Death and Redemption in an American Prison
By Markian Hawryluk
February 21, 2024
KFF Health News Original
More than a quarter century after an inmate helped start a hospice program in one of the nation’s most notorious prisons, he is trying to spread the idea.
Massage Therapists Ease the Pain of Hospice Patients — But Aren’t Easy to Find
By Kate Ruder
June 8, 2023
KFF Health News Original
The pandemic disrupted the massage industry. Now those who specialize in hospice massage therapy are in demand and redefining their roles.
More Californians Are Dying at Home. Another Covid ‘New Normal’?
By Phillip Reese
January 26, 2023
KFF Health News Original
The proportion of Californians dying at home, rather than in a hospital or nursing home, accelerated during the pandemic, a trend that has outlasted the rigid lockdowns linked to the initial shift.
Shift in Child Hospice Care Is a Lifeline for Parents Seeking a Measure of Comfort and Hope
By Bernard J. Wolfson
Photos by Heidi de Marco
September 22, 2022
KFF Health News Original
Terminally ill children, unlike adults, can get hospice services while continuing to receive life-extending or curative care. More than a decade after the inception of the federal policy, it is widely credited with improving the quality of life for ailing children and their families, even as some parents find themselves in a painful stasis.
Hospices Have Become Big Business for Private Equity Firms, Raising Concerns About End-of-Life Care
By Markian Hawryluk
July 29, 2022
KFF Health News Original
Private equity firms are seeing opportunities for profit in hospice care, once the domain of nonprofit organizations. The investment companies are transforming the industry — and might be jeopardizing patient care — in the process.
A Family Death During the Holidays Prompts Questions and Reflection
By Judith Graham
December 8, 2022
KFF Health News Original
The death of a sharp but frail patriarch just days before Thanksgiving casts a shadow on a family’s holiday season.
How Private Equity Is Investing in Health Care: A Video Primer
By Hannah Norman and Oona Tempest
October 26, 2022
KFF Health News Original
Investors are putting money into everything from emergency room obstetrics units and dermatology practices to nursing homes and hospice care — from cradle to grave.
Readers Call on Congress to Bolster Medicare and Fix Loopholes in Health Policy
February 29, 2024
KFF Health News Original
KFF Health News gives readers a chance to comment on a recent batch of stories.
Black-Owned Hospice Seeks to Bring Greater Ease in Dying to Black Families
By Blake Farmer, Nashville Public Radio
January 10, 2022
KFF Health News Original
National data shows that Black Medicare patients and their families are not making the move to comfort care as often as white patients are. Experts speculate it’s related to spiritual beliefs and widespread mistrust in the medical system due to decades of discrimination.
The DEA Relaxed Online Prescribing Rules During Covid. Now It Wants to Rein Them In.
By Arielle Zionts
June 27, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Supporters say the proposed rules would balance the goals of increasing access to health care and helping prevent medication misuse. Opponents say the rules would make it difficult for some patients — especially those in rural areas — to get care.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Medicaid Machinations
December 1, 2022
KFF Health News Original
The lame-duck Congress has returned to Washington with a long health care to-do list and only a little time. Meanwhile, some of the states that have not yet expanded Medicaid eligibility under the Affordable Care Act are rethinking those decisions. Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico, Rachel Cohrs of Stat, and Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these topics and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KHN’s Fred Clasen-Kelly, who reported and wrote the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month” feature, about a mysterious mishap during minor surgery.
Pandemic-Fueled Shortages of Home Health Workers Strand Patients Without Necessary Care
By Judith Graham
February 3, 2022
KFF Health News Original
Home health and hospice agencies are experiencing extreme worker shortages, which means they can’t provide services to all the patients seeking care.
‘My Time to Live’: Through Novel Program, Kidney Patients Get Palliative Care, Dialysis ’Til the End
By JoNel Aleccia
August 30, 2021
KFF Health News Original
Seattle’s Northwest Kidney Centers, which pioneered kidney failure treatment 50 years ago, now pairs dying patients with hospice services, without forcing them to forgo the comfort dialysis can provide.
KHN’s ‘What the Health?’: Kansas Makes a Statement
August 4, 2022
KFF Health News Original
In the first official test vote since the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, voters in Kansas’ primary said in no uncertain terms they want to keep a right to abortion in their state constitution. Meanwhile, the Senate is still working to reach a vote before summer recess on its health care-climate-tax measure, but progress is slow. Tami Luhby of CNN, Sandhya Raman of CQ Roll Call, and Rachel Cohrs of Stat join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews KHN’s Bram Sable-Smith, who wrote the latest KHN-NPR “Bill of the Month” installment about a very expensive ambulance trip.
California’s Massive Medicaid Program Works for Some, but Fails Many Others
By Angela Hart and Bernard J. Wolfson
March 2, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Medi-Cal serves more than one-third of the state’s population — offering a dizzying range of care to a diverse population. In the new “Faces of Medi-Cal” series, California Healthline will assess the program’s strengths and weaknesses through the lives and experiences of its enrollees.
She Paid Her Husband’s Hospital Bill. A Year After His Death, They Wanted More Money.
By Samantha Liss
August 29, 2023
KFF Health News Original
A widow encountered a perplexing reality in medical billing: Providers can come after patients to collect well after a bill has been paid.
Jimmy Carter Took on the Awful Guinea Worm When No One Else Would — And Triumphed
By Jason Beaubien, NPR and Sam Whitehead
March 8, 2023
KFF Health News Original
The effort to end Guinea worm disease relies almost entirely on changes in people’s behavior. There is no cure, no vaccination. When the 39th president of the United States left office, Jimmy Carter campaigned to eradicate the disease.
Information Blackout Shrouds New Reports of Deaths, Injuries, and Abuse at Montana State Hospital
By Aaron Bolton, MTPR
March 2, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Patient injuries, abuse, and neglect have continued at the Montana State Hospital since the state-run psychiatric facility lost its federal certification due to preventable patient deaths. But state officials won’t release details, citing laws making those reports confidential.
Fatigue Is Common Among Older Adults, and It Has Many Possible Causes
By Judith Graham
April 4, 2023
KFF Health News Original
Persistent fatigue — the feeling of having no energy — can contribute to frailty and affects 40% to 74% of older patients with chronic illness. Yet its causes can be elusive.
Rural Jails Turn to Community Health Workers To Help the Newly Released Succeed
By Lillian Mongeau Hughes
April 22, 2024
KFF Health News Original
To reduce recidivism, some rural counties are hiring community health workers or peer support specialists to connect people leaving custody to mental health resources, substance use treatment, medical services, and jobs.