WinnDems News

People across the nation claim cancer-causing emissions from local sterilizing plants are making them sick. It’s an example of environmental racism, say residents of one predominantly Black area in southwest Memphis, Tennessee, where life expectancy is much shorter than county and state averages. http://dlvr.it/T6CQpN

Agreeing to an out-of-network doctor’s own financial policy — which generally protects their ability to get paid and may be littered with confusing insurance and legal jargon — can create a binding contract that leaves a patient owing. http://dlvr.it/T6CQYg

In this episode of “An Arm and a Leg,” host Dan Weissmann explores what the fallout from a cyberattack says about antitrust concerns in health care. http://dlvr.it/T6CQ32

Florida has served as a haven for Southern pregnant women with little or no access to abortions. But the Florida Supreme Court upheld a six-week abortion restriction that begins in May — so now women across much of the South seeking abortions will have to look farther afield. http://dlvr.it/T68qtx

The Department of Veterans Affairs has long given vets who served in Vietnam disability compensation for illness connected to Agent Orange harm. But those exposed at U.S. bases are still waiting for the same benefits. http://dlvr.it/T68qgY

Big health insurers that have contracts with state Medicaid programs find themselves making more money even as enrollment in Medicaid programs has dropped. Here’s why. http://dlvr.it/T63Btk

California launched two teletherapy apps as part of the governor’s $500 million foray into health technology with private companies. But the rollout has been so slow that one company has yet to make its app available on Android, and social workers worry youths who need clinical care won’t get referrals. http://dlvr.it/T62ZGz

For the second time in as many months, the Supreme Court heard arguments in an abortion case. This time, the justices are being asked to decide whether a federal law that requires emergency care in hospitals can trump Idaho’s near-total abortion ban. Meanwhile, the federal government, for the first time, will require minimum staffing standards for nursing homes. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Tami Luhby of CNN, and Joanne Kenen of Johns Hopkins University and Politico Magazine join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Plus, for “extra credit,” the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week they think you should read, too. http://dlvr.it/T61Rh6

The state is looking at ways to weed out false reporting of child abuse and neglect as the number of reports reaches a record high. http://dlvr.it/T5zysV

Researchers in Charleston, South Carolina, are trying to build a DNA database of 100,000 people to better understand how genetics affects health risks. But they’re struggling to recruit enough Black participants. http://dlvr.it/T5zyYK

Tires emit huge volumes of particles and chemicals as they roll along the highway, and researchers are only beginning to understand the threat. One byproduct of tire use, 6PPD-q, is in regulators’ crosshairs after it was found to be killing fish. http://dlvr.it/T5xJYX

Technological advances including the widespread use of algorithms make it easier for companies to fix prices without explicitly coordinating, Lina Khan said at a KFF event. http://dlvr.it/T5wPYQ

Some of the nearly 130,000 Montanans who have lost Medicaid coverage as the state reevaluates eligibility are homeless. That’s in part because Montana kicked more than 80,000 people off the program for technical reasons rather than because of income ineligibility. For unhoused people who were disenrolled, getting back on Medicaid can be extraordinarily difficult. http://dlvr.it/T5tg3T

California state lawmakers this year are continuing their progressive tilt on health policy, debating bills banning an ingredient in Froot Loops and offering free condoms for high schoolers. http://dlvr.it/T5tfZb

The staffing regulation was disparaged by the industry as unattainable. Patient advocates say it doesn’t go far enough. Labor unions welcomed the requirement. http://dlvr.it/T5srGb

To reduce recidivism, some rural counties are hiring community health workers or peer support specialists to connect people leaving custody to mental health resources, substance use treatment, medical services, and jobs. http://dlvr.it/T5r3CL

Medical providers say they're still coping with the Change Healthcare cyberattack disclosed in February even though parent company UnitedHealth Group reported that much is back to normal and its revenue is up over last year. http://dlvr.it/T5krV4

