Health
Idaho House introduces late-session medical cannabis bill
A new bill designed to provide for a “tightly regulated system” of medical cannabis was introduced Friday morning in the Idaho House of Representatives. House Health and Welfare Committee Chairman John Vander Woude, R-Nampa, introduced House Bill 370, the Idaho Medical Cannabis Act, as a personal bill on the floor of the Idaho House on […]
To protect Idaho’s youth, we should provide health care options — not take them away
As a doctor, I have seen a lot of people in their most vulnerable moments. But some visits with patients stick to your soul and never leave. I’ll never forget one of my most heartbreaking visits, when a transgender patient looked at me with pleading eyes and asked, “Am I safe here?” My patient was […]
Idaho legislators request three new reports from the Office of Performance Evaluations
Idaho legislators have asked the Office of Performance Evaluations to produce reports on the Idaho Health Data Exchange’s bankruptcy, Medicaid hospital rates and forensic death investigations. The Joint Legislative Oversight Committee that oversees the Office of Performance Evaluations voted Thursday to request separate, formal reports on each of the three topics that will be delivered […]
Moderna plan to hike COVID vaccine price to $130 a dose rebuked at U.S. Senate hearing
WASHINGTON — The CEO of Moderna on Wednesday defended the company’s decision to drastically increase the price of its COVID-19 vaccine later this year, arguing that an expected drop in demand, changes to its distribution process and the overall benefit of the vaccine warrant the higher cost. That decision was met with bipartisan condemnation from […]
Idaho Legislature’s JFAC rewrites failed Medicaid budget
The Idaho Legislature’s Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee on Wednesday morning rewrote the fiscal year 2024 Medicaid budget that the Idaho House of Representatives killed on Monday. The budget includes funding for five programs, including expanