Southern Bureau Archives - Page 42 of 57

A photo shows staff from the Brownsville Independent School District participating in an active shooter drill.

Texas Revamps ‘Active-Shooter’ Drills at K-12 Schools to Minimize Trauma

School lockdown drills are designed to prepare students for violent threats. But for some students, especially those with special needs, the drills can trigger or exacerbate mental health problems. Texas is taking a step toward balancing safety and mental health with new regulations around how the drills are conducted. “If some kids are coming away traumatized or we’re magnifying existing trauma, we’re not moving in the right direction,” one expert says.

By Renuka Rayasam and Colleen DeGuzman

Oct. 21, 2022

Centene Gave Thousands to Georgia Leaders’ Campaigns While Facing Medicaid Overbilling Questions

Centene is trying to settle accusations of Medicaid pharmaceutical overcharging in Georgia, and the St. Louis-based company has been giving thousands of dollars to the campaigns of the state attorney general and the governor.

By Maya T. Prabhu, Atlanta Journal-Constitution and Andy Miller

Oct. 18, 2022

A photo shows a pair of hands holding Sony's new CRE-C10 hearing aids.

Say What? Hearing Aids Available Over-the-Counter for as Low as $199, and Without a Prescription

The cheaper over-the-counter aids are for adults with mild to moderate hearing loss — a market of tens of millions of people, many of whom have until now been priced out because prescription devices can cost thousands of dollars.

By Phil Galewitz

Oct. 17, 2022

A mother with dark brown hair and a yellow sweater sits on a couch and watches her young daughter, about one year old, play with a toy.

Patients For Profit: How Private Equity Hijacked Health Care

Baby, That Bill Is High: Private Equity ‘Gambit’ Squeezes Excessive ER Charges From Routine Births

Hospitals, boosted by private equity-backed staffing companies, have embraced a new idea: the obstetrics emergency department. Often, it is just a triage room in the labor-and-delivery area, but it bills like the main emergency department.

By Rae Ellen Bichell

Oct. 13, 2022

A photo shows Dr. Andrew Bush stasnding outside of his orthopedic practice.

As Giant Hospitals Get Bigger, an Independent Doctor Feels the Pinch

Independent medical practices keep closing as doctors join behemoth hospital groups or leave the field. Research suggests that’s bad news for patients. Studies repeatedly conclude that consolidation in the health care industry is driving up costs while showing no clear evidence of improved care.

By Fred Clasen-Kelly

Oct. 13, 2022

A photo shows Valentine Cesar holding an HPV self-testing swab.

Miami’s Little Haiti Joins Global Effort to End Cervical Cancer

Creole-speaking public health workers teach women how to test themselves for HPV, the virus that causes some cervical cancers.

By Verónica Zaragovia, WLRN

Oct. 11, 2022

A digital illustration depicting a teen girl running fear fully. She is drawn in black-and-white pencil against a solid magenta-pink background. Black ink lines chase and swirl around her, and come to concentrate as a circle over her stomach, depicting a pregnancy. The theme is an inescapable situation and loss of child/personhood.

Abortion Bans Skirt a Medical Reality: For Many Teens, Childbirth Is a Dangerous Undertaking

The laws criminalizing abortion in many conservative U.S. states are expected to boost birth rates among teens, whose bodies often aren’t built for safe childbirth. For adolescents, the emotional and physical challenges of carrying a pregnancy to term can be daunting.

By Sarah Varney

Oct. 7, 2022

A photo shows a crushed car and debris, the aftermath of Hurricane Ian in Florida.

Hurricane Ian Shows That Coastal Hospitals Aren’t Ready for Climate Change

Hundreds of medical centers along the Atlantic and Gulf coasts face serious risks from even relatively weak storms as climate change accelerates sea-level rise — not to mention big ones like Category 4 Hurricane Ian.

By Daniel Chang and Lauren Sausser

Oct. 7, 2022

A woman in a white shirt stands in front of a dark red couch.

Diagnosis: Debt

Medical Debt Sunk Her Credit. New Changes From the Credit Reporting Agencies Won’t Help.

New policies to prevent unpaid medical bills from harming people’s credit scores are on the way. But the concessions made by top credit reporting companies may fall short for those with the largest debt — especially Black Americans in the South.

By Aneri Pattani

Oct. 6, 2022

A woman walks towards a red brick hospital building.

Diagnosis: Debt

Listen: Medical Bills Upended Her Life and Her Credit Score

Penny Wingard, 58, of Charlotte, North Carolina, worries she won’t ever get out from under her medical debt despite new policies that are supposed to prevent medical debt from harming people’s credit scores.

By Aneri Pattani

Oct. 6, 2022

A photo shows Frankie and Russell Cook sitting on a porch swing together at home.

