Category: Maine

Many People With Disabilities Risk Losing Their Medicaid if They Work Too Much

As politicians demand that more Medicaid recipients work, many people with disabilities say their state programs’ income and asset caps force them to limit their work hours or turn down promotions.

Indiana Lawmakers Seek To Forbid Hospital Monopolies, but One Merger Fight Remains

Union Health has made a new bid to buy its only rival hospital in Terre Haute, Indiana. The system passed one hurdle after lawmakers watered down a bill that threatened the proposed deal. That means the merger will now face a likely showdown with Indiana’s new governor.

Childhood Vaccination Rates, a Rare Health Bright Spot in Struggling States, Are Slipping

Mississippi, Tennessee, and West Virginia — states with some of the worst health outcomes — also have some of the highest childhood vaccination rates. But doctors and health officials worry a rising tide of vaccine skepticism is causing those public health bright spots to dim.

Indiana State Senator Moves To Scrap Hospital Monopoly Law He Helped Create

After rival hospitals in Terre Haute scuttled plans to merge, a state senator has introduced a bill to forbid similar mergers by repealing a state law he helped write.

Amid Medicaid ‘Unwinding,’ Many States Wind Up Expansions

The end of pandemic-era Medicaid coverage protections coincided with changes in more than a dozen states to expand coverage for lower-income people, including children, pregnant women, and the incarcerated.

Tribal Nations Invest Opioid Settlement Funds in Traditional Healing to Treat Addiction

Hundreds of Native American tribes are getting money from settlements with companies that made or sold prescription painkillers. Some are investing it in sweat lodges, statistical models, and insurance-billing staffers.

The Horrors of TMJ: Chronic Pain, Metal Jaws, and Futile Treatments

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.

More Schools Stock Overdose Reversal Meds, but Others Worry About Stigma

Colorado is among several states that ensure schools have access to the opioid overdose reversal medication naloxone for free or at reduced cost. But most districts hadn’t signed up by the start of the school year for a state distribution program amid stigma around the lifesaving treatment.

Abortion Rights Advocates Try to Change Opinions With Deeply Personal Conversations

Even in states where abortion rights are likely to be preserved, Planned Parenthood turns to “deep canvassing” to fortify support.

In Maine, Vaccine Mandate for EMTs Stresses Small-Town Ambulance Crews

The covid vaccination rate for first responders in the state is more than 95%. But it’s lower in more rural areas, where ambulance crews can’t function if even just a few people quit.