Sarah Varney

Sarah Varney was a senior correspondent for KFF Health News until August 2023.

@SarahVarney4

In Weary Post-Storm Puerto Rico, Medicaid Cutbacks Bode New Ills

The island’s government must squeeze $840.2 million in annual savings from Medicaid by 2023, part of the U.S. territory’s agreement with the federal government as Puerto Rico claws its way back from fiscal oblivion. Experts warn such drastic cuts defy actuarial science.

In A Puerto Rican Mountain Town, Hope Ebbs And Health Suffers

More than six months after Hurricane Maria, daily life in Castañer, Puerto Rico, is nowhere close to normal as residents try to deal with the effects of trauma, chronic stress and the continued lack of electricity.

As Marijuana Laws Relax, Doctors Say Pregnant Women Shouldn’t Partake

Some mothers who smoke pot see it as a harmless remedy for everything from pain to postpartum depression. But doctors say the active ingredients in marijuana can be passed onto the baby and may affect developing nervous systems.