Nurses are telling lawmakers that there are not enough of them working in hospitals and that it risks patients’ lives. California and Oregon legally limit the number of patients under a nurse’s care. Other states trying to do the same were blocked by the hospital industry. Now patients’ relatives are joining the fight. http://dlvr.it/T5jnZ1

Jian Zhang, an immigrant from China with a doctorate in nursing, leads the 88-bed Chinese Hospital in San Francisco. The facility faces financial constraints like other independent hospitals, but its strong community support and partnerships have helped it weather tough times. http://dlvr.it/T5jnB3

After rejecting proposed rules to protect millions of workers in sweltering warehouses, steamy kitchens, and other hot workplaces, California Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration has offered a compromise to allow the protections to take effect this summer. But state and local correctional workers — and prisoners — would have to wait even longer. http://dlvr.it/T5hvWT

Congress this week had the chance to formally air grievances over the cascading consequences of the Change Healthcare cyberattack, and lawmakers from both major parties agreed on one culprit: consolidation in health care. Plus, about a year after states began stripping people from their Medicaid rolls, a new survey shows nearly a quarter of adults who were disenrolled are now uninsured. Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Lauren Weber of The Washington Post join KFF Health News’ Mary Agnes Carey to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner interviews Caroline Pearson of the Peterson Health Technology Institute. http://dlvr.it/T5hQS7

Researchers at the University of Montana have pitched in to develop a more effective vaccine in the fight against an ancient disease that still kills an estimated 1.6 million people a year worldwide. http://dlvr.it/T5g9CF

Celebrity hotel heiress Paris Hilton is expanding her campaign for more public reporting on residential therapeutic centers’ use of restraints and seclusion rooms in disciplining teens, setting her sights on legislation in Sacramento and Washington, D.C. http://dlvr.it/T5ccDK

Some pumps used in end-stage heart failure caused a buildup of biological material that blocks blood flow from the device to the heart’s aorta. The FDA’s recall affects nearly 14,000 devices. http://dlvr.it/T5bKn3

The lawsuit filed in federal court alleges that large call centers were used to enroll people into Affordable Care Act plans or to switch their coverage, all without their permission. http://dlvr.it/T5Z795

The national opioid settlements don’t prohibit using money for initiatives already supported by other means, but doing so could dilute the impact. http://dlvr.it/T5WZT8

Some tax filers’ returns are being rejected because they failed to provide information about Affordable Care Act coverage they didn’t even know they had. http://dlvr.it/T5WZ9q

A first-of-its-kind survey of Medicaid enrollees found that nearly a quarter who were dropped from the program in the last year’s unwinding say they’re uninsured. http://dlvr.it/T5Pk0L

The broad availability of over-the-counter dental products containing fluoride has some community leaders arguing that its addition to public drinking water is no longer necessary. But public health experts worry that, much like vaccines, fluoridation may be a victim of its own success. http://dlvr.it/T5Pjj6

Thirty years after prisoners with disabilities sued and 25 years after a federal court first ordered accommodations, a judge found that California prison and parole officials still are not doing enough to help deaf and blind prisoners — in part because they are not providing readily available technology such as video recordings and laptop computers. http://dlvr.it/T5PjQZ

A week after the Florida Supreme Court said the state could enforce an abortion ban passed in 2023, the Arizona Supreme Court ruled that state could enforce a near-total ban passed in 1864 — over a half-century before Arizona became a state. The move further scrambled the abortion issue for Republicans and posed an immediate quandary for former President Donald Trump, who has been seeking an elusive middle ground in the polarized debate. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Rachel Cohrs Zhang of Stat, and Rachel Roubein of The Washington Post join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF Health News’ Molly Castle Work, who reported and wrote the latest KFF Health News-NPR “Bill of the Month” feature, about an air-ambulance ride for an infant with RSV that his insurer deemed not medically necessary. http://dlvr.it/T5Nc2B

For more than 20 years, children in Arkansas have been measured in school as part of a statewide effort to reduce childhood obesity. But the letters have had no impact on weight loss — and obesity rates have risen. Still, the practice of sending letters has spread to other states. http://dlvr.it/T5MFpj

