You’ve probably seen advertising about Medicare Advantage plans. KFF Health News’ Sarah Jane Tribble explains the pros and cons of this insurance option as enrollment in these plans increases.
Category: Public Health
Rising Suicide Rate Among Hispanics Worries Community Leaders
The suicide rate for Hispanics in the United States has increased significantly over the past decade. The reasons are varied, say community leaders and mental health experts, citing factors such as language barriers, poverty, and a lack of bilingual mental health professionals.
COVID, flu admissions fall: 4 virus updates
Respiratory virus season’s burden on the healthcare system may begin to ease after weeks of crowded emergency departments and hospital strain, the latest data suggests.
Columbia U virus database aims to improve illness severity research
Researchers from Columbia University in New York City built an open-access viral database to “to longitudinally explore respiratory viral infections, their interactions with other pathogens and host transcriptomic changes” per the project’s description…
Montana’s Effort to Expand Religious Exemptions to Vaccines Prompts Political Standoff
The dispute between state lawmakers and health department officials could delay a broader package of child care licensing changes until 2025.
New research sets path forward for long COVID tests, treatments
Persistent research into understanding the condition known as “long COVID” is finally clearing up clinical confusion and is also paving the way for the development of tests and treatments.
KFF Health News’ ‘What the Health?’: The Supreme Court vs. the Bureaucracy
The Supreme Court this week heard oral arguments in a case that could radically alter the way federal agencies — including the Department of Health and Human Services — administer laws passed by Congress. A decision in the case is expected this spring or summer. Meanwhile, the Biden administration is struggling over whether to ban menthol cigarettes — a move that could improve public health but also alienate Black voters, the biggest menthol users. Joanne Kenen of Johns Hopkins University and Politico Magazine, Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join KFF Health News chief Washington correspondent Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Darius Tahir, who reported and wrote the latest KFF Health News-NPR “Bill of the Month” feature about a lengthy fight over a bill for a quick telehealth visit.
The latest on measles spread in the US
A ninth case of measles has been confirmed in connection with the outbreak in Philadelphia, the city’s health department reported Jan. 17.
‘Emergency’ or Not, Covid Is Still Killing People. Here’s What Doctors Advise to Stay Safe.
Thousands of people are still dying of covid, but government has mostly handed over responsibility to the people to weather the seasonal surges with their own strategies.
Fungal infection death rate likely almost double original estimates
The number of deaths related to fungal infections is complicated to measure and as a result likely underreported. The updated mortality rate is almost double that of past estimates, according to a study published Jan. 12 in The Lancet Infectious Diseas…
