KHN

In 2015, St. Louis-based Mercy health system opened what officials called the world’s first “hospital without beds.” Since the pandemic, Mercy has incorporated telehealth throughout its system, part of a national acceleration in virtual care that proponents laud but critics say is happening too fast.

Of the three covid vaccines the U.S. government has authorized, only one is available to 16- and 17-year-olds: the Pfizer shot. It’s also the most complicated to manage in rural settings, with their small, dispersed populations. That forces some teens and their families to travel long distances for a dose — or go without.

California stresses equity for minority groups. Texas is all about personal choice and liberty. Both are struggling to vaccinate Latinos and contending with vaccine hesitancy among conservative communities.

The Biden administration has started to speed efforts to reverse health policies forged under Donald Trump. Most recently, the administration overturned a ban on fetal tissue research and canceled a last-minute extension of a Medicaid waiver for Texas. That latter move may delay the Senate confirmation of President Joe Biden’s nominee to head the Medicare and Medicaid programs, as Sen. John Cornyn (R-Texas) seeks to fight back. Anna Edney of Bloomberg News, Rachel Cohrs of Stat and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Plus, for extra credit, the panelists recommend their favorite health policy stories of the week they think you should read, too.

Generous personal injury coverage on your car policy may not be enough to cover medical bills. Patients can get financially blindsided when auto insurance and health insurance policies differ.

Health providers are seeing the consequences of pandemic-delayed preventive and emergency care, from longer hospital stays to more root canals.

Lawmakers in California and other states are rethinking how they set and enforce speed limits, and they’re proposing to hand more power to local authorities to slow drivers in their communities.

A bill that would have allowed California cities and counties to once again pursue taxes on sugary drinks was just shelved in the legislature without a hearing. Public health advocates blame the political — and financial — clout of the soft drink industry.

The latest episode of “America Dissected” features a conversation with Dr. Paloma Marin-Nevarez and KHN senior correspondent Jenny Gold. Gold documented the new physician’s first months on the job at a Fresno, California, hospital, caring for severely ill covid patients.

The Virginia hospital giant had already stopped suing patients with less than $107,000 in household income.

Medicare Advantage company may face record penalty over alleged billing errors.

For some, a vaccine appointment a few hours away is no biggie. For others, it’s a major barrier to gaining protection from the coronavirus.

For years, women with painful gynecological issues have faced long waits in ERs or longer waits to see their doctors. During the pandemic, women have increasingly turned to women’s clinics that handle urgent issues like miscarriage or serious urinary tract infections.