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In a new report, Human Rights Watch urges stronger federal and state action to hold hospitals to account for a medical debt crisis that now burdens more than 100 million Americans.
As the number of refugees entering the U.S. grows, those arriving in Montana and other rural areas find limited dental care options.
The views of the leader of a broad anti-vaccine movement who is now running for president are unchallenged in public forums run by several prominent Silicon Valley figures.
A new report boosts the estimated number of people enrolled in plans whose members 鈥 usually brought together by shared religious beliefs 鈥 pay one another鈥檚 health costs.
A nationwide decline in foster home spots has led to dire situations in some rural areas, including northeastern Nevada, where a state social worker has been pleading with community leaders to help address a shortage that left officials housing children in casino hotels.
Annie Malloy, of San Diego, is among the first to receive a new housing move-in benefit from Medi-Cal, California鈥檚 Medicaid program. It鈥檚 an effort to help homeless and near-homeless people who might otherwise rack up huge medical bills.
Homeless people are being fraudulently enrolled in health plans on the Affordable Care Act鈥檚 marketplace, induced with cash payments from insurance agents and brokers. Those who sign up for an ACA plan are disqualified from other forms of free and low-cost care and risk disruption in treatment.
Secretary of Health and Human Services Xavier Becerra is asking states to make more of an effort to keep eligible Medicaid recipients enrolled. He particularly fears children losing health insurance coverage.
The National Eating Disorders Association鈥檚 help line has seen demand climb to unsustainable levels since the beginning of the covid pandemic, with more people reporting severe mental health problems, the nonprofit says. But staffers worry this chatbot may make things worse.
Cities and towns are again in deep waters this summer trying to hire enough lifeguards to open their public pools. Many are proceeding with sensitivity to issues of race and ethnicity.
Dental therapists are licensed providers who offer basic care traditionally provided by dentists, including fillings and simple tooth extractions. But opposition from interest groups and the profession鈥檚 relative newness mean more than two-thirds of states don鈥檛 yet have them.
The pandemic disrupted the massage industry. Now those who specialize in hospice massage therapy are in demand and redefining their roles.
Some GOP members of the House Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic have two-stepped around vaccine skepticism, proclaiming themselves to be pro-vaccine while also validating the beliefs of people who oppose vaccine mandates. The result could have serious public health consequences.
The bipartisan deal to extend the U.S. government鈥檚 borrowing authority includes future cuts to federal health agencies, but they are smaller than many expected and do not touch Medicare and Medicaid. Meanwhile, Merck & Co. becomes the first drugmaker to sue Medicare officials over the federal health insurance program鈥檚 new authority to negotiate drug prices. Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico, Lauren Weber of The Washington Post, and Jessie Hellmann of CQ Roll Call join 51视频 Health News鈥 chief Washington correspondent, Julie Rovner, to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 51视频 Health News senior correspondent Sarah Jane Tribble, who reported the latest 51视频 Health News-NPR 鈥淏ill of the Month鈥 feature, about the perils of visiting the U.S. with European health insurance.
Medical debt is a leading public health problem, researchers say. Despite the county鈥檚 ongoing expansion of health coverage, the prevalence of medical debt remained unchanged from 2017 to 2021.
Burnout is a widespread problem in the health care industry. Although the pandemic made things worse, burnout among doctors is a long-standing concern that health systems have become more focused on as they try to stop doctors from quitting or retiring early.
The billion-dollar amount cited by former Sen. Al Franken, while an estimate, is likely very close to what insurers will owe this year under a provision of the Affordable Care Act that compels rebates when insurers spend too little on actual medical care.
UnitedHealth Group is the largest health insurer in the United States. And it keeps growing. This has led some health care experts to call for antitrust regulation of this 鈥渂ehemoth鈥 company.
Drug use has become a major public health crisis, but effective treatment remains hard to find. It does exist though. Columnist Bernard J. Wolfson offers advice on finding help and says not to expect a quick solution.
The number of DOs is surging, and more than half of them practice in primary care, including in rural areas hit hard by doctor shortages.
