Category: Health Industry

Addiction Treatment Proponents Urge Rural Clinicians to Pitch In by Prescribing Medication

The number of U.S. health care providers certified to prescribe buprenorphine more than doubled in the past four years, and treatment advocates hope to see that trend continue.

Rural Colorado Tries to Fill Health Worker Gaps With Apprenticeships

A Grand Junction program is training and retaining nurse and personal care aides in areas where the aging population is creating a need for them. But challenges remain for these workers.

Trickle of Covid Relief Funds Helps Fill Gaps in Rural Kids’ Mental Health Services

Only a sliver of the funding given to state, local, and tribal governments through the American Rescue Plan Act has been steered to mental health nationwide, but mental health advocates and clinicians hope the money it provides will help address gaps in care for children. In Appalachian Ohio, the funding is helping expand services.

California Aims to Maximize Health Insurance Subsidies for Workers During Labor Disputes

Workers who lose employer-based health coverage during a strike or lockout will have access to a full-subsidy plan through Covered California.

Patient Mistrust and Poor Access Hamper Federal Efforts to Overhaul Family Planning

For decades, many women of color, particularly those with low incomes, had little control over their family planning care. Now, a White House effort aims to give patients more choices as abortion care evaporates, but patients remain wary of providers.

Audits — Hidden Until Now — Reveal Millions in Medicare Advantage Overcharges

Taxpayers had to foot the bills for care that should have cost far less, according to records released after KHN filed a lawsuit under the Freedom of Information Act. The government may seek to recover up to $650 million as a result.

Audits — Hidden Until Now — Reveal Millions in Medicare Advantage Overcharges

Taxpayers had to foot the bills for care that should have cost far less, according to records released after KHN filed a lawsuit under the Freedom of Information Act. The government may seek to recover up to $650 million as a result.

Mistrust and Polarization Steer Rural Governments to Reject Federal Public Health Funding

As the covid-19 pandemic grinds on, Elko County, Nevada, still lacks a public health department. Yet its elected leaders rejected federal funds that could have helped it create one. Decisions like the one in Elko, and ones made by officials with other state and local governments, leave health experts concerned about whether the country’s public health infrastructure will be prepared to handle future health challenges.

As STDs Proliferate, Companies Rush to Market At-Home Test Kits. But Are They Reliable?

The popularity of at-home covid tests has amplified calls from public health researchers and diagnostic companies to make home testing similarly routine for sexually transmitted diseases. But FDA guidelines are lagging.

How Banks and Private Equity Cash In When Patients Can’t Pay Their Medical Bills

Hospitals strike deals with financing companies, generating profits for lenders, and more debt for patients.