Category: states

North Carolina Treasurer Took On the Hospitals. Now He’s Paying Political Price.

The state hospital association has endorsed Dale Folwell’s opponent after the treasurer sought to force them to accept lower reimbursements from the state employees’ health plan.

Florida Fails to Attract Bidders for Canada Drug Importation Program

No private firms bid on the $30 million contract to set up and operate the state’s plan to bring in cheaper drugs. The setback is likely to delay by at least several months Florida’s effort to become the first state to import drugs under new federal regulations.

Colorado Initiative Would Further Limit Access in Middle America’s ‘Abortion Desert’

Colorado voters will decide whether to ban most abortions after 22 weeks of pregnancy, which would eliminate a haven for people seeking to end their pregnancies in the Midwest and Mountain West.

Déjà Vu for California Voters on Dialysis

Californians are again being asked to weigh in on a dialysis ballot measure. This one purports to target patient safety, and dialysis industry giants are once again spending big to defeat it.

COVID Spikes Exacerbate Health Worker Shortages in Rocky Mountains, Great Plains

COVID-19 infections and quarantines are pulling health professionals off the front lines, exacerbating staffing woes that existed in large, rural states well before the pandemic.

Travel on Thanksgiving? Pass the COVID

Staying home in your bubble is the safest advice, but family get-togethers, especially at the holidays, mean an awful lot. Even Dr. Anthony Fauci has gone back and forth on whether to have his daughters fly in for Thanksgiving.

Workers Fired, Penalized for Reporting COVID Safety Violations

Many workers are resisting what they feel are unsafe, unhealthy conditions as companies restart. A few states have passed laws specifically aimed at protecting workers who face COVID-related safety risks and retaliation for speaking up, but advocates say stronger federal protections are needed.

Workers Fired, Penalized for Reporting COVID Safety Violations

Many workers are resisting what they feel are unsafe, unhealthy conditions as companies restart. A few states have passed laws specifically aimed at protecting workers who face COVID-related safety risks and retaliation for speaking up, but advocates say stronger federal protections are needed.

KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: A Little Good News and Some Bad on COVID-19

Glimmers of hope are beginning to appear in the fight against the coronavirus, such as a decreasing death rate. But there’s not-so-good news, too, including a push for “herd immunity,” which could result in millions more deaths. Meanwhile, the Trump administration doubles down on work requirements for Medicaid. Margot Sanger-Katz of The New York Times, Paige Winfield Cunningham of The Washington Post and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too.

Californians Asked to Pony Up for Stem Cell Research — Again

More than a decade of research tied to California’s stem cell agency hasn’t yielded many cures or much revenue. But backers of a ballot initiative that asks voters for billions more in funding say the work is vital for patients and the scientific community.