KHN

After 9/11, as our defenses against international and bioterrorism hardened, our defenses against infectious diseases shrank. By the time a deadly virus arrived on our shores last year, nearly two-thirds of Americans were living in counties that spend more than twice as much on policing as they spend on public health.

Access to physician-assisted death is expanding across the U.S., but the procedure remains in Montana’s legal gray zone more than a decade after the state Supreme Court ruled physicians could use a dying patient’s consent as a defense.

The underfunding of public health and political backlash destabilized Missouri’s vaccine rollout, creating racial inequity and forcing some residents to drive hours to get shots.

Democratic Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and Republican Sen. Marco Rubio were set to roll out a bill Friday that could help unknown thousands of service members who are sick from toxic substances they were exposed to from burning garbage in Afghanistan, Iraq and other war zones.

Gov. Gavin Newsom is painting the effort to remove him from office as a partisan power grab. But among the tens of thousands of Californians who signed the recall petition are Democrats and independent voters frustrated by his pandemic policies, from school closures to vaccine distribution.

In his campaign, President Joe Biden promised to undo policies, particularly health policies, implemented by former President Donald Trump. Yet, despite immense executive power, reversing four years of action takes time and resources.

The little-used Congressional Review Act allows a new administration and Congress to fast-track the repeal of regulations and other executive actions of the previous administration. But neither lawmakers nor the president are making any attempt to use it now.

Same building. Same procedure. Same doctor. But now you’re charged a hospital facility fee. For one Ohio Medicare patient, the copay for a shot that used to cost her about $30 went up to more than $300.

A Texas federal judge, who previously ruled the Affordable Care Act unconstitutional, has signaled his openness to ending the law’s popular coverage requirement for preventive services.

After a bruising confirmation process, Xavier Becerra was sworn in as secretary of Health and Human Services this week. The Senate also confirmed the nominations of former U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy to return to the post he held in the Obama administration, and former Pennsylvania health secretary Rachel Levine as assistant secretary for health. Levine is the first openly transgender person to receive Senate confirmation. Meanwhile, questions continue to swirl around the AstraZeneca covid vaccine, which some public health experts worry will create more hesitancy toward other vaccines.

The Tuskegee syphilis study is often cited as a reason Black Americans might hesitate to take the covid-19 vaccine. But many people say that current racism in health care and lack of access deserve more attention to move more Black Americans toward vaccine protection.

Covid vaccinations are ramping up, so “An Arm and a Leg” checked in on the effort in Philadelphia, where capitalism and compassion have clashed.

In Virginia, if you called 1-877-VAX-IN-VA to register for a vaccine and wanted help in a language other than English or Spanish, the system might hang up on you.

The $1.9 trillion covid relief bill expands subsidies for private insurance plans. That will lighten the burden on consumers, but it locks taxpayers into yet more support for the health care industry.

It’s the second spring break of the pandemic, and rumors abound about people exploiting loopholes to get vaccinated in order to party. But some students who’ve been immunized were eligible because of where they work or underlying health conditions.