Daily Edition for Wednesday, February 1, 2023
Today’s roundup covers gun violence, mental health, covid deaths and variants, mpox, nursing homes, the housing crisis, and more.
Watch: Covid Increases Risk of Heart Problems, New Data Underlines
Céline Gounder, KHN editor-at-large for public health, discusses new data showing an excess of deaths in 2020 related to heart disease.
Nursing Home Owners Drained Cash During Pandemic While Residents Deteriorated
By Jordan Rau
As the federal government debates whether to require higher staffing levels at nursing homes, financial records show owners routinely push profits to sister companies while residents are neglected. “A dog would get better care than he did,” one resident’s wife said.
An Arm and a Leg: Can They Freaking Do That?!? (2023 Update)
By Dan Weissmann
Can a medical provider you’ve never heard of send you an outrageous bill? Sure. Can you fight back and win? Yes, sometimes you can. Here’s how to do it.
Daily Edition for Tuesday, January 31, 2023
Today’s roundup covers gun violence, the fentanyl crisis, mental health, covid deaths and emergency, Medicare, birth control, and more.
Some Addiction Treatment Centers Turn Big Profits by Scaling Back Care
By Renuka Rayasam and Blake Farmer, Nashville Public Radio
Private equity groups are cashing in on rising rates of alcohol and drug addiction in the U.S. But they aren’t necessarily investing in centers with the best treatment standards, and they often cut extra services.
It’s ‘Telehealth vs. No Care’: Doctors Say Congress Risks Leaving Patients Vulnerable
By Sarah Jane Tribble
Congress’ $1.7 trillion omnibus spending package included a two-year extension of pandemic-era funding that helped telehealth services grow nationwide. But that cash bridge, embraced by those delivering services to patients in rural areas, doesn’t provide much certainty for the future of remote medicine.
Government Lets Health Plans That Ripped Off Medicare Keep the Money
By Fred Schulte
In a surprise decision, U.S. officials yield to insurance industry demands — at least for now.
Daily Edition for Monday, January 30, 2023
At Least 3 Killed In Beverly Crest Shooting: At least three people were killed and four injured early Saturday in the second mass shooting to erupt in Los Angeles County in eight days — the sixth in California this month, according to police. The latest shooting occurred in the upscale Beverly Crest neighborhood of Los Angeles, bordering Beverly Hills. Three victims were shot inside a car and another four while standing outside a home. The suspect or suspects remained at large Sunday evening. Read more from ABC News, AP, CNN, KTLA, and the Los Angeles Times.
A Baby Spent 36 Days in an In-Network NICU. Why Did the Hospital Next Door Send a Bill?
By Harris Meyer
A baby spent more than a month in a Chicago NICU. A big bill revealed she was treated by out-of-network doctors from the children’s hospital next door. Her parents were charged despite a state law protecting patients from such out-of-network billing — and sent to collections when they didn’t pay up.