American Advanced Management, a steadily growing operator of small hospitals, is expected to get the green light from a bankruptcy court next week to take over the shuttered Madera Community Hospital. Some community groups worry about the company’s track record. http://dlvr.it/T5MFXL

With an end-of-year deadline and a presidential election approaching, payment rules that fueled rapid expansion of telehealth in the United States face a last-minute congressional decision. http://dlvr.it/T5JpF6

In this episode of “An Arm and a Leg,” host Dan Weissmann tells a horror story. Instead of monsters and aliens, it’s about private health insurance companies and algorithms that call the shots on patient care. http://dlvr.it/T5Jp3S

People in their prime working years living in rural America are 43% more likely to die of natural causes, like diseases, than their urban counterparts, a disparity that grew rapidly in recent decades, according to a new federal report. http://dlvr.it/T5GPZj

KFF Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories. http://dlvr.it/T5GPMf

Days after publication of a KFF Health News article about Obamacare enrollees being switched to different plans without their knowledge or consent, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services took steps to tighten insurance agents’ access to private consumer information on the federal marketplace. http://dlvr.it/T5GP4G

Federal and state regulators are mulling what they can do to thwart this growing problem. http://dlvr.it/T5Cx28

Most Medicare enrollees likely were not paying a monthly average of $400 — as President Joe Biden stated — before the insulin cap took effect. However, because costs and other factors result in widely varying prices, some Medicare enrollees might have paid that much in a given month. http://dlvr.it/T56CjZ

Researchers at the USC Keck School of Medicine found that Latinas who ate vegetables, fruits, and healthy oils-based foods had fewer incidences of preeclampsia. More research is needed to determine the exact diet that could be beneficial. http://dlvr.it/T55nVs

The Florida Supreme Court handed down dual abortion rulings this week. One said voters will be allowed to decide in November whether to create a state right to abortion. The other ruling, though, allows a 15-week ban to take effect immediately — before an even more sweeping, six-week ban replaces it in May. Meanwhile, President Joe Biden is doubling down on his administration’s health care accomplishments as he kicks off his general election campaign. Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins University schools of nursing and public health, and Tami Luhby of CNN join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews health care analyst Jeff Goldsmith about the growing size and influence of UnitedHealth Group in the wake of the Change Healthcare hack. http://dlvr.it/T54YVb

TMJ disorders affect as many as 1 in 10 Americans and yet remain poorly understood and ineffectively treated. Many common treatments used by dentists lack scientific evidence. http://dlvr.it/T53g8M

Starting this year, federal employees can choose plans that cover a broad menu of fertility services, including up to $25,000 annually for in vitro fertilization procedures. At the same time, politics around IVF and reproductive health have become a central issue in the current election-year debate. http://dlvr.it/T5397K

Colorado is ahead of the curve on policies to prevent medical debt, but the gap between the debt load in places inhabited primarily by people of color versus non-Hispanic white residents is greater than the national average. http://dlvr.it/T50XWs

Proposed rules to protect millions of workers from potentially dangerous heat inside workplaces are dead after Gov. Gavin Newsom’s administration refused to sign off. Labor advocates and state regulators are calling for emergency regulations before temperatures soar this summer. http://dlvr.it/T50XCv

A shortage of primary care providers is driving more people to seek routine care in emergency settings. In Rhode Island, safety-net clinics are under pressure as clinicians retire or burn out, and patients say it’s harder to find care as they lose connections to familiar doctors. http://dlvr.it/T4xsY4

One year after California became the first state to require public universities to provide abortion pills to students, LAist found that basic information for students to obtain the medication is often nonexistent. http://dlvr.it/T4xsD7

Want to know how much opioid settlement money your city, county, or state has received so far? Or how much they’re expecting in the future? Use our new searchable database to find out. http://dlvr.it/T4xrzF

Under pressure from increased demand, consolidation, and changing patient expectations, the model of care no longer means visiting the same doctor for decades. http://dlvr.it/T4vT1F