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Centene, the largest Medicaid managed-care company in the U.S., has thrown more than $26.9 million at political campaigns across the country since 2015, especially focused on states where it is wooing Medicaid contracts and settling accusations that it overbilled taxpayers. Among its tactics: Centene is skirting contribution limits by giving to candidates through its many subsidiaries.
Californians will decide Nov. 8 whether to approve a statewide ban on the sale of flavored tobacco products, including menthol cigarettes. But the measure, known as Proposition 31, exempts hookah tobacco. Anti-smoking activists criticize the carve-out, calling it the latest example of businesses using identity politics to profit from a deadly product.
In September, a popular pandemic benefit expired: free school lunch for all children attending public schools. Some states are stepping up to try to keep the free food available, and it is on the ballot next week in Colorado.
Federal officials have ordered the probe after reports that a woman whose water broke at 18 weeks could not get medical care recommended by her doctors to end the pregnancy because hospital officials were concerned about Missouri’s strict abortion law.
Californians are facing the third statewide dialysis initiative in five years. The dialysis industry is spending tens of millions of dollars to defeat Proposition 29 and is running ads saying the measure would force clinics to close — a message that appears to be resonating with patients.
California voters will decide in November whether to amend the state constitution to explicitly protect abortion rights. But there is disagreement over whether the proposal, Proposition 1, would merely enshrine existing rights or expand them.
Service Employees International Union-United Healthcare Workers West is testing the waters on a $25 minimum wage for support staff at health care facilities in Southern California. Opposition from hospitals and health facilities is driving an expensive battle.
A ballot measure that seeks to protect infants following failed abortions would impose stiff penalties on health care providers in Montana.
The cheaper over-the-counter aids are for adults with mild to moderate hearing loss — a market of tens of millions of people, many of whom have until now been priced out because prescription devices can cost thousands of dollars.
The good, the bad, and the unknown about the Centennial State’s proposal to decriminalize and regulate magic mushrooms and plant-based psychedelics.
California put up $100 million to produce its own insulin. How did this plan come to be, and what might stand in the state’s way?
The idea of human composting — to help restore a forest or grow flowers — may be a little off-putting to some, but it has many advantages over traditional-but-toxic methods of burial and cremation.
If California voters approve one or both sports-wagering initiatives on the November ballot, psychiatrists anticipate more cases of problem gambling and gambling addiction. They’re especially concerned about online betting, a very addictive way to play.
If an embryo has implanted in a fallopian tube, ending the pregnancy is imperative to protect the patient’s life. Women’s health advocates have raised concerns that the needed treatment may be hampered by restrictive abortion laws in some states. Yet women seeking treatment in states with more liberal abortion laws may still find the process expensive and harrowing.
Montana is one of the latest states seeking to increase oversight of nonprofit hospitals’ giving to ensure they justify their tax-exempt status.
Four managed-care insurance plans may lose contracts with California’s Medicaid program, which would force nearly 2 million low-income residents to switch their health plans — and possibly their doctors. The plans are fighting back.
As Texas adjusts to a near-total abortion ban, Texas schools are redoubling efforts to end teen pregnancies by enacting new standards for sexual health education. Beyond focusing on abstinence, they are teaching middle schoolers about contraceptives and preventing sexually transmitted infections. But parents must opt in for their children to get the lessons.
A federal disability program meant to provide basic income for people unable to work has left many of its recipients homeless. Advocates for the poor say the crisis is growing worse as rents rise and Congress decides whether to make changes to the program that would affect millions of people.
As abortion restrictions take effect across the South in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, cancer doctors are trying to decipher the laws. They’re grappling with how to discuss options with pregnant patients, who may be forced to choose whether to proceed or forgo lifesaving cancer treatments that can prove toxic for the fetus.
Applicants for cash, food, and health care assistance would need to go to court to appeal rejections if the Montana legislature approves a proposal to eliminate the Board of Public Assistance.
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