Latest California Healthline Stories
Toxic Gas Adds to a Long History of Pollution in Southwest Memphis
People across the nation claim cancer-causing emissions from local sterilizing plants are making them sick. It’s an example of environmental racism, say residents of one predominantly Black area in southwest Memphis, Tennessee, where life expectancy is much shorter than county and state averages.
In this episode of “An Arm and a Leg,” host Dan Weissmann explores what the fallout from a cyberattack says about antitrust concerns in health care.
Sign Here? Financial Agreements May Leave Doctors in the Driver’s Seat
Agreeing to an out-of-network doctor’s own financial policy — which generally protects their ability to get paid and may be littered with confusing insurance and legal jargon — can create a binding contract that leaves a patient owing.
Exposed to Agent Orange at US Bases, Veterans Face Cancer Without VA Compensation
The Department of Veterans Affairs has long given vets who served in Vietnam disability compensation for illness connected to Agent Orange harm. But those exposed at U.S. bases are still waiting for the same benefits.
Millions Were Booted From Medicaid. The Insurers That Run It Gained Revenue Anyway.
Big health insurers that have contracts with state Medicaid programs find themselves making more money even as enrollment in Medicaid programs has dropped. Here’s why.
Mandatory Reporting Laws Meant To Protect Children Get Another Look
The state is looking at ways to weed out false reporting of child abuse and neglect as the number of reports reaches a record high.
California Is Investing $500M in Therapy Apps for Youth. Advocates Fear It Won’t Pay Off.
California launched two teletherapy apps as part of the governor’s $500 million foray into health technology with private companies. But the rollout has been so slow that one company has yet to make its app available on Android, and social workers worry youths who need clinical care won’t get referrals.
Genetics Studies Have a Diversity Problem That Researchers Struggle To Fix
Researchers in Charleston, South Carolina, are trying to build a DNA database of 100,000 people to better understand how genetics affects health risks. But they’re struggling to recruit enough Black participants.
KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Abortion — Again — At the Supreme Court
For the second time in as many months, the Supreme Court heard arguments in an abortion case. This time, the justices are being asked to decide whether a federal law that requires emergency care in hospitals can trump Idaho’s near-total abortion ban. Meanwhile, the federal government, for the first time, will require minimum staffing standards for nursing homes. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Tami Luhby of CNN, and Joanne Kenen of Johns Hopkins University and Politico Magazine join KFF Health News’ Julie Rovner to discuss these stories and more. Plus, for “extra credit,” the panelists suggest health policy stories they read this week they think you should read, too.
Tire Toxicity Faces Fresh Scrutiny After Salmon Die-Offs
Tires emit huge volumes of particles and chemicals as they roll along the highway, and researchers are only beginning to understand the threat. One byproduct of tire use, 6PPD-q, is in regulators’ crosshairs after it was found to be killing fish.