Thousands Die From Opioid Overdoses in Florida Each Year. Medicaid Expansion Could Lessen the Toll, Experts Say.
U.S. drug overdose deaths have soared over the past decade, and every state is being impacted. But research suggests states that haven’t expanded Medicaid coverage, such as Florida, are passing up an opportunity to save more lives.
RadIO Reports
The Possible Impact of Medicaid Expansion — and Effects of Medicaid Unwinding — on Florida’s Opioid Addiction Care
Florida public radio station WUSF examines access to opioid addiction treatment in the state.
Medicaid ‘Unwinding’ Can Be Dangerous for Those Who Need Opioid Addiction Medications
This report for NPR’s “All Things Considered” examines how the Medicaid “unwinding” has worsened health risks for patients in treatment for opioid addiction and strained resources among safety-net providers.
East Texas County Fights a Bitter Battle Over a Reborn Hospital
As a rural hospital in Crockett struggles with the cost of indigent and other unpaid care, a torn community weighs how to keep its hospital open and financially viable.
Texas House Speaker Led Efforts to Improve Health-Care Access. His District Still Struggles.
State Rep. Dade Phelan has made health care a priority as Texas House speaker, reflecting his district’s chronic health gaps. But like most Republicans, he’s never backed full Medicaid expansion. GOP resistance could harden after elections.
The Uninsured in Texas Lawmakers’ Districts
Here’s a look at the uninsured rates for adults and children in every Texas legislator’s district, as well as for the Texas U.S. House delegation.
About ‘The Holdouts’
“The Holdouts” is a collaborative project involving more than a dozen newsrooms committed to shedding light on the people and places most impacted by lawmakers’ refusal to expand Medicaid coverage in 10 states. Read more about the series, the media partners and the funders.
Uninsured Country: Affordable Health Care Eludes Many Family Farmers and Ranchers
Americans who operate small family farms and ranches often cannot get adequate health care and insurance. A journalist who spent her summers on her family’s Texas ranch writes about relatives’ struggles and the challenges rural residents face today.
A Small Town Struggles to Survive in the Heart of Mississippi’s Hospital Crisis
Hospitals keep rural Mississippi communities’ residents and economies alive. When they close, it can be devastating.
Is Tennessee Aiding the ‘Silent Killer’?
Expanding Medicaid in the state could help curb heart disease — the leading cause of death in Memphis — and its risk factors.
Medicaid Expansion Can’t Pass the Wyoming Legislature. So What’s the Alternative?
No obvious alternatives have emerged from the statehouse. But a few imperfect options remain.
In East Texas, Living With Diabetes and No Health Insurance
Access to affordable health care can mean the difference between managing diabetes well or suffering its most debilitating outcomes. The risks rise where diabetes and uninsured rates are high.
In Two-State Texarkana, a Widening Divide in Health Care Access
Texarkana is split into twin cities — one in Arkansas with Medicaid expansion, one in Texas without it. More than a decade after the Affordable Care Act was signed, differences have emerged.
The expansion debate in kansas
Kansas Governor Unveils Revenue-Neutral Medicaid Expansion Plan With Work Requirement
Gov. Laura Kelly unveiled a Medicaid expansion proposal Thursday designed to defuse opposition, with a work requirement, revenue streams to offset the state’s cost and abortion restrictions.
Kansas’ Unrivaled Rural Hospital Crisis: 58% at Risk of Closing, 82% Lost Money on Patient Care
Financial strain at four of every five rural Kansas hospitals are helping propel advocates for Medicaid expansion, which would trigger a large infusion of federal funds.
How a Wider Medicaid Program in Kansas Could Help the Incarcerated
Local jails struggling to provide adequate mental health treatment to inmates could benefit from expansion.
Advocates Plan New Push for Kansas Medicaid Expansion Despite Ridicule From GOP Leaders
Despite what opponents say, most adults in Kansas who would gain health care coverage through Medicaid expansion are already working. Expansion could save taxpayers money.
