Category: NPR

She Says She Was Fired For Saying That Teens Don’t Need Parental Consent For Vaccines

In addition to firing her, Dr. Michelle Fiscus says Tennessee is stopping all of its vaccination outreach efforts for teens and children – not only for COVID-19 but also for other illnesses.

Fútbol, Flags And Fun: Getting Creative To Reach Unvaccinated Latinos In Colorado

To close the vaccination gap among Latinos in Colorado, health workers are bringing the shot to neighborhoods and soccer games, and drawing on trusted networks of friends and family.

How An Anti-Vice Crusader Sabotaged The Early Birth Control Movement

The Comstock Act, which passed in 1873, virtually outlawed contraception. In The Man Who Hated Women, author Amy Sohn writes about the man behind the law — and the women prosecuted under it.

Meet Maryland’s Secret Weapon In The Battle To Close The Latino Vaccination Gap

Maryland is among just a handful of states where at least half of the Latino population is vaccinated. Here are the people making a difference.

Rural Ambulance Services At Risk As Volunteers Age And Expenses Mount

To keep emergency services afloat in rural areas, communities will have to go beyond volunteer-based programs to get people to distant hospitals, experts say. Meanwhile, some 911 calls go unanswered.

Hospitals Have Started Posting Their Prices Online. Here’s What They Reveal

Since January, hospitals were supposed to be disclosing true prices for their services, as a way to empower patients to shop around. Turns out, compliance is spotty and the data can be hard to find.

12 Holdout States Haven’t Expanded Medicaid, Leaving 2 Million People In Limbo

They don’t qualify for Medicaid in their states, but earn too little to be eligible for subsidized ACA health plans. It’s a gap in health care coverage, and some politicians are trying to fix it.

With Workers In Short Supply, Seniors Often Wait Months For Home Health Care

Seniors, their families and states are eager to keep older Americans in their homes and out of nursing homes, but those efforts are often thwarted by worker shortages and low pay.

A Hospital Charged More Than $700 For Each Push Of Medicine Through Her IV

A college student never learned the cause of intense pain that drove her to an ER, but her bill totaled $18,735.93. She and her mom, a nurse practitioner, were outraged after dissecting the charges.

Kids In Mental Health Crisis Can Languish For Days Inside ERs

The practice of housing children who are in psychiatric crisis in local ERs — often for days, while they await appropriate in-patient treatment — has become even more prevalent during the pandemic.