‘Project NextGen’ to spend $1.4B in search for better COVID drugs, vaccines

Inspired by Operation Warp Speed, the new federal program aims to fund development and testing of new therapies that can stay ahead of an evolving virus.

By Ben Fidler • Aug. 25, 2023

Pandemic relief funds bolstered operating margins at vulnerable hospitals, Health Affairs finds

The funds have come under scrutiny, with some reports suggesting that high-performing hospitals capitalized on them to post record operating margins.

By Susanna Vogel • Aug. 23, 2023

OHSU, Legacy Health plan to combine

The deal, which the health systems said would create the largest employer in the Portland area, could be a financial lifeline for Legacy.

By Emily Olsen • Aug. 21, 2023

Physicians used social media to spread COVID misinformation to thousands, report finds

Some physicians played a role in spreading COVID-19 misinformation by posting erroneous information on social media, according to a JAMA study.

By Susanna Vogel • Aug. 16, 2023

Primary care providers say field is ‘crumbling’

Three years after the onset of the pandemic, providers remain overwhelmed, burned out and pessimistic about the future, according to a new report.

By Susanna Vogel • July 20, 2023

COVID relief funds helped some hospitals soar to ‘all-time high’ operating margins

The findings led JAMA researchers to conclude pandemic relief funds “may not have been necessary” for some for-profit hospitals and affiliated health systems.

By Susanna Vogel • July 19, 2023

States’ varying approaches complicate effort to determine impact of Medicaid redeterminations

Millions of people have been disenrolled from Medicaid, but it’s too early to get a full picture of redeterminations’ effect on vulnerable Americans, experts say.

By Emily Olsen • July 13, 2023

Patients continue to utilize telehealth for mental healthcare: Fair Health

Stakeholders await final post-pandemic telehealth guidelines after mental healthcare utilization increased during the COVID-19 pandemic.

By Susanna Vogel • July 6, 2023

State legislatures around US grapple with how to handle nursing shortages

At least 18 states have introduced or advanced safe staffing bills this year in an effort to reduce nurse burnout and improve the quality of patient care, but hospital groups are resisting.

By Susanna Vogel • June 28, 2023

Expanded federal safety net during COVID led to improved health access for adults, report finds

Between 2019 and 2022, fewer adults reported taking on medical debt or forgoing medical care due to cost, according to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

By Susanna Vogel • June 13, 2023

HHS offers aid amid Medicaid redetermination coverage losses

Secretary Xavier Becerra urged states to adopt new flexibilities to limit Medicaid churn, adding in a letter to state governors that he's "deeply concerned" about unnecessary coverage losses.

By Emily Olsen • June 13, 2023

SCOTUS rulings on COVID-19, guns, abortion will lead to increase in preventable deaths, JAMA Network Open finds

The authors said the impacts could be long-lasting, writing, “the findings of this study suggest that these Supreme Court decisions may harm the health of US citizens for years, and possibly decades, to come.”

By Susanna Vogel • June 12, 2023

The public health emergency is over. Here’s why government must prioritize funding for long COVID research.

University of Arizona professors argue for more robust infrastructure to understand and research long COVID-19, which affects one in five Americans.

By Kristen Pogreba Brown, Leslie V. Farland and Jennifer Andrews • June 9, 2023

Cue Health wins first non-emergency authorization for COVID test

The FDA’s marketing authorization for Cue’s COVID-19 molecular test could boost consumer access, but the company faces strong competition from more established diagnostic firms.

By Peter Green • June 8, 2023

Medicaid changes, end of COVID emergency hampered hospital margins in April

Inflation and high expenses are placing a burden on hospitals as they recover from COVID-19 challenges. Hospital labor expenses rose 3% in April from March, according to Kaufman Hall.

By Brian T. Horowitz • June 1, 2023

Healthcare provisions of the debt limit deal: COVID-19 funding clawbacks, no Medicaid work requirements

Congressional Republicans and the White House reached a deal over the weekend to raise the debt ceiling that includes healthcare policy wins for both sides of the aisle.

By Rebecca Pifer • May 30, 2023

Abbott cuts jobs amid dwindling demand for COVID tests

The layoffs at Abbott’s manufacturing plant come after the COVID-19 public health emergency expired this month, and the company forecasts decreasing demand for the tests this year.

By Elise Reuter • May 24, 2023

Here’s what will change when the COVID public health emergency ends

Vaccines, which have been crucial to curbing the threat of the virus, will remain free for the vast majority of people in the U.S., but over-the-counter tests will no longer be covered for most.

By Shannon Muchmore • May 10, 2023

Biden admin officially ends COVID vaccine mandate for health workers

The CMS on Wednesday issued a final rule lifting the controversial vaccine mandate in early August, though regulators said they wouldn’t enforce the mandate between now and then.

By Rebecca Pifer • Updated June 1, 2023

Nurses are less satisfied with careers, more likely to leave profession amid COVID pressures: survey

About half of nurses polled by AMN Healthcare said they were likely to encourage others to take up the profession in 2023, down from 64% in 2021.

By Shannon Muchmore • May 1, 2023

DOJ charges 18 in COVID healthcare frauds totaling $490M

It's the largest enforcement action against COVID-19 healthcare fraud schemes to date, according to regulators.

By Sydney Halleman • April 24, 2023

FDA favors single dose of updated COVID shots in shift to simplify vaccination

The regulator also authorized a second bivalent booster for adults 65 years or older, or those with weak immune systems.

By Delilah Alvarado • April 19, 2023

Care access, affordability impeding long COVID patients, study finds

Survey respondents had difficulty finding clinicians and health insurance and struggled to keep up with family medical bills in the previous year.

By Brian T. Horowitz • April 12, 2023

Telehealth use rose for third straight month in January among privately insured

Fair Health, which recently began tracking audio-only telehealth data, also found that audio-only utilization fell nationally from December to January.

By Hailey Mensik • April 5, 2023

Provider groups push back on planned nursing home staff mandates

Two hospital groups are arguing that federal staffing mandates are a “one-size-fits-all” approach to the labor crisis and that issuing mandates could reduce capacity by forcing nursing homes to shut their doors.

By Hailey Mensik • April 4, 2023