Health
Families sue Florida for threatening health care for their transgender children
Jade Ladue spent last weekend celebrating her son’s 13th birthday with him. And despite the stereotype of his age, when children are said to turn into unruly teenagers — he’s actually thriving, she says. “He has so many hobbies. He loves sports, hanging out with friends, fishing, even going to school,” she said. But she […]
Louisiana monkeypox vaccinations surpass 7,770 first doses
Louisiana has given 7,754 first doses of the monkeypox vaccine and fully vaccinated 2,341 people, which requires two shots about a month apart, as of Wednesday. Most of the vaccinations – 4,899 of the doses – have been administered in New Orleans or its surrounding parishes. It’s also the area with the largest number of […]
U.S. Senate Republicans shy away from proposed 15-week national abortion ban
WASHINGTON — U.S. Senate Republicans are skeptical about a 15-week nationwide abortion ban that GOP Sen. Lindsey Graham introduced Tuesday, with some saying they want to leave the issue to state lawmakers instead of taking it up in Congress. “I think most of the members of my conference prefer that this be dealt with at […]
Louisiana cut its homeless numbers during the pandemic; they’re back up again
Vauchel Cojoe, a former cab driver in Uptown New Orleans, found herself living under an overpass for several months of the COVID-19 pandemic. “It was overwhelming for me,” Cojoe said. “My mental health was kicked in… I’d be depressed a lot.” Cojoe was considered an essential worker during the pandemic, but an injury from an […]
Louisiana Higher Ed: NSU president now official, new cancer data and nurse needs
The Louisiana Illuminator takes a weekly look at news from universities and colleges around the state. Have a tip or want to submit a Louisiana Higher Ed news item? Contact [email protected] He’s official Marcus Jones was officially inaugurated Friday as Northwestern State University’s 20th president. Jones, whose appointment to the position was announced in November, […]
As rural homelessness increases, HUD aims money at helping people without access to shelters
WASHINGTON – The Department of Housing and Urban Development has opened up millions of dollars in funding for groups serving unhoused people in rural areas — an unprecedented move by the agency, say housing advocates. People living in cars, parks, and on the street at night, which the agency labels unsheltered homelessness, has increased across […]
New fight opens in Congress over VA policy that sidesteps state abortion bans
WASHINGTON — Democrats in the U.S. Senate are confident the Department of Veterans Affairs can implement a new policy that allows its doctors to provide abortions when the pregnancy threatens the patient’s life or health, or when it’s the result of rape or incest. The VA announced the new policy last week to cheers from Democrats […]
Hospitals divert patients to health center ‘look-alikes’ to boost finances
A growing number of hospitals are outsourcing often-unprofitable outpatient services for their poorest patients by setting up independent, nonprofit organizations to provide primary care. Medicare and Medicaid pay these clinics, known as federally qualified health center look-alikes, significantly more than they would if the sites were owned by hospitals. Like the nearly 1,400 federally qualified […]
Louisiana DCFS will get close scrutiny; it needs full accountability
Members of the Senate Health and Welfare Committee made it clear Tuesday that they intend to take a good, long look at deficiencies within the state Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS). Their hearing this week comes after the deaths of two toddlers over the summer, one from a fentanyl overdose and the other […]
Measles cases highlight Arizona’s declining vaccination rates
PHOENIX – The Maricopa County Department of Public Health recently announced three measles cases in the county as the state has continued to see year-over-year drops in how many children are being vaccinated against the highly contagious viral infection. Measles has no specific treatment once a person becomes infected, and it is estimated that measles […]
Religious employers can exclude HIV preventative drugs in their health plans, federal judge rules
AUSTIN, Texas – A federal judge in Fort Worth agreed Wednesday with a group of Christian conservatives that Affordable Care Act requirements to cover HIV prevention drugs violate their religious freedom. U.S. District Judge Reed O’Connor also agreed that aspects of the federal government’s system for deciding what preventive care is covered by the ACA […]
Some abortion bans put patients, doctors at risk in emergencies
Ever since the U.S. Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade, emergency health care providers in states that ban abortion have had to make wrenching legal and ethical judgments before treating a pregnant woman whose health or life may be in peril. “It’s happening every single day,” said Dr. Jen Villavicencio, lead for equity transformation at […]