Health
A variety of factors make Latinos less likely to have health insurance, including language barriers, types of occupations and immigration status. Coverage problems extend well beyond undocumented individuals.
States have information that counties need to better target their resources and services to reduce overdose risk and save lives. Improving data sharing is a good use of opioid settlement funds.
The costs of treating cancer are soaring, just at a time when some states are moving to save money by cutting Medicaid enrollment. It’s sure to worsen health-care inequality.
Dishonest agents and brokers who are seeking to earn a sales commission are registering homeless people for zero-premium plans, which often don’t cover copays, deductibles or other expenses that are unaffordable to low-income residents.
A few states have proposed or passed laws defining "male" and "female," and more such legislation may be coming. Critics say the definitions amount to erasure of those who choose gender identities different than the one they were given at birth.
Public support for the LGBTQ+ community has grown steadily for decades. But some state legislators are pushing back against changing attitudes.
The state is facing more than a dozen lawsuits involving at least 180 ex-employees who were allegedly forced from their jobs after asserting religious or other objections to the COVID-19 vaccination mandate.
A new report sheds light on mistakes, data gaps and dysfunctional organizational cultures that contributed to America suffering more loss of life than any other country in the world.
Millions of households still get their drinking water from lead service lines. Federal money is available to replace the pipes, but in allocating the funds, it’s important for states to prioritize marginalized communities.
Data exchange between states, hospitals and the CDC increased temporarily during the pandemic. The public health community wants this to mark the turning point in achieving a permanent national system.
The more than 1.6 million preventable deaths of Black Americans documented in a new study reflect racism and discrimination in housing, education, employment and health care. We have the money and the means to do something about it.
Under Gov. Ron DeSantis, Florida has one of the highest rates of uninsured residents in the country and it continues to reject federal Obamacare money to insure more low-income residents.
Though Black people only make up 5 percent of the state’s population, they accounted for 21 percent of new HIV diagnoses in 2021, a disparity fueled by discrimination, community distrust and lack of access.
Northeastern New Mexico received federal funds to develop rural maternity care networks of hospitals and clinics, which has since helped more than 760 mothers. But the program’s funding will run out in August.
Misinformation thrived during the pandemic, exacerbating health inequities. To meet its core mission, the public health field needs to engage more actively, particularly in historically mistrustful communities.
Approximately 20 percent of American workers have admitted to using recreational drugs while working remotely, and there has been an increase in working age Americans with substance use disorders since pre-pandemic.
The declaration that the COVID-19 public health emergency is over doesn’t mean the end of its impact, or of the virus itself. What comes now?
A new report from RAND Corporation argues that progress against opioid drug abuse and addiction is best understood — and addressed — in the context of everything that comes with it through an ecosystem view.
Mayor Michelle Wu’s administration has announced that on May 11, city employees will no longer be required to get the vaccine or test for the virus. An estimated 95 percent of employees previously submitted proof of vaccination.
An after-action analysis of the nation’s pandemic response would go a long way toward better preparing us for the public health challenges and other emergencies to come.
So far, there have been 292 assaults at the University of Kansas Health System for the 2023 fiscal year. Advocates are pushing to increase penalties for attacks against health-care workers, but legislation remains in limbo.
Will the massive tranche of money be used to help the people who suffered the most and for programs shown to be effective in curbing the epidemic? Or will elected officials use the money for politically infused projects?
More than 100 million people, or nearly one-third of the nation, have trouble accessing primary care. The problem is more acute in rural areas, which have long struggled to recruit and retain doctors and other medical professionals.
Pandemic expansion of Medicaid benefits ended on March 31. A former Medicaid deputy director offers thoughts on what lies ahead.
COVID is far from the only explanation for the United States’ dismal trend line. Other diseases, along with drug overdoses, were also contributors, along with politics, policies and inequality.
Gov. Jay Inslee proposed a plan to “transform the state’s mental health system” by 2023, but the state has failed to meet its deadline and the repercussions are frustrating families, advocates and law enforcement.
