Apr 20 Under Trump, states may demand work for Medicaid By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, Associated Press In a break from past policy, the federal Health and Human Services department has notified governors it stands ready to permit new state programs encouraging work. Continue reading
Apr 19 Hospital inspections, kept secret, may soon become public By Charles Ornstein, ProPublica The federal government has proposed requiring that accreditors release reports on the problems they find during hospital inspections. Right now, the reports are secret. Continue reading
Apr 18 A new worry for smokers’ families: ‘thirdhand smoke’ By Carmen Heredia Rodriguez, Kaiser Health News Smokers expose their families to increased levels of nicotine and chemical residue left behind from cigarettes known as "thirdhand smoke."… Continue reading
Apr 18 Veterans Affairs launches pilot program with CVS to reduce wait times for veteran care By Hope Yen, Associated Press Some ailing veterans can now use their federal health care benefits at CVS "MinuteClinics" to treat minor illnesses and injuries, under a pilot program announced Tuesday by the Department of Veterans Affairs. Continue reading
Apr 18 Meet Nate Butkus, the 6-year-old with a science podcast By Andrew Joseph, STAT On his podcast, six-year-old Nate Butkus has talked radiation with a US government scientist, evolution with a Harvard researcher, and, most recently, genome-editing with MIT’s Kevin Esvelt. Continue reading
Apr 17 After failed health care bill, pro-Trump group launches ads supporting fight to repeal and replace Obamacare By Alan Fram, Associated Press The $3 million campaign comes during a congressional recess in which GOP lawmakers' town hall meetings have been rocked by liberal supporters of Obamacare. Continue reading
Apr 16 ‘Everybody knows somebody’: This state is a laboratory for the future of Alzheimer’s in America By Grace Rubenstein, STAT Alzheimer's disease is the third leading cause of death in North Dakota, which is developing strategies to help family caregivers cope. Continue reading
Apr 15 Why addressing loneliness in children can prevent a lifetime of loneliness in adults By Elizabeth Tillinghast, The Conversation Making a serious effort to reduce loneliness offers an almost entirely overlooked way to rein in health care costs. Continue reading
Apr 15 ‘It will help us with our product’: Emails show how a billionaire’s philanthropy boosted his business By Rebecca Robbins, STAT Dr. Patrick Soon-Shiong and his diagnostics company, NantHealth, have denied reports that they reaped benefits from a $12 million gift he made to support the University of Utah. Continue reading
Apr 14 In remote Idaho, a tiny medical center charts a path for stressed rural hospitals By Anna Gorman, Kaiser Health News Not so long ago, providing high-level care seemed impossible at Lost Rivers Medical Center. Now, the rural facility is innovating faster than many urban hospitals in Idaho. Continue reading