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She was in labor at a Florida hospital. Then she was in Zoom court for refusing a c-section.
Amy Yurkanin, ProPublica, March 20
Cherise Doyley, a pregnant mother of three, arrived at the University of Florida Health hospital planning to have a vaginal delivery. Doctors were concerned about uterine rupture but understanding there was a less than 2% chance of the complication, Doyley did not consent to a c-section. While in labor, she was forced into a virtual court hearing for refusing the procedure, without a lawyer or patient advocate. She explained she’d had previous complications with c-sections, but a judge ruled doctors could give her an emergency c-section without her consent. Overnight, she delivered her baby via c-section and was once again forced to sit in a virtual hearing, before even seeing her daughter in the neonatal intensive care unit.
Doulas can improve health outcomes for women and babies. Insurers are taking notice.
Marina Kopf and Zinhle Essamuah, NBC News, March 21
Typically, doula services are not covered by insurance, putting them out of reach for many women. This year, UnitedHealthcare became the first major insurer to start adding a doula benefit to plans. Over the last 13 years, more than two dozen states have also required Medicaid coverage for doulas. Doulas support women during pregnancy, birth, and postpartum and studies show doulas can decrease the rates of preterm births, cesarean sections, and postpartum depression, especially in women of color. “Doulas are a health equity intervention,” said doula Alexia Franco Pettersen.
The middle-class suburbanites who sell their blood plasma to get by
Kurtis Lee and Robert Gebeloff, The New York Times, March 20
Joseph Briseño of Texas works long shifts as a crane operator, earning about $50,000 a year. On two of his days off, he donates plasma for about $70 a day to help cover expenses like gas and groceries. He is among an estimated 215,000 people who donate plasma. Once associated mostly with the lowest-income Americans, donating plasma appears to be increasingly common among the middle-class. A recent study found newer plasma centers are more likely to open in middle-class neighborhoods than low-income areas where older centers tend to be located.
RFK Jr. and Dr. Oz have a plan to save rural health care. Here’s the catch.
Lauren Weber, The Washington Post, March 24
Leaders in the current administration have proposed using advanced technology to improve rural health care, including AI nurses, using robots to give ultrasounds to pregnant women and using AI avatars to address behavioral health. However, providers worry these solutions may be oversold. While officials say the idea is not to replace physicians but rather to support them, experts worry that providers could become overly reliant on AI. Rural providers also say that the one-time $50 billion investment in innovation won’t make up for the $137 billion in Medicaid dollars rural areas are expected to lose over the next decade.
Medicaid cuts could add pressure to already-stressed psychiatric units
Nada Hassanein, Stateline, March 23
Federal Medicaid cuts could exact a heavy toll on already struggling psychiatric units at hospitals across the country. An estimated $886.8 billion is expected to be cut from federal Medicaid spending over the next decade, largely because new work requirements are expected to push people off of their health coverage. The cuts will have a significant effect on mental health care because Medicaid covers more people than any other public or private insurer. Policy experts say the Medicaid changes will force hospital psychiatric units to provide care to many more people who don’t have insurance.