What is ‘Medicaid Unwinding’? Unclear Messaging Could Leave Thousands Without Coverage
Thousands in Georgia — one of 10 states without Medicaid expansion — are at risk of losing coverage during the unwinding, and advocates say some outreach efforts aren’t reaching vulnerable communities.
Packed East Texas Safety-Net Clinic Finally Gets Federal Lifeline
Thousands of uninsured and underinsured residents of Henderson County depend on the clinic for care.
Advocates Reflect on North Carolina’s Approval of Medicaid Expansion
When North Carolina’s governor signed a bill enacting Medicaid expansion, advocates gathered to celebrate and recall nearly a decade of fighting for the change.
Rural Safety-Net Clinic Flush With Patients Takes a Step Toward Sustainability
A recent inspection could lead to millions of federal dollars for the East Texas Community Clinic, which mostly serves the uninsured and underinsured.
Florida County Offers Free Health Plan for Residents Ineligible for Medicaid. Sign-Ups Are Falling Short.
Hillsborough County’s program uses a half-cent sales tax to pay for health care for thousands of residents earning up to 175% of the federal poverty level. But enrollment isn’t as high as it could be.
A Daughter Asserted Kansas’ Failure to Expand Medicaid Cut Her Mother’s Life Short
The Republican-led House and Senate are not keen to broaden eligibility under the Affordable Care Act.
Why Do Texas Republicans Still Oppose Medicaid Expansion?
More than two-thirds of Texans support Medicaid expansion. But on the eve of the midterm elections, the subject is still taboo for the state GOP. Why?
RURAL HEALTH CARE
A Free Medical Clinic Opened in Rural East Texas. Thousands Poured In for Help.
Texas ranks dead last in access to health care and has the highest uninsured rate in the country. So two longtime doctors in rural Henderson County created a homegrown safety net to fill the gap.
Public Health Watch Reporters: Our Year Investigating Health Care Gaps in East Texas
Writers Kim Krisberg and David Leffler tell their story about reporting on two doctors in Gun Barrel City, Texas, who opened a clinic for low-income, uninsured residents and the impacts of their investigation.
New Mothers Face Uncertainty as Texas Medicaid Extension Hits Snag
When an El Paso mother experienced headaches and high blood pressure in the months after giving birth, she turned to a discount program at University Medical Center to cover the costs of a checkup. Another El Paso mother with postpartum concerns scheduled an appointment with a health care provider in Ciudad Juárez. Neither woman realized…
COMMENTARY
Misplaced Priorities in Texas
The Texas Legislature is wrapping up another session without addressing the state’s high rate of residents without health insurance. For a physician, meeting these patients’ needs can be impossible.
Uninsured in America: A Doctor’s Perspective
As a family physician in Austin’s community clinics for 13 years, I saw hundreds of patients without health insurance. Some of their stories still haunt me.
Medicaid and the Public Health Emergency
Enrollment in Medicaid programs has reached an all-time high, but millions of low-income people are likely to lose coverage unless states conduct aggressive outreach.
Mother Battling Cancer Is Impatient With Kansas Legislature’s Denial of Medicaid Expansion
The plight of Katy Everitt reflects the struggles of many Kansans who aren’t eligible for Medicaid coverage. GOP opposition has left Kansas among 12 states without broadened eligibility for the program.
As Gulf South Lawmakers Fight Over Medicaid, New Moms Weigh In: ‘Safety Nets Do Save Lives’
The COVID-19 health emergency could end soon, and tens of thousands of new mothers could lose their health-care coverage unless legislators in Mississippi and Alabama take action.
North Carolina Senate Announces Medicaid Expansion Bill
In a move that many health care advocates have been pushing for years, the state Senate introduced a bill on Wednesday that would expand the state’s Medicaid program to some half million-plus low-income North Carolinians.