Where Are the Nation’s Primary Care Providers? It’s Not an Easy Answer
By Rae Ellen Bichell
Politicians keep talking about fixing primary care shortages. But flawed national data leaves big holes in how to evaluate which policies are effective.
Ketamine Therapy for Mental Health a ‘Wild West’ for Doctors and Patients
By Dawn Megli
Ketamine, approved by the FDA as an anesthetic in 1970, is emerging as a major alternative mental health treatment, and there are now more than 500 ketamine clinics around the country. But with little regulation and widely varying treatment protocols, it’s a medical “wild West.”
An Arm and a Leg: Self-Defense 101: Keeping Your Cool While You Fight
By Dan Weissmann
On this episode of “An Arm and a Leg,” host Dan Weissmann seeks advice for fighting unfair medical bills from an unexpected source: an expert in self-defense.
Daily Edition for Monday, January 29, 2024
Long Beach Naval Shipyard Workers Might Not Know They Were Exposed To Carcinogens: Tens of thousands of veterans who worked at the Long Beach Naval Shipyard in California for decades may have been exposed to cancer-causing radioactive materials and still do not know because there is no mechanism in place to notify veterans of possible exposures after a base is no longer operational. Read more from NBC News.
How Fringe Anti-Science Views Infiltrated Mainstream Politics — And What It Means in 2024
By Amy Maxmen
Opposition to vaccines and other public health measures backed by science has become politically charged. That makes dangerous misinformation much harder to fight.
Readers Weigh Downsides of Medicare Advantage and Stick Up for Mary Lou Retton
California Healthline gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
Daily Edition for Friday, January 26, 2024
Nursing homes, prisoner health, covid, measles, drug shortages, homelessness, cancer, and more are in the news.
Ouch. That ‘Free’ Annual Checkup Might Cost You. Here’s Why.
By Elisabeth Rosenthal
The designers of the Affordable Care Act might have assumed that they spelled out with sufficient clarity that millions of Americans would no longer have to pay for certain types of preventive care. But they didn’t reckon with America’s ever-creative medical billing juggernaut.
Prescribing Love: Send Us Your Health Policy Valentines
We want your sweetest “Health Policy Valentines.” Submissions will be judged by an esteemed panel of experts. We’ll share favorites on our social media channels, and tenderhearted members of our staff will pick the winners, announced on Feb. 14.
Senate Probes the Cost of Assisted Living and Its Burden on American Families
By Jordan Rau
In the wake of a KFF Health News-New York Times series, members of the Special Committee on Aging are asking residents and their families to submit their bills and are calling for a Government Accountability Office study.
