Category: Public Health

States Weigh Banning A Widely Used Pesticide Even Though EPA Won’t

The pesticide chlorpyrifos has been linked to developmental problems in children. Some state and federal lawmakers want the chemical banned, but federal regulators are fighting to keep it on the market.

Researchers Seek Sage Advice Of Elders On Aging Issues

The Bureau of Sages, a group of frail, older adults, gives feedback to researchers about what matters to older adults.

Podcast: KHN’s ‘What The Health?’ The Abortion Wars Rage On

Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Kimberly Leonard of the Washington Examiner and Rebecca Adams of CQ Roll Call join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss the latest news about women’s reproductive health policy and the latest skirmish in the debate over “Medicare-for-all”: how hospitals should be paid.

In 10 Years, Half Of Middle-Income Elders Won’t Be Able To Afford Housing, Medical Care

An eye-opening study of demographics and income finds that the costs of assisted-living care will soon be out of reach for people on fixed incomes — and their children.

Amid Opioid Prescriber Crackdown, Health Officials Reach Out To Pain Patients

After dozens of health care workers were charged with illegally prescribing opioids in Appalachia, local health agencies are trying to make sure chronic pain patients don’t fall through the cracks.

The Homeless Are Dying In Record Numbers On The Streets Of L.A.

Deaths of homeless people in Los Angeles County have jumped 76% in the past five years, outpacing the growth of the homeless population, according to a Kaiser Health News analysis of the coroner’s data. Experts say drug and alcohol abuse are significant factors.

Destination Limbo: Health Suffers Among Asylum Seekers In Crowded Border Shelter

Asylum seekers from Mexico and Central America, housed in migrant shelters in the border city of Tijuana, Mexico, are often sick and exhausted from their long journeys. Volunteer health workers from Southern California recently sent a mobile clinic to one of those shelters and spent a day tending to its inhabitants.

Liver Illness Strikes Latino Children Like A ‘Silent Tsunami’

Potentially deadly fatty liver disease, linked to overconsumption of sugar in drinks and food, often starts in childhood. The goal: Get children to change their habits.

As Syphilis Invades Rural America, A Fraying Health Safety Net Is Failing To Stop It

Syphilis is spreading from big cities into rural counties across the Midwest and West. One Missouri clinic has seen more than six times as many cases in the first few months of 2019 compared with the same period last year. Communities grappling with budget cuts and crumbling public health infrastructure also lack experience in fighting the disease.

Workplace Wellness Programs Barely Move The Needle, Study Finds

New research published in JAMA detected some changes in healthy behavior like weight and stress, but little overall impact in workers’ health status or employer health care spending.