To get these headlines delivered to your inbox every week, sign up for our weekly health news roundup.
Connecticut ranks 11th in U.S. health care, but disparities remain wide, new report finds
Cris Villalonga-Vivoni, CT Insider, June 18
The number of people living without health insurance or skipping care due to cost is at an all-time low, according to a new report. Study authors warn, however, that these gains are fragile. “Proposed federal policy changes, like cuts to Medicaid funding, work requirements, making marketplace coverage harder to afford, threaten to reverse the significant progress that has been made,” said Dr. Joseph Betancourt, president of the Commonwealth Fund. Growing access to coverage has not helped address some of the ongoing and widening racial and economic disparities between communities and states. For example, in Connecticut, where the health system ranks 11th overall, the premature death rate caused by treatable health issues for Black residents is more than double that of white people.
‘People are going to die’: how Medicaid work requirements cost people their health insurance
Michael Sainato, The Guardian, June 24
Kelly Fountain plans to move her family out of Arkansas if work requirements are enacted for Medicaid. She already faces challenges and a lack of resources in obtaining support for her 24-year-old son with disabilities. “Our politicians here know very well that people are going to lose their Medicaid, they’re depending on it. People are not only going to lose their health care, they’re going to die,” she said. Medicaid recipients and advocates are warning against work requirements, pointing to Georgia and Arkansas as examples. Both states have tried some versions of work requirements for Medicaid, and saw a significant increase in individuals without health insurance and with medical debt, and no boost in employment.
The profound environmental health disparities between Latino and white neighborhoods in L.A.
Marcos Magaña, Los Angeles Times, June 24
A new data tool highlights significant environmental health disparities between Latino and white neighborhoods in Los Angeles. The tool shows that Latino communities disproportionately suffer from extreme heat and air pollution. Latino neighborhoods also have more impervious surfaces and older housing stock lacking cooling systems. Another example is that in Latino neighborhoods only 4% of land has tree canopy, compared to about 9% in non-Latino white neighborhoods. Residents of Latino neighborhoods are also more likely to hold jobs in outdoor or otherwise heat-exposed industries. Experts warn that extreme heat is not only uncomfortable; it can also be deadly.
Evictions are harmful to Black mothers’ health, their families and their communities
Eden Turner, The 19th, June 24
Black mothers are more likely to face eviction and housing discrimination, according to a new report. It found that this can have a lasting impact on their mental and physical health. For example, Black mothers who live in neighborhoods with a higher number of evictions face a 68% higher risk of premature birth. Researchers also found that these evictions can have an impact on others who may witness them happen. “Watching other people experience that is also a source of trauma. It’s not just the people that are directly being impacted by eviction, but their neighbors,” said Shawnita Sealy-Jefferson, an associate professor of social epidemiology at Ohio State University.
OPINION: Data, death, and delay — America’s maternal health crisis
Amy Sullivan, Undark Magazine, June 26
The United States ranks first among 14 other high-income, industrialized nations for the worst maternal mortality rates. Roughly 80% of maternal deaths in the U.S. are avoidable. In response to this crisis, every state has a maternal mortality review committee (MMRC) dedicated to reviewing pregnancy-related deaths, determining whether those deaths were avoidable, and providing recommendations to avoid those deaths in the future. However, some states have created roadblocks for their committees to carry out their reviews. Idaho, for example, failed to renew funding for its MMRC in 2023. Although the funding has since been restored, there is now a gap in information.