Tracking State Rural Health Transformation Plans
Ńī¹óåś“«Ć½Ņīl Health News is working to collect and post approved plans as more states respond to emails and public records requests for their documents.
Washington
1 - 20 of 208 Results
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Trump Administration Demands Hospitals Share Emergency Room Records
The tiny federal agency that tracks consumer product safety is pressuring hospitals to turn over patient records from emergency room visits, including about injuries that have nothing to do with consumer products.
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Doctors āCringeā at Possibility of Documenting Which Medicaid Enrollees Too Sick To Work
Final regulations on Medicaid work requirements say enrollees must regularly obtain documentation ā possibly from medical professionals ā to prove that theyāre too sick to work. Doctors say the rules put them in a tough spot.
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A Sales Tax on Doctor Visits and Medicine? In Missouri, Some Worry
A ballot measure to eliminate Missouriās income tax would give the state legislature broad authority to levy new sales taxes to replace the lost revenue. Critics say that could mean adding a sales tax on medical services or prescription medicines. Those types of taxes are unusual, but not unheard of, in the U.S.
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Facing Funding Losses, States Call Out Big Businesses With Employees on Medicaid
With the federal Medicaid work requirements looming in January, Democrats are considering state legislation to call out big companies that employ workers enrolled in the safety net health program. Business giants such as Amazon and Walmart said the figures are misleading.
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The New Old Age
A New Option for Long-Term Care Costs
Washington state has launched the first program to help cover home care and other supports. Several other states are paying attention.
By Paula Span -
Thousands of Medicare Beneficiaries Thought Their Drug Plan Was Free. Then They Lost It.
Thousands of people who had a Medicare drug plan with zero-dollar premiums last year got small premium increases this year ā and didnāt know it. They were dropped from their coverage for failing to pay amounts as little as $8, and most canāt get it again until 2027.
By Susan Jaffe -
He Dreamed of Becoming a Physician Assistant. New Loan Rules May Thwart Him.
Starting in July, the government will cap what graduate students may borrow in federal loans, forcing many toward private lenders with higher interest rates. The borrowing limits will affect students pursuing healthcare degrees, and some clinicians and student loan experts worry they may impede efforts to diversify the healthcare workforce.
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Medicareās AI Push Snarls Patients and Doctors in Errors and Delays
Medicare is testing the use of artificial intelligence to preapprove several healthcare services. Federal health officials say prior authorization can help reduce fraud and contain costs. But doctors and patients describe the trial as āhorrendousā and full of red tape so far.
By Darius Tahir -
Tennessee Pharmacies Sell Potent Ivermectin, Led by Anti-Vaccine Doctor Whoās Taken āBucketloadsā
Four years after the Volunteer State enacted the nationās first law allowing drugstores to sell ivermectin without patient-specific prescriptions, dozens of pharmacies dispense the drug in highly concentrated pills ā many with the help of one anti-vaccine physician.
By Brett Kelman and Rachana Pradhan -
By September, Nearly a Third of Americans Will Live in States With Legal Aid in Dying
Despite widespread support in polls for legalizing aid in dying, the number of people who go through with the practice remains very small.
By Paula Span -
After Her Bout of Amnesia, a $59,000 Billing Dispute Wouldnāt Go Away
Last spring, a woman started exhibiting unusual memory problems after a hike in Arizona. It turns out she was experiencing a disorder called transient global amnesia. She has fully recovered, but a dispute over nearly $60,000 in hospital charges has been a source of stress for over a year.
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Religious Anti-Abortion Center Finds Opportunity in Town Without OB-GYNs
A crisis pregnancy center in Sandpoint, Idaho, wants to expand womenās healthcare three years after the labor and delivery unit at the townās hospital closed and its OB-GYNs moved out of state.
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Eroding ACA Enrollment Portends Higher Insurance Rates
An uptick in people skipping Obamacare premium payments in many states suggests the Affordable Care Actās rising costs ā driven partly by lower subsidies to help people buy plans ā are hitting home for 2026 enrollees. The trend adds to voter concerns about affordability ahead of the midterm elections.
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License To Deliver: Some Midwives Break the Law To Assist With Home Births
Some states bar professional midwives from attending home births if they donāt 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.
By Lisa Rab -
Give and Take: Federal Rural Health Funding Could Trigger Service Cuts
States are rolling out plans for their share of a $50 billion fund meant to improve rural health care. In some states, the money may provoke rural hospitals to cut services.
By Aaron Bolton, MTPR and Arielle Zionts -
Reckoning With State and Federal Cuts, Los Angeles Safety-Net Clinics Push for a New Tax
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 GOPās One Big Beautiful Bill Act. In Los Angeles County, community clinics have banded together in support of a half-cent sales tax.
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Newsom Picks a Dogfight With Trump and RFK Jr. on Public Health
Scientists are cheering California Gov. Gavin Newsom as he builds a public health bulwark against health secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.ās anti-vaccine stance and President Donald Trumpās withdrawal from the World Health Organization. Still, federal cuts have sapped morale and left local health departments less prepared for outbreaks.
By Angela Hart -
Despite Their Successes, Some Mobile Crisis Response Teams Are in Crisis
Mobile crisis units are trained to respond to emergency calls when people are experiencing delusions or hallucinations. But unlike police departments, which are generally funded by local taxpayers, mobile crisis teams donāt have a single, reliable funding source. As a result, some are closing down, despite successful operations and local support.
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āYou Arenāt Trappedā: Hundreds of US Nurses Choose Canada Over Trumpās America
More than 1,000 American nurses have successfully applied for licensure in British Columbia since April, a massive increase over prior years. Ontario and Alberta have also seen more interest from Americans.
By Brett Kelman