American babies are 76 percent more likely to die in their first year than babies in other rich countries, By Christopher Ingraham, January 9, 2018, Washington Post: “American babies are 76 percent more likely to die before they turn a year old than babies in other rich countries, and American children who survive infancy are 57 percent more likely to die before adulthood, according to a sobering new study published in the journal Health Affairs…”
Category: Health
Medicaid Expansion and Rural Hospitals
Hospitals in states that expanded Medicaid less likely to close, By John Daley, January 8, 2018, National Public Radio: “The expansion of Medicaid helps rural hospitals stay afloat in states like Colorado, which added 400,000 people to the health insurance program under the Affordable Care Act. Hospitals in states that expanded Medicaid were about 6 times less likely to close than hospitals in non-expansion states, according to a study by researchers at the University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus…”
State Children’s Health Insurance Program
- With children’s health program running dry, parents beg Congress: ‘Do the right thing’, By Robert Pear, December 19, 2017, New York Times: “With more and more states running out of money for the Children’s Health Insurance Program, parents took their case to Capitol Hill on Tuesday, pleading with Congress to provide money before their sons and daughters lose health care and coverage. But the program, known as CHIP, which insures nearly nine million children, took a back seat as lawmakers raced to pass a $1.5 trillion tax cut. CHIP’s fate, it appears, is now caught up in a messy fight over an end-of-the-year deal on spending that must be struck by Friday to avert a government shutdown…”
- Kids’ health insurance hangs in balance, and parents wonder what’s wrong with Congress, By Robert Samuels, December 21, 2017, Washington Post: “The lingering uncertainty in Congress over the fate of the Children’s Health Insurance Program has left Ashlee and Levi Smith torn between optimism and anxiety. As the parents of two young children who have relied on the government-backed health-care plan, the Smiths are unsure whether they should stretch their finances to put their boys, 3 and 3 months, on a private plan — or have faith that a polarized Congress will work it out…”
- 2 million kids will lose CHIP coverage right away, report finds, By Maggie Fox, December 21, 2017, NBC News: “Nearly 2 million children will lose health coverage starting next month if Congress doesn’t renew funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) by Friday, a new report projects…”