, efficacy and distribution of covid-19 […]
Did CDC Delays in Up-To-Date Masking Advice Cost Health Workers’ Lives?
Since the start of the pandemic, the most terrifying task in health care was thought to be when a doctor put a breathing tube down the trachea of a critically ill covid patient. Those performing such “aerosol-generating” procedures, often in an intensive care unit, got the best protective gear even if there wasn’t enough to […]
In a Year of Zoom Memorials, Art Exhibit Makes Space for Grief
Tami Roncskevitz has attended two Zoom memorials for her daughter, Sarah, a 32-year-old emergency room social worker who died of covid on May 30. But she longs to gather Sarah’s friends and family together in one place so they can embrace and mourn together. “It just isn’t the same,” said Roncskevitz. “You feel like your […]
One Year In: How Covid’s Toll Compares With Other Causes of Death
Now that the coronavirus has been in the United States for roughly a year, new numbers are revealing the scale of covid-19’s impact on American health: Covid has become the country’s third-leading cause of death, and could be on its way to outpacing cancer. As of Wednesday afternoon, 528,603 Americans had died of the coronavirus, according […]
High Obesity Rates in Southern States Magnify Covid Threat
In January, as Mississippi health officials planned for their incoming shipments of covid-19 vaccine, they assessed the state’s most vulnerable: health care workers, of course, and elderly people in nursing homes. But among those who needed urgent protection from the virus ripping across the Magnolia State were 1 million Mississippians with obesity. Obesity and weight-related […]
Vaccine Altruists Find Appointments for Those Who Can’t
Ana Guevara was determined to get a covid vaccine for her mother, 85-year-old Adelina Coto, but she needed help. Guevara, a full-time nanny in Los Angeles, didn’t have the time or knowledge to search for appointments online. Guevara’s son, a school district employee, lacked the time to park himself in front of a computer waiting […]
Meet the Retired Nurse Who Could Give Covid Shots But Couldn’t Get One
Martha Gallagher, a 75-year-old retired school nurse, wanted to volunteer for the Delaware Medical Reserve Corps to administer covid-19 vaccines. She knew Delaware might need more vaccinators and thought, “Why not do something to help get the vaccine out?” Plus, Gallagher figured, it would be a good way for her to get vaccinated, too. When […]
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Expanding the ACA in an Unpredicted Way
Can’t see the audio player? Click here to listen on PRX. For the first time since its enactment in 2010, the Affordable Care Act is slated for major benefit expansions, courtesy of the covid relief bill approved by Congress this week. But the changes are only temporary, so the measure also tees up a fight to […]