Who Will Care For Abril? Parents Fear For Their Disabled Child If They Are Deported
Anticipating a broader immigration crackdown, undocumented families are hiring lawyers and scrambling to make contingency plans for their seriously ill U.S.-born kids.
Going For $1 An Ounce: The Burgeoning Trade In Mothers’ Milk
As a fountain of nonprofit milk banks emerge, one woman’s abundant supply can fill another’s yawning demand. But critics fear that poor women will sell start selling their milk for survival, depriving their own babies of vital nutrients.
Stalking the ‘Unknown Enemy’: Doctors Turn Scope On Rare Diseases
An NIH-funded network of hospitals uses advanced genetic science and nationwide collaboration to diagnose rare and sometimes undiscovered diseases.
‘Pre-Hospice’ Saves Money By Keeping People At Home Near The End Of Life
A San Diego program helps chronically ill people avoid the hospital by teaching them how to better manage their diseases and telling them what to expect in their final years. Other health providers and insurers around the country are trying similar approaches.
In Deep-Blue State, Millions in Reddish Heartland Are Counting On Medicaid
The prospect of cutbacks has led to agitation and activism in California’s largely agricultural Central Valley, with relatively high poverty rates and a significant number of Trump voters.
Spike In Syphilis Among Newborns Driven By Broader Epidemic
Sexually transmitted diseases are at an all-time high across the United States. Syphilis among women and babies is a particularly serious problem in Louisiana, California and Georgia.
‘Tsunami’ Of Alzheimer’s Cases Among Latinos Raises Concerns Over Costs, Caregiving
The number of U.S. Latinos with the memory-robbing disease is expected to rise more than eightfold by 2060 to 3.5 million.
El “tsunami” de casos de Alzheimer entre latinos plantea inquietudes sobre el cuidado y los costos
Se espera que el número de latinos con la enfermedad roba-memoria aumente más de 8 veces para 2060, a 3.5 millones.
Luke Whitbeck’s life was saved by a rare disease drug, but it costs $300,000 a year.
Sky-High Prices For Orphan Drugs Slam American Families And Insurers
Orphan drugs for rare diseases have helped or saved hundreds of thousands of patients like 2-year-old Luke Whitbeck, but families and insurers are picking up the astronomical cost.
Early Alzheimer’s Gene Spells Tragedy For Patients, Opportunity For Science
Researchers are studying families from the U.S. and Mexico for clues to how Alzheimer’s develops in young patients, with the hope of finding treatments and even cures for the more common form of the disease.
Aging And Addicted: The Opioid Epidemic Affects Older Adults, Too
Using opioids to treat pain in seniors has been common, and that has led some to dependence disorders in later life.
When Pretend Play Is Real For Alzheimer’s Patients
Playing with dolls is good therapy for some elderly people with dementia. They may think the dolls are real babies, but does it matter?
Gaps In Care Persist During Transition From Hospital To Home
A partnership between San Diego County and four health systems seeks to bridge the longstanding gap between hospitals and social services.
‘America’s Other Drug Problem’: Copious Prescriptions For Hospitalized Elderly
Older people are often given a huge number of medications, and many of them are unnecessary or even harmful.
Hidden Stroke Victims: The Young
The number of hospitalizations for stroke is rising quickly among young people, even as it drops across the U.S. population as a whole.
Geriatric ERs Reduce Stress, Medical Risks For Elderly Patients
Overcrowding and chaos in traditional emergency rooms can harm seniors’ health. That’s prompting some hospitals to open ERs designed specifically for the elderly.
‘More At Peace’: Interpreters Key To Easing Patients’ Final Days
But more training is needed for such translators to do their jobs well, without miscommunications and misunderstandings.
Elderly Hospital Patients Arrive Sick, Often Leave Disabled
Some hospitals try to avoid sharp declines in the health of elderly patients by treating them in special units geared to their specific needs. This story is the first in a KHN series on the challenges hospitals face with an aging population.
Court Decision Leaves Undocumented Immigrants’ Health Care Options In Limbo
Deportation-relief programs would have meant access to subsidized health care.
