Vaccine Wars Ignite in California as Lawmakers Seek Stronger Laws
Anti-vaccination activists say California’s Democratic lawmakers are helping strengthen their movement nationally by pushing for tougher vaccine requirements — without exemptions for religious or personal beliefs. But a new pro-vaccine lobbying force is vowing to fight back.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Roe v. Wade’s (Possibly Last) Anniversary
Jan. 22 marks the 49th — and very likely last — anniversary of the Supreme Court’s landmark abortion decision, Roe v. Wade. The court’s conservative supermajority seems poised to overturn later this year the ruling that legalized abortion nationwide. Also this week, the Biden administration turns 1, with much of its domestic and health agenda yet unrealized. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Shefali Luthra of the 19th, and Kimberly Leonard of Insider join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Marjorie Dannenfelser, president of the Susan B. Anthony List, about what a post-Roe world might look like.
Muchos familiares dicen que no pueden conseguir las pruebas ante la enorme demanda y la escasez de suministros, lo que les impide ver a sus seres queridos.
Families Complain as States Require Covid Testing for Nursing Home Visits
California is among a few states requiring people to show proof of a recent negative covid test before visiting a nursing home. Relatives say it’s vital they be allowed in because staff shortages are affecting care. And many are still upset about lengthy separations from loved ones during earlier lockdowns.
With No End in Sight to Pandemic Life, Parents Find Disruption Is the New Normal
Amid covid-related staffing shortages and testing requirements, school systems are stretched thin. And so are parents’ nerves.
As Omicron Surges, Effort to Vaccinate Young Children Stalls
Just 18% of 5- to 11-year-olds are fully vaccinated, with rates varying significantly across the country, a KHN analysis of federal data shows. Pediatricians say the slow pace and geographic disparities are alarming, especially against the backdrop of record numbers of cases and pediatric hospitalizations.
Justices Block Broad Worker Vaccine Requirement, Allow Health Worker Mandate to Proceed
The Supreme Court temporarily blocked a federal rule requiring larger businesses to mandate employees be vaccinated or wear masks and undergo weekly testing. At the same time, however, it allowed a federal order that health care workers be vaccinated.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Dealing With Drug Prices
Medicare officials tentatively plan to restrict the use of a controversial Alzheimer’s drug to only those patients participating in clinical trials, while the Department of Health and Human Services looks into lowering the monthly Medicare Part B premium. Meanwhile, covid confusion still reigns, as the Biden administration moves, belatedly, to make more masks and tests available. Joanne Kenen of Politico and the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more.
Hospitales enfrentan más casos de covid en personas ya hospitalizadas, con menos personal
Las infecciones están exacerbando algunas condiciones médicas y dificultando la reducción de la propagación de covid dentro de las paredes del hospital, especialmente porque los pacientes se presentan en etapas más tempranas y más infecciosas de la enfermedad.
Incidental Cases and Staff Shortages Make Covid’s Next Act Tough for Hospitals
As omicron sweeps the country, many hospitals are dealing with a flood of people hospitalized with covid — including those primarily admitted for other reasons. While often milder cases, so-called incidental covid infections still drain the beleaguered health care workforce and can put them and other patients at higher risk for contracting covid.