Category: Multimedia

An Arm and a Leg: A Listener Fighting the Good Fight

A medical resident who listens to “An Arm and a Leg” is pushing for change with the American Medical Association and at the hospital where he works.

Listen: NPR and KFF Health News Explore How Racism and Violence Hurt Health

KFF Health News Midwest correspondent Cara Anthony and Emily Kwong, host of NPR’s podcast “Shortwave,” talk about Black families living in the aftermath of lynchings and police killings.

Stimulant Users Are Caught in Fatal ‘Fourth Wave’ of Opioid Epidemic

The migration of fentanyl into illicit stimulants such as cocaine is especially dangerous for people who are not regular opioid users. That’s because they have a low tolerance for opioids, putting them at greater risk of an overdose. They also often don’t take precautions — such as not using alone and carrying the opioid reversal medication naloxone — so they’re unprepared if they overdose.

KFF Health News’ ‘What the Health?’: Francis Collins on Supporting NIH and Finding Common Ground

Francis Collins led the National Institutes of Health for 12 years, under three presidents. During the Biden administration, he added White House science adviser to his long list of roles. Now he runs his own lab on the NIH campus, and his latest book, “The Road to Wisdom: On Truth, Science, Faith, and Trust,” came out in September. In this special holiday episode of KFF Health News’ “What the Health?” Collins joins host and chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss health misinformation, the Trump administration’s plans for the NIH, and bringing together a fractured society.

An Arm and a Leg: Revisiting ‘Christmas In July’

From the archives of “An Arm and a Leg”: a family tragedy, a 40-year tradition, and a million dollars in medical debt erased.

‘Bill of the Month’: The Series That Dissects and Slashes Medical Bills

Since 2018, readers and listeners sent KFF Health News-NPR’s “Bill of the Month” thousands of questionable bills. Our crowdsourced investigation paved the way for landmark legislation and highlighted cost-saving strategies for all patients.

KFF Health News’ ‘What the Health?’: End-of-Year Chaos on Capitol Hill

Democrats and Republicans in the House and Senate successfully negotiated an enormous end-of-Congress health package, including bipartisan efforts to address prescription drug prices — only to see it blown up at the last minute after Elon Musk and President-elect Donald Trump applied pressure. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court accepted its first abortion-related case of the term, and the attorney general of Texas sued a doctor in New York for prescribing abortion pills to a Texas patient. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call, and Victoria Knight of Axios join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KFF President and CEO Drew Altman about what happened in health policy in 2024 and what to expect in 2025.

He Went in for a Colonoscopy. The Hospital Charged $19,000 for Two.

A man in Chicago with a troubling symptom underwent a common procedure. Then he wanted to know why the hospital charged nearly three times its own cost estimate.

Helicopters Rescued Patients in ‘Apocalyptic’ Flood. Other Hospitals Are at Risk, Too.

The helicopter evacuation of 70 people from a Tennessee hospital during Hurricane Helene is considered a success story. The building was destroyed by floodwaters, but no one died. In hindsight, why was it built next to a river?

How Are States Spending Opioid Settlement Cash? We Built a Database of Answers

From addiction treatment to toy robot ambulances, we uncovered how billions in opioid settlement funds were used by state and local governments in 2022 and 2023. Find out where the money went.