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Several states have required their health agencies to take on another job: verifying immigration status among Medicaid recipients and reporting them to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. North Carolina is the latest to pass such a law, and experts expect more to follow.
Some states bar professional midwives from attending home births if they don鈥檛 have a nursing license. Their advocates say laws to allow midwife licensing would make home birth safer and more accessible, plus help address a maternity care shortage.
On May 1, the state will become the first to require people on the government health program to fulfill a work requirement or lose their coverage under a new rule that was a key part of congressional Republicans鈥 One Big Beautiful Bill Act.
Work requirements will encourage people who are able to work to seek and maintain jobs, proponents say. But researchers haven鈥檛 found that they lower the unemployment rate.
Moving through the California Senate are two bills, informed by 51视频 Health News reporting, that would strengthen protections for patients brought to health facilities by Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
As President Donald Trump鈥檚 heightened immigration enforcement continues across the country, some states are updating temporary guardianship laws to keep the children of detained and deported immigrants out of state custody.
Post-mastectomy pain syndrome, or PMPS, is estimated to afflict tens of thousands of U.S. women each year. And yet it is not well understood and is inconsistently treated.
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Some people find they owe money back for subsidies if their income changed from what they estimated. In 2026, more people may find themselves in this situation 鈥 and face higher repayment amounts 鈥 if they don鈥檛 carefully track their income.
After Eric Tennant died, his widow vowed to speak out against West Virginia鈥檚 Public Employees Insurance Agency, which had denied cancer treatment recommended by Tennant鈥檚 doctor. Her efforts paid off. In March, West Virginia鈥檚 governor signed a bill to protect some patients from harm tied to prior authorization.
Some states have tried to crack down on crisis pregnancy centers, accusing them of deceptive practices. But now conservative lawmakers are pushing legislation to increase protections for the organizations, which work to dissuade women from abortions.
Patchwork state policies and limited federal oversight have led to a fragmented system for tracking when potential organ donors provide consent or change their minds.
Across California and the nation, health providers, advocates, local officials, and state legislators are eyeing tax increases to offset a loss of more than $900 billion in federal Medicaid dollars as a result of the GOP鈥檚 One Big Beautiful Bill Act. In Los Angeles County, community clinics have banded together in support of a half-cent sales tax.
Crystalline silica, which is released into the air when workers cut and polish engineered stone, can scar human lungs beyond repair. Kitchen countertops made with this stone have triggered an increased rate of this fatal illness, doctors say.
Florida is not mandated to add work requirements for Medicaid, because the state has not expanded eligibility to more low-income adults. But lawmakers have proposed requiring some adults in the state鈥檚 program to work anyway, a policy that could leave many uninsured.
This month is 40 years since host Julie Rovner, chief Washington correspondent for 51视频 Health News, began reporting on health policy in Washington. To mark the anniversary, Rovner is joined by two longtime sources to discuss what has 鈥 and has not 鈥 changed since 1986.
Some Republican state lawmakers and state health associations are pushing back against spending plans under the Trump administration鈥檚 $50 billion federal rural health fund. Federal administrators already approved states鈥 plans, but in many cases, state lawmakers must greenlight spending.
At least eight states are considering legislation to curtail wage garnishment over unpaid medical bills, as health care costs rise and more people become underinsured.
Congress has passed 鈥 and President Trump has signed 鈥 the annual spending bill for the Department of Health and Human Services. But it鈥檚 unclear whether the administration will spend the money as Congress directed. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico Magazine, and Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call join 51视频 Health News鈥 Julie Rovner to discuss that story and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews 51视频 Health News鈥 Renuka Rayasam about a new reporting project, 鈥淧riced Out.鈥
Progressives are assailing Gov. Gavin Newsom for proposing to pull back coverage for some legal residents, such as refugees and asylum-seekers, while conservatives lambaste the California Democrat for using limited state funds on Medicaid coverage for immigrants without legal status.
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