• Puerto Rico hurricane victims still need help. Here's what you can do

    Puerto Rico hurricane victims still need help. Here's what you can do

    Nov 08, 2017 08:45 PM EDT

    ... hurricane season, which starts in June. A crucial concern is whether Puerto Rico’s power grid can withstand even a minor storm, the Times reported. Sarah Varney of Kaiser Health News told the PBS NewsHour that locals remain skittish about the power grid’s frailty. Last month, two island-wide ...

  • Hospitals worry an ACA repeal could harm their financial health

    Hospitals worry an ACA repeal could harm their financial health

    Feb 28, 2017 01:03 AM EDT

    ... It's not going to be the same. SARAH VARNEY: With President Trump and congressional Republicans now saying a final replacement plan may not be ready until later this year, the uncertainty is likely to linger. For the PBS NewsHour and Kaiser Health News, I'm Sarah Varney in Chicago.

  • A way to save money when half of all health costs is spent on a fraction of patients

    A way to save money when half of all health costs is spent on a fraction of patients

    Jan 18, 2017 12:07 AM EDT

    DR. DAVID BUCK, Patient Care Intervention Center: Nobody wants to take ownership of any of it. The people just want ownership of what they have authority over. And that's really the issue. SARAH VARNEY: Back in Camden, even Dr. Brenner is less optimistic than he once was. His office ...

  • Landmark or footnote? Obamacare legacy now rests with Trump

    Landmark or footnote? Obamacare legacy now rests with Trump

    Jan 10, 2017 12:21 AM EDT

    ... tried comprehensive health care reform, and they failed. President Obama succeeded. This is not a footnote in history. It will go down as a landmark. SARAH VARNEY: And one of the most important legacies of the Obama years. For the "PBS NewsHour" and Kaiser Health News, I'm Sarah Varney ...

  • Gaping, painful holes remain in U.S. health care despite coverage gains

    Gaping, painful holes remain in U.S. health care despite coverage gains

    Nov 04, 2016 11:38 PM EDT

    ... to stop the cycle, is to do something that's sustainable. But we're the Band-Aid. We're the safety net until that happens. SARAH VARNEY: When the volunteers leave town on Sunday, it's up to free clinics like the Health Wagon in nearby Wise, Virginia, to try ...

  • Can ordinary citizens help fill gaps in U.S. health care?

    Can ordinary citizens help fill gaps in U.S. health care?

    Oct 17, 2016 11:29 PM EDT

    ... confident in the services we provide, but also the doctors feeling really confident that they know more of what's going on with their patients. SARAH VARNEY: But Kaur goes home each night to one of her biggest skeptics. Her husband, Dr. Prabhjot Singh, is helping Mount Sinai figure out ...

  • The deadly threat of a sweltering apartment

    The deadly threat of a sweltering apartment

    Oct 17, 2016 08:01 PM EDT

    Editor's Note: Monday on the PBS NewsHour, special correspondent Sarah Varney explores how U.S. health experts have adopted a practice from Africa in which ordinary citizens are trained as community health workers. On several days this summer, Victor Sanchez’s apartment in upper Manhattan got so sweltering hot ...

  • Obamacare's future at stake in election

    Obamacare's future at stake in election

    Sep 22, 2016 11:17 PM EDT

    ... indicated that he was going to address those that are having problems with insurance. And I know, knowing Donald Trump, that he will address it. SARAH VARNEY: But the debate over the health law has often ignored a group that has seen widespread improvements from Obamacare, low-income adults, like ...

  • Column: Will increasing longevity change the way you live?

    Column: Will increasing longevity change the way you live?

    Aug 24, 2016 06:18 PM EDT

    ocused on how these companies balance the prospect of making money off of PACE participants with the quality of services they provide. (Source: Sarah Varney for The New York Times in collaboration with Kaiser Health News.) “Are insurance policies saving patients money, or keeping them from the treatment they need ...

  • Syrian refugees adjusting to U.S. bring complex health needs

    Syrian refugees adjusting to U.S. bring complex health needs

    Aug 09, 2016 12:25 AM EDT

    of war. You went through trauma. You went through death. You went through some violence. So, we're not superhuman. SARAH VARNEY: As new refugees arrive each day in Buffalo, known as the City of Good Neighbors, health care leaders say they will continue to listen, to reach out, and ...