health care

Utah Gov. On State's Proposal To Impose Medicaid Work Requirements

5:17pm January 12, 2018

Utah Gov. Gary Herbert, talks with NPR's Ari Shapiro about his state's proposal to impose a work or community engagement requirement on Medicaid recipients. The Trump administration recently opened the door for states to implement such policies.

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Seema Verma, administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, at a White House press conference in May. More people moving off Medicaid, she says, would be a good outcome.

New Rules May Make Getting And Staying On Medicaid More Difficult

5:12pm January 12, 2018

by Jake Harper

Indiana is one of the states poised to get permission to require Medicaid recipients to work. Advocates say work requirements may be good politics but they're bad policy.

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Ariel Haughton's children Rose (left), 4, and Javier, 2, are covered by CHIP. Haughton is upset that lawmakers have left CHIP in flux for her two children and millions of kids around the country.

Health & Safety

Scramble Is On To Care For Kids If Insurance Coverage Lapses

12:26pm January 12, 2018

Doctors are telling families to refill prescriptions now. Other physicians are giving away drugs to make sure patients have enough if the Children's Health Insurance Program goes unfunded.

Head Of Medicaid Directors On States Imposing Work Requirements For Recipients

5:13pm January 11, 2018

Matt Salo, executive director of the National Association of Medicaid Directors talks with NPR's Ari Shapiro about the Trump administration's move to allow states to impose work or community engagement requirements on Medicaid recipients.

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Noemi Padilla, 47, recently left Tampa Women's Health, an independent clinic in Tampa, Fla. She worked there as a surgical nurse and assisted on abortion procedures up to about 23 weeks gestation.

The Anti-Abortion Group That's Urging Clinic Workers to Quit Their Jobs

5:13pm January 11, 2018

by Sarah McCammon

The nonprofit organization And Then They Were None offers financial assistance, job search help, and spiritual and emotional support to workers who leave jobs at clinics that provide abortions.

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Proponents of medically supervised, indoor sites for opioid injection say such places would be much safer than tent encampments like this one — and could help people addicted to opioids transition into treatment and away from drug use.

Desperate Cities Consider 'Safe Injection' Sites For Opioid Users

12:17pm January 10, 2018

by Bobby Allyn

Opioids were a main driver in roughly 1,200 drug overdose deaths in Philadelphia last year. That's four times the city's murder rate. It's time, some officials say, to supervise, not criminalize.

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Pharmacist Donna Barsky measures potassium iodide at the Texas Star Pharmacy in 2011 in Plano, Texas.

Fallout From 'Nuclear Button' Tweets: Jump In Sales Of Radiation Drug

10:51am January 10, 2018

by JoNel Aleccia

After a war of words between President Trump and North Korea's Kim Jong Un over the ability to launch nuclear attacks from their desks, orders rose for pills to protect against radiation.

As flu cases mount in California, the state's health department recommends vaccination for all people 6 months and older.

What You Need To Know About This Year's Flu Season

8:44pm January 09, 2018

by Barbara Feder Ostrov

In California, the flu has struck early and hard this season. Health experts aren't sure why. The state's higher temperatures typically result in a later flu peak there than in other parts of the U.S.

Michelle Leavy surrounded by her three sons. She became addicted to opioids when she was discharged from the hospital with doctors' advice to use them for her pain after a cesarean section. She is now in recovery.

Hospitals Brace Patients For Pain To Reduce Risk Of Opioid Addiction

4:11pm January 09, 2018

by Blake Farmer

As hospitals assess their role in the opioid crisis, some are trying to change patient expectations by warning them to expect some pain. Doctors in those hospitals are prescribing fewer opioids.

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Up to one half of rural residents are covered by Medicaid, says Michelle Mills, CEO of Colorado Rural Health Center. And they're typically older, poorer and sicker than city dwellers.

Hospitals In States That Expanded Medicaid Less Likely To Close

5:39pm January 08, 2018

by John Daley

Hundreds of thousands of people gained health insurance in states that expanded Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. In those states, hospitals were less likely to close.