Storing Guns Away From Home Could Reduce Suicides, but Legal Hurdles Loom
Safe storage maps show gun owners where to put their firearms for safekeeping if they experience a mental health crisis. The idea has support among some gun enthusiasts, but legal obstacles threaten wider adoption.
Tiny, Rural Hospitals Feel the Pinch as Medicare Advantage Plans Grow
More than half of seniors are enrolled in private Medicare Advantage plans instead of traditional Medicare. Rural enrollment has increased fourfold and many small-town hospitals say that threatens their viability.
Using Opioid Settlement Cash for Police Gear Like Squad Cars and Scanners Sparks Debate
State and local governments will receive a windfall of more than $50 billion over 18 years from settlements with companies that made, sold, or distributed opioid painkillers. Using the funds for law enforcement has triggered important questions about what the money was meant for.
Feds Try to Head Off Growing Problem of Overdoses Among Expectant Mothers
Homicides, suicides, and drug overdoses have driven rising rates of pregnancy-related death in the U.S. This fall, six states received federal funding for substance use treatment interventions to prevent at least some of those deaths.
Covid Relief Payments Triggered Feds to Demand Money Back From Social Security Recipients
Some Social Security beneficiaries say the government is clawing back benefits after they received covid stimulus payments that were supposed to be exempt from asset limits.
Doctors Abandon a Diagnosis Used to Justify Police Custody Deaths. It Might Live On, Anyway.
The American College of Emergency Physicians agreed to withdraw its 2009 white paper on excited delirium, removing the only official medical pillar of support left for the theory that has played a key role in absolving police of culpability for in-custody deaths.
Feds Hope to Cut Sepsis Deaths by Hitching Medicare Payments to Treatment Stats
A new rule sets specific treatment metrics for suspected sepsis cases in an effort to reduce deaths, but some experts say the measures could add to antibiotic overuse and need to be more flexible.
Hospitales perderán reembolsos de Medicare si no combaten mejor la mortal sepsis
La sepsis es la respuesta extrema del organismo a una infección y afecta cada año a 1,7 millones de adultos en Estados Unidos.
More Schools Stock Overdose Reversal Meds, but Others Worry About Stigma
Colorado is among several states that ensure schools have access to the opioid overdose reversal medication naloxone for free or at reduced cost. But most districts hadn’t signed up by the start of the school year for a state distribution program amid stigma around the lifesaving treatment.
Más escuelas tienen el medicamento para revertir sobredosis, pero otras se preocupan por el estigma
La Administración de Salud Mental y Abuso de Sustancias federal recomienda que las escuelas, incluidas las primarias, tengan naloxona disponible, ante el aumento de las sobredosis mortales de opioides, especialmente de la potente droga fentanilo.
Police Blame Some Deaths on ‘Excited Delirium.’ ER Docs Consider Pulling the Plug on the Term.
The American College of Emergency Physicians will vote in early October on whether to disavow its 2009 research paper on excited delirium, which has been cited as a cause of death and used as a legal defense by police officers in several high-profile cases.
A Decades-Long Drop in Teen Births Is Slowing, and Advocates Worry a Reversal Is Coming
After three decades of declines in teen pregnancies, data shows the rates are starting to plateau. The reversal of “Roe v. Wade,” coupled with efforts to suspend sex education in schools and higher rates of youth mental health issues post-pandemic, could culminate in a perfect storm.
Massive Kaiser Permanente Strike Looms as Talks Head to the Wire
Both sides, still at loggerheads over pay and staffing, agreed to keep bargaining after unions announced a possible strike Oct. 4-7. If no deal is reached, a walkout by about 75,000 KP workers in five states could disrupt care.
Pot Boom Wakes Sleepy Dinosaur, Colorado
A small town close to the Colorado-Utah state line strikes it rich with marijuana sales.
Officials Agree: Use Settlement Funds to Curb Youth Addiction. But the ‘How’ Gets Hairy.
Parents, educators, and elected officials agree that investing in school-based prevention efforts could help curb the rising rate of youth drug overdoses. The well-known D.A.R.E. program is one likely choice, but its effectiveness is in question.
How Will Rural Americans Fare During Medicaid Unwinding? Experts Fear They’re on Their Own
As states review their Medicaid rolls after the expiration of a pandemic-era prohibition against kicking recipients off the government insurance program, experts say the lack of help available to rural Americans in navigating insurance options puts them at greater risk of losing health coverage than people in metropolitan areas.
As More Patients Email Doctors, Health Systems Start Charging Fees
Doctors say billing for email consultations reduces message volume and gives them more free time. The increasingly prevalent practice has also raised fears about negative impacts to patient care.
Un padre soñaba con una casa para su familia. La deuda médica casi los deja en la calle
En todo el país, la deuda médica obliga a legiones de estadounidenses a hacer sacrificios dolorosos. Muchos recortan gastos en alimentos, asumen trabajos adicionales o agotan sus ahorros para la jubilación. Miles no pueden conseguir vivienda.
Montana State Officials Seek More Control Over Judicial Involuntary Commitments
Health department officials are asking legislators to change criminal commitment laws amid a bottleneck at the Montana State Hospital.
A Father Dreamed of a Home for His Family. Medical Debt Nearly Pushed Them Onto the Streets.
As cities like Denver struggle to make homes more affordable, medical debt keeps housing out of reach for millions of Americans.
