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CT kids with Medicaid coverage can face long waits for eye care
Katy Golvala, The Connecticut Mirror, Oct. 18
Many independent doctors limit the number of Medicaid patients they serve or don’t see them at all, saying low reimbursement rates make treating them financially unsustainable. This limits patients’ access to care. In Connecticut, Medicaid covers a quarter of residents and about half of all children. “Children — and especially Black and Hispanic children — they’re being left by the wayside. They are not getting the healthcare they need,” said Dr. Cara DeBenedictis, a pediatric ophthalmologist. “It’s just unconscionable in Connecticut for that to happen.” She said she can accept only one or two Medicaid patients among the 30 she sees daily before it becomes financially unsustainable.
At a last-hope health clinic, desperation, kindness and fear for what’s next
Jan Hoffman, The New York Times, Oct. 19
Federally qualified health centers act as safety nets in the American health system, serving patients regardless of their ability to pay. Idaho has aggressively reduced Medicaid enrollment over the last several years, and will have some of the strictest rules for Medicaid work requirements. Community health workers have been preparing to help patients navigate those new requirements. “I truly feel like this is a calling, and I won’t do anything else,” said Debbie Lehnert, a community health worker. “But these days, I’ve never hated doing my job more.”
New arrivals in the ER? Georgia gears up to solve rural maternal health crisis
Briah Lumpkins, KFF Health News, Oct. 21
When Kara Holden approached her due date, she and her midwife mapped out emergency departments along the more-than-50-mile trip to the hospital in Greenville, South Carolina. Just in case, she also packed supplies she might need if she went into labor on the way. Her rural Georgia community’s labor and delivery unit is closed. Georgia plans to use funding from the Rural Health Transformation Program to place obstetric carts for births or emergencies in 43 hospitals that don’t have labor and delivery units. Some worry that while these will be helpful, they don’t address the root of the problem, and could leave supplies in the hands of doctors without obstetric experience.
‘Labor guides’ can help dispel myths pregnant women find online
Sofia Resnick, Stateline, Oct. 13
A new study found that providing pregnant women with “labor guides” can help combat misinformation from social media and artificial intelligence. The guides aim to empower patients with information and give them a greater sense of control during labor. The study’s lead author said more people are quoting social media or AI when resisting medical interventions. He also acknowledged that patients have valid concerns, especially Black women who report racial discrimination and not feeling heard by medical professionals about their labor and birth decisions, and who have higher rates of complications and deaths nationally.
Poverty rose in CT when pandemic benefits ended. Federal cuts will make it worse, study says
Sujata Srinivasan, Connecticut Public Radio, Oct. 14
Poverty in Connecticut was higher in 2025 than before the pandemic, and upcoming cuts to public benefits could drive poverty rates even higher, according to a new report. Researchers found that an estimated 385,500 residents, or about 10% of the state’s population, were living in poverty in 2025. Rates were higher among children, women, and people who are Black and Hispanic. The report warns that key benefits keeping thousands of residents out of poverty are now at risk because of cuts to Medicaid, SNAP, and the elimination of expanded subsidies for health insurance premiums.