Public Health

PARKER, Colo. — The Marker family opened their door on a recent evening to a woman dressed in purple, with a military attitude to cleanliness. Linda Holmes, who has worked as a technician with LiceDoctors for five years, came straight from her day job at a hospital after she got the call from a dispatcher […]

If you or someone you know is in crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255 or text HOME to the Crisis Text Line at 741741. CHAPEL HILL, N.C. — Ethan Phillips was 13 years old when he first heard the term “suicide contagion.” It’s the scientific concept that after one person dies by […]

Amanda Kostroski, a 911 dispatcher in Madison, Wisconsin, leaves her busy job once a week to go to a county health clinic to be tested for covid-19. She’s been making the 15-minute drive from work since late September, when Dane County mandated all employees get vaccinated or tested weekly. The testing is free, and she […]

Can’t see the audio player? Click here to listen on PRX. You can also listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Pocket Casts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Click here for a transcript of the episode. With covid caseloads rising across much of the country, several governors and mayors are unilaterally expanding access to booster […]

At this point in the pandemic, most parents are familiar with “covid notification” letters. But the letters’ instruction on whether your kid must quarantine or not varies wildly from school to school. In Minneapolis, students exposed to covid-19 at school are supposed to quarantine for 10 days. In the suburban Anoka-Hennepin school district, a single […]

MISSOULA, Mont. — There was something a little different on stage at a recent performance of the musical “Sister Amnesia’s Country Western Nunsense Jamboree,” the first production for the Missoula Community Theatre since the beginning of the pandemic. All the actors wore clear face masks. That way, the audience could better see the actors’ expressions, […]

KHN contributing writer and former columnist Michelle Andrews discussed on Newsy on Tuesday how unvaccinated workers risk losing the death benefits they would have otherwise received if they die of covid-19. Click here to watch Andrews on Newsy Read Andrews’ “Unvaccinated? Don’t Count on Leaving Your Family Death Benefits” KHN chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner […]

As rural hospitals struggle to stay financially stable, their leaders watch other small facilities close obstetrics units to cut costs. They face a no-win dilemma: Can we continue operating delivery units safely if there are few births? But if we close, do we risk the health and lives of babies and mothers? The other question […]

Letters to the Editor is a periodic feature. We welcome all comments and will publish a selection. We edit for length and clarity and require full names. I’m a clinician I have a PhD in policy Navigating this crazy maze for my mom annually leaves me feeling helpless/useless… Seems impossible for the average beneficiaryhttps://t.co/GJyvd1BmLo via @khnews — Atul […]

Can’t see the audio player? Click here to listen on PRX. You can also listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Stitcher, Pocket Casts or wherever you listen to podcasts. Click here for a transcript of the episode. Congress appears to be making progress on its huge social spending bill, but even if it passes the House as planned […]