Daily Edition for Thursday, June 1, 2023
Overdoses, the debt bill, Medi-Cal renewals, homelessness, Medicare drug coverage, water quality, RSV, and more are in the news.
More States OK Postpartum Medicaid Coverage Beyond Two Months
By Matt Volz
Montana, Alaska, Mississippi, Missouri, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, and Wyoming are among the latest states moving to provide health coverage for up to a year after pregnancy through the federal-state health insurance program for low-income people.
As Medicaid Purge Begins, ‘Staggering Numbers’ of Americans Lose Coverage
By Hannah Recht
In what’s known as the Medicaid “unwinding,” states are combing through rolls to decide who stays and who goes. But the overwhelming majority of people who have lost coverage so far were dropped because of technicalities, not because officials determined they are no longer eligible.
California Confronts the Threat of ‘Tranq’ as Overdose Crisis Rages
By Brian Rinker
California officials are stepping up efforts to combat the spread of xylazine, a powerful animal sedative that’s increasingly being used by people, often with devastating results. It’s mostly been an East Coast phenomenon, but ‘tranq,’ as it is known, is beginning to appear in the Golden State.
Medicaid: más de medio millón ya han perdido cobertura desde fin de beneficios pandémicos
By Hannah Recht
Hasta ahora, 4 de cada cinco personas que perdieron la cobertura nunca devolvieron la documentación requerida, según un análisis de datos de 11 estados.
Daily Edition for Wednesday, May 31, 2023
Medi-Cal spending, smoking, CARE court, opioids, nurses, the debt deal, gun violence, covid, and more are in the news.
How a Medical Recoding May Limit Cancer Patients’ Options for Breast Reconstruction
By Rachana Pradhan and Anna Werner, CBS News and Leigh Ann Winick, CBS News
The federal government’s arcane process for medical coding is influencing which reconstructive surgery options are available, creating anxiety for breast cancer patients.
Health Care Coalition Jockeys Over Medi-Cal Spending, Eyes Ballot Initiative
By Angela Hart and Samantha Young
California Healthline has learned that a coalition of doctors, hospitals, insurers, and community clinics want to lock in a tax on health insurance companies to draw in extra Medicaid funding. It also wants to make the tax permanent.
Mood-Altering Mushroom Sales Bloom Despite Safety Concerns
By Sam Ogozalek, Tampa Bay Times
The well-known “Amanita muscaria” mushroom is legal to possess and consume in 49 states. The market for gummies, powders, and capsules containing extracts of the fungus is raising eyebrows, though, amid concerns from the FDA and in the absence of human clinical trials.
Readers and Tweeters Weigh Marijuana’s Merits Against Those of Alcohol or Opioids
KFF Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
