health care

Americans are putting life on hold as the COVID wave delays their surgeries

4:28pm February 10, 2022

by Lynn Arditi

A Rhode Island man in his 80s had planned to spend the winter somewhere warm with his wife. Instead, he's among the many people waiting for the COVID wave to break so his surgery can be rescheduled.

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Hospital staff at Gritman Medical Center in the northern Idaho city of Moscow were unable to find Katie Ripley an open ICU bed at a larger hospital as her condition deteriorated.

In rural America, patients are waiting for care — sometimes with deadly consequences

2:33pm February 10, 2022

by Will Stone

When cancer survivor Katie Ripley got pneumonia, the 25-bed hospital in her small town didn't have the specialized care she needed. But with omicron surging, there was no ICU bed to transfer her to.

CMS Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, pictured in 2021, said "we want our programs to be consistent" when asked late last year whether the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services would eliminate premiums in all Medicaid waivers.

Health & Safety

Biden administration will reverse Medicaid changes that Trump had OK'd in some states

11:11am February 10, 2022

Federal officials now say states can no longer charge premiums to low-income residents enrolled in Medicaid and have ruled out work requirements.

People hike under trees as snow falls near Lake Louise in Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada, in November.

Health & Safety

A new program in Canada gives doctors the option of prescribing national park visits

8:36am February 09, 2022

by Sharon Pruitt-Young

And the best part? The annual passes are free.

Contact tracing programs around the country have been struggling to keep up with demand during the last several coronavirus surges. Here, contact tracer Cherie Hunter puts works from her home in Tinley Park, Ill., to reach people who have tested positive

Health & Safety

If you tested positive and the contact tracer never called, here's why

9:32pm February 08, 2022

by Selena Simmons-Duffin

Swamped by thousands of calls a day, contact tracing programs have been forced to adapt. Even though they can't call everyone, experts say it's too early to give up on this pillar of disease control.

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Nursing assistant Michelle Bryan dons a protective face shield before entering the room of a COVID-19 patient on the acute care floor.

Health & Safety

Inside an Oregon hospital, here's what it takes to provide care through the chaos

11:04am February 08, 2022

by Amelia Templeton

Salem Health in Oregon is a major hospital, but the omicron onslaught has strained the staff like never before. Still, they show up. For the patients, and for each other. And some see signs of hope.

Health & Safety

Why remdesivir, a highly effective treatment, is a last resort for providers

10:11pm February 07, 2022

by Pien Huang

The antiviral infusion was just revived as an early treatment for COVID patients. But the drug is relatively expensive and hard to administer, relegating it what some are calling "stopgap" status.

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For rural hospitals, the surge of COVID patients can have deadly consequences

4:58pm February 07, 2022

by Will Stone

The omicron surge has clogged up the health care system, from the ICU to the ER. The consequences are huge for smaller hospitals and, in some cases, it has led to irreparable harm.

Canadian officials weigh how they can respond to the truck protests

5:04pm February 06, 2022

by Emma Jacobs

Huge protests involving trucks and other large vehicles have been disrupting life in Ottawa and other Canadian cities. The protesters are calling for an end to COVID-19 public health mandates.

Health & Safety

There's a critical shortage of nursing home staff

8:04am February 06, 2022

by Rhitu Chatterjee

With the omicron variant causing a surge of COVID-19 infections in assisted living facilities, more staff are having to stay at home, making the jobs of those still working a lot harder.