Daily Edition for Tuesday, May 14, 2024
Newsom’s budget plan, Medi-Cal makeover, UCLA protest, covid deaths at San Quentin, mental health beds, weight loss, and more are in the news.
Nursing Homes Wield Pandemic Immunity Laws To Duck Wrongful Death Suits
By Fred Schulte
More than 172,000 nursing home residents died of covid. In lawsuits, some families who lost loved ones say they were misled about safety measures or told that covid wasn’t a danger in their facilities.
Newsom’s $12 Billion Medicaid Makeover Banks on Nonprofits’ Buy-In
By Angela Hart
California’s Medicaid program is relying heavily on community groups to deliver new social services to vulnerable patients, such as security deposits for homeless people and air purifiers for asthma patients. But many of these nonprofits face staffing and billing challenges and haven’t been able to deliver services effectively.
Medicaid ‘Unwinding’ Decried as Biased Against Disabled People
By Daniel Chang
People with disabilities say they are abruptly losing their Medicaid home health benefits and are being advised incorrectly when they call state offices for more information. “Every day the anxiety builds,” one beneficiary told KFF Health News.
Daily Edition for Monday, May 13, 2024
Newsom’s budget blueprint, covid “super-dodgers,” bird flu containment, housing, solar storms, AI in health care, and more are in the news.
FDA Said It Never Inspected Dental Lab That Made Controversial AGGA Device
By Brett Kelman and Anna Werner, CBS News
Johns Dental Laboratories stopped making the Anterior Growth Guidance Appliance last year after a KFF Health News-CBS News investigation into allegations of patient harm. The company had “never” reported any complaints about its products to the FDA, according to the agency.
Daily Edition for Friday, May 10, 2024
Welfare, new covid variants, mental health on TV, hospital news, bird flu monitoring, fentanyl deaths, food safety, and more are in the news.
San Francisco Tries Tough Love by Tying Welfare to Drug Rehab
By Ronnie Cohen
Facing an overdose epidemic and public fury over conditions on the streets, famously tolerant San Francisco will start requiring welfare recipients to undergo drug screening, and treatment if necessary, to receive cash public assistance.
Their First Baby Came With Medical Debt. These Illinois Parents Won’t Have Another.
By Noam N. Levey
Millions of new parents in the U.S. are swamped by medical debt during and after pregnancy, forcing many to cut back on food, clothing, and other essentials.
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Newly Minted Doctors Are Avoiding Abortion Ban States
For the second year in a row, medical school graduates across specialties are shying away from applying for residency training in states with abortion bans or significant restrictions, according to a new study. Meanwhile, Medicare’s trustees report that the program will be able to pay its bills longer than expected — which could discourage Congress from acting to address the program’s long-term financial woes. Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins University schools of nursing and public health and Politico Magazine, and Anna Edney of Bloomberg News join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more.
