KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': The New Speaker’s (Limited) Record on Health
The House finally has a new speaker: Mike Johnson (R-La). He’s a relative newcomer who’s been a lower-level member of the House GOP leadership. And while he’s an outspoken opponent of abortion and same-sex marriage, his record on other health issues is scant. Meanwhile, the National Institutes of Health appears on track to be getting a new director, and Georgia’s Medicaid work requirement experiment is off to a very slow start. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Michael Cannon, director of health policy studies at the Cato Institute, a libertarian think tank.
Daily Edition for Thursday, October 26, 2023
Street medicine, abortion, water safety, the new House speaker’s record, HIV, covid, housing, and more are in the news.
Storing Guns Away From Home Could Reduce Suicides, but Legal Hurdles Loom
Safe storage maps show gun owners where to put their firearms for safekeeping if they experience a mental health crisis. The idea has support among some gun enthusiasts, but legal obstacles threaten wider adoption.
Watch: California and Feds Invest in Health Care for Homeless People
California Healthline senior correspondent Angela Hart discusses big developments in street medicine, both statewide and nationally.
Doubts Abound About a New Alzheimer’s Blood Test
By Judith Graham
Quest Diagnostics is selling a blood test online to consumers. But results may not be reliable or easy to interpret. And it isn’t covered by insurance.
Daily Edition for Wednesday, October 25, 2023
Youth mental health, patient diversion, gene therapy, gun violence, birth control, RSV shot shortage, and more are in the news.
Residents of a Rural Arkansas County Grapple With Endemic Gun Violence
By Renuka Rayasam
Rural gun homicides have often been overshadowed by violence in cities. But they are taking their toll on small communities ill-equipped to deal with the challenges.
Daily Edition for Tuesday, October 24, 2023
Health worker pay, the homelessness crisis, prison mental health, covid, flu vaccine, hospital ratings, TCE, and more are in the news.
Millions of Rural Americans Rely on Private Wells. Few Regularly Test Their Water.
By Tony Leys
More than 43 million Americans drink, bathe, and cook with water from private wells, which can be tainted by farm or industrial runoff, leaky septic systems, or naturally occurring minerals.
California Expands Paid Sick Days and Boosts Health Worker Wages
By Don Thompson
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation expanding paid sick leave to five days, extending bereavement leave to miscarriages and failed adoptions, and approving an eventual $25-an-hour health care minimum wage. Still, in a possible sign of national ambitions, the Democrat vetoed free condoms in schools and refused to decriminalize psychedelic mushrooms.
