Tracking State Rural Health Transformation Plans
吃瓜不打烊 is working to collect and post approved plans as more states respond to emails and public records requests for their documents.
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吃瓜不打烊 covers the health issues facing people who live in America鈥檚 rural reaches.
吃瓜不打烊 is working to collect and post approved plans as more states respond to emails and public records requests for their documents.
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The add-ons pile up: $93 for medications, $50 for cable TV. Prices soar as the industry leaves no service unbilled, out of reach for many families.
Advocates for pregnant people in police custody say repeated incidents show prohibitions on handcuffs and other restraints are little more than lip service.
The United States has no coherent system of long-term care, leading many to struggle to stay independent or rely on a patchwork of solutions.
The federal government requires state Medicaid programs to pay for abortions in limited circumstances, but Iowa hasn鈥檛 done so for years. No providers seek Medicaid payments, which require the approval of the governor, an anti-abortion Republican.
As many states have moved to restrict or ban gender-affirming care for trans people, a few states, including New Mexico, have codified protections. But those laws don鈥檛 always mean accessing care is simple or quick, as a surge in new patients in the state collides with limited doctors and clinics.
Native Americans and rural residents are underrepresented in medical schools. But in this new program, 25% of students are Indigenous and half are from rural areas.
Rural gun homicides have often been overshadowed by violence in cities. But they are taking their toll on small communities ill-equipped to deal with the challenges.
More than 43 million Americans drink, bathe, and cook with water from private wells, which can be tainted by farm or industrial runoff, leaky septic systems, or naturally occurring minerals.
More than half of seniors are enrolled in private Medicare Advantage plans instead of traditional Medicare. Rural enrollment has increased fourfold and many small-town hospitals say that threatens their viability.
This month, the federal government started paying for treatments delivered outside hospitals and clinics, expanding funding for 鈥渟treet medicine鈥 teams that treat homeless patients. California led the way on the change, which could help sick and vulnerable patients get healthy, sober, and, in some cases, into housing.
Homicides, suicides, and drug overdoses have driven rising rates of pregnancy-related death in the U.S. This fall, six states received federal funding for substance use treatment interventions to prevent at least some of those deaths.
As homelessness explodes across California, so does the number of expectant mothers on the streets. Street medicine doctors are getting paid more by Medicaid and offering some of those mothers-to-be a chance to overcome addiction and reverse chronic diseases so they can have healthy babies 鈥 and perhaps keep them.
吃瓜不打烊 and California Healthline staff made the rounds on national and local media this week to discuss their stories. Here鈥檚 a collection of their appearances.
Teresa Johnson has been in extreme pain for more than a year after what she believes was a severe allergic reaction to iodine. Her Medi-Cal plan approved her referral to a specialist, but it took her numerous phone calls, multiple complaints, and several months to book an appointment.
Dollar General鈥檚 pilot mobile clinic program has been touted by company officials, rural health experts, and analysts as a model that could help solve rural America鈥檚 primary care shortage. But its Tennessee launch has been met with local skepticism.
Colorado is among several states that ensure schools have access to the opioid overdose reversal medication naloxone for free or at reduced cost. But most districts hadn鈥檛 signed up by the start of the school year for a state distribution program amid stigma around the lifesaving treatment.
Mississippi has the highest rate of maternal mortality in the U.S. Now, it also has a federal grant to help in rural areas. The award could signal more flexibility from federal officials.
Ballad Health, the only hospital system across a large swath of Tennessee and Virginia, has fallen short of quality-of-care and charity care obligations 鈥 even as it鈥檚 sued thousands of patients for unpaid bills.
A breast cancer patient who received similar treatments in two states saw significant differences in cost, illuminating how care in remote areas can come with a stiffer price tag.
鈥淧eople want covid-19 to be in the rearview mirror,鈥 one nursing home official says. Faced with a slow rollout of the updated covid vaccines, and without state mandates for workers to get vaccinated, most skilled nursing facilities are relying on persuasion to boost vaccination rates among staff and residents.
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