Bill Of The Month

Turned Away From Urgent Care — And Toward a Big ER Bill

Russell Cook was expecting a quick and inexpensive visit to an urgent care center for his daughter, Frankie, after she had a car wreck. Instead, they were advised to go to an emergency room and got a much larger bill.

By Sam Whitehead

Sept. 29, 2022

A man in a checkered shirt sits on a brown couch in a living room.

Diagnosis: Debt

Few Places Have More Medical Debt Than Dallas-Fort Worth, but Hospitals There Are Thriving

Some hospitals notch big profits while patients are pushed into debt by skyrocketing medical prices and high deductibles, a KHN analysis finds.

By Noam N. Levey

Sept. 28, 2022

A digital illustration in watercolor and pencil. A woman with long, braided black hair sits in the center of the image. She looks towards the viewer out of the corner of her eye with a slightly concerned expression. Beside her is a doctor, whose body is transparent and face has completely faded into the background. Behind them is an urban landscape with buildings colored in magenta, yellow, and grey. It is night.

Podcast

‘American Diagnosis’ Episode 12: When Indigenous People Move to Cities, Health Care Funding Doesn’t Follow

When Indigenous people started moving to cities in large numbers after World War II, many found hardship and discrimination there … but not the health care they were entitled to. Episode 12, the season finale, explores the efforts of urban Indian health providers to close those gaps by providing affordable, culturally competent care.

Sept. 28, 2022

A photo shows three men conversing in a room decorated with law enforcement memorabilia. An American flag and a Maryland flag stand behind them.

At This Recovery Center, Police Cope With the Mental Health Costs of the Job

Burnout, PTSD, depression, and substance misuse are rampant among first responders, partly fueled by the anti-police sentiments after the killing of George Floyd. Combined with low morale, the poor state of officers’ mental health has pushed many out of the profession, leaving those who remain exhausted. A handful of specialized treatment facilities are trying to meet demand, but more resiliency training is needed, experts said.

By Katja Ridderbusch

Sept. 27, 2022

A photo shows Howard Sanders delivering bottles of water to a man at his home.

Postcard From Mississippi

In Jackson, the Water Is Back, but the Crisis Remains

Unsafe water and all that comes with it — constant vigilance, extra expenses, and hassle — complicate every aspect of daily life for residents of Jackson, Mississippi. Health advocates say stress exacerbates underlying health problems. That is why a free clinic in one of Jackson’s poorest neighborhoods has been organizing water giveaways for the past year and a half.

By Renuka Rayasam

Sept. 23, 2022

A photo shows the exterior of Audrain Community Hospital.

Patients for Profit: How Private Equity Hijacked Health Care

Buy and Bust: After Platinum Health Took Control of Noble Sites, All Hospital Workers Were Fired

Two Missouri towns are without operating hospitals after private equity-backed Noble Health left both facilities mired in debt, lawsuits, and federal investigations. The hospitals’ new operator, Platinum Health, agreed to buy them in April for $2 and laid off the last employees in early September.

By Sarah Jane Tribble

Sept. 22, 2022

interior of shop selling coffins and funeral wreaths

Patients for Profit: How Private Equity Hijacked Health Care

Death Is Anything but a Dying Business as Private Equity Cashes In

Investors are banking on increased demand in death care services as 73 million baby boomers near the end of their lives.

By Markian Hawryluk

Sept. 22, 2022

A photo shows J.R. Chester standing beside a window to the left. She is looking out the window.

Texas, Battling Teen Pregnancy, Recasts Sex Education Standards

As Texas adjusts to a near-total abortion ban, Texas schools are redoubling efforts to end teen pregnancies by enacting new standards for sexual health education. Beyond focusing on abstinence, they are teaching middle schoolers about contraceptives and preventing sexually transmitted infections. But parents must opt in for their children to get the lessons.

By Emmarie Huetteman

Sept. 20, 2022

A photo shows a judge's gavel resting on a surface surrounded by shadows.

Centene to Pay $166 Million to Texas in Medicaid Drug Pricing Settlement

Texas is at least the 12th state to settle with St. Louis-based Centene Corp. over allegations that it overcharged Medicaid prescription drug programs.

By Andy Miller and Samantha Young

Sept. 19, 2022

A traditional courtroom illustration, in watercolor and pencil, depicting attorney Lawrence Robbins arguing before the Supreme Court. He wears a black suit, glasses, and is bald.

Doctors Rush to Use Supreme Court Ruling to Escape Opioid Charges

After a unanimous ruling from the high court, doctors who are accused of writing irresponsible prescriptions can go to trial with a new defense: It wasn’t on purpose.

By Brett Kelman

Sept. 19, 2022

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