Andy Miller

Toxic Gas Adds to a Long History of Pollution in Southwest Memphis

KFF Health News Original

People across the nation claim cancer-causing emissions from local sterilizing plants are making them sick. It’s an example of environmental racism, say residents of one predominantly Black area in southwest Memphis, Tennessee, where life expectancy is much shorter than county and state averages.

The GOP Keeps Pushing Medicaid Work Requirements, Despite Setbacks

KFF Health News Original

Work requirements in Medicaid expansion programs are back on the agenda in many statehouses — despite their lackluster track record. In Mississippi, the idea has momentum from GOP lawmakers advancing legislation to expand Medicaid. In Kansas, the Democratic governor proposed work requirements to try to soften Republican opposition to expansion. (She’s had little luck, so […]

Toxic Gas That Sterilizes Medical Devices Prompts Safety Rule Update

KFF Health News Original

The Environmental Protection Agency is tightening regulation of ethylene oxide, a carcinogenic gas used to sterilize medical devices. The agency is trying to balance the interests of the health care industry supply chain with those of communities where the gas creates airborne health risks.

Opposition to Medicaid Expansion Thaws in an Unexpected Place: The Deep South

KFF Health News Original

For more than a decade, some Southern states have resisted Medicaid expansion under the Affordable Care Act, even though data suggest it could help their residents. Today, the large majority of uninsured Americans who would gain coverage under Medicaid expansion — and who would benefit from affordable access to care — live in non-expansion states […]

CDC to Reduce Funding for States’ Child Vaccination Programs

KFF Health News Original

Citing the recent debt ceiling deal, the CDC is trimming its funding to child vaccination programs that focus on communities vulnerable to disease outbreaks. The cuts come despite data showing the percentage of children getting vaccinated has dropped in recent years.