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Got milk? Farmers fight health advocates over creamy ‘whole’ milk in school programs
Amanda Condo works at her family’s Pennsylvania dairy farm, but her son often won’t drink milk at school. He doesn’t like the flavor. That’s because the cafeteria at his elementary school serves only skim milk and 1%, which he contends tastes too watered-down, she said. “It’s a bad experience for kids who are our future […]
When malpractice occurs at Community Health Centers, taxpayers are on the hook
Silvia Garcia’s 14-year-old son was left permanently disabled and in a wheelchair after a community health center doctor in New Mexico failed to diagnose his appendicitis despite his complaint of severe stomach pain. The teenager’s appendix ruptured before he could get to a hospital, and complications led to septic shock. Akimbee Burns had a Pap […]
Say what? Hearing aids available over-the-counter for as low as $199, without prescription
Consumers are now able to buy hearing aids directly off store shelves and at dramatically lower prices as a 2017 federal law finally takes effect. Where for decades it cost thousands of dollars to get a device that could be purchased only with a prescription from an audiologist or other hearing professional, now a new […]
Many states have yet to spend millions of federal money to tackle COVID
The Biden administration in March 2021 announced it was investing $2.25 billion to address COVID health disparities, the largest federal funding initiative designed specifically to help underserved communities hardest hit by the virus. Two months later, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention awarded grants to every state health department and 58 large city and […]
Medicaid expansion will go to South Dakota voters this year
South Dakota voters will decide in November whether the state should become the 39th to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, a move that would provide coverage to 42,000 low-income residents. State officials placed the issue on the ballot after validating thousands of petition signatures. For nearly a decade, the Republican legislature has opted […]
Record number of Americans sign up for ACA health insurance
A record 13.6 million Americans have signed up for health coverage for 2022 on the Affordable Care Act marketplaces, with nearly a month remaining to enroll in most states, the Biden administration announced Wednesday. President Joe Biden’s top health advisers credited the increased government subsidies, which lowered out-of-pocket costs, for the surge in enrollment. They […]
Health experts worry COVID vaccination rates are inflated
For nearly a month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s online vaccine tracker has shown that virtually everyone 65 and older in the United States — 99.9% — has received at least one COVID vaccine dose. That would be remarkable — if true. But health experts and state officials say it’s certainly not. They […]
Mounting COVID deaths fuel school bus driver shortages
GRIFFIN, Georgia — Natalia D’Angelo got sick right after school started in August. She was driving a school bus for special education students in Griffin-Spalding County School System about 40 miles south of Atlanta and contracted COVID-19. One of her three sons, Julian Rodriguez-D’Angelo, said his mother, who was not vaccinated against the COVID virus, […]
Seniors often wait months for home health care workers
CASTINE, Maine — For years, Louise Shackett has had trouble walking or standing for long periods, making it difficult for her to clean her house in southeastern Maine or do laundry. Shackett, 80, no longer drives, which makes it hard to get to the grocery store or doctor. Her low income, though, qualifies her for […]
Biden quietly transforms Medicaid’s safety net
The Biden administration is quietly engineering a series of expansions to Medicaid that may bolster protections for millions of low-income Americans and bring more people into the program. Biden’s efforts — which have been largely overshadowed by other economic and health initiatives — represent an abrupt reversal of the Trump administration’s moves to scale back […]
Biden administration signals it’s in no rush for Canadian drug imports
The Biden administration said it has no timeline on whether it will allow states to import drugs from Canada, an effort that was approved under President Donald Trump as a key strategy to control costs. Six states have passed laws to start such programs, and Florida, Colorado and New Mexico are the furthest along in plans to get federal approval. The Biden […]
‘Painless’ glucose monitors pushed despite little evidence they help
In the nation’s battle against the diabetes epidemic, the go-to weapon being aggressively promoted to patients is as small as a quarter and worn on the belly or arm. A continuous glucose monitor holds a tiny sensor that’s inserted just under the skin, alleviating the need for patients to prick their fingers every day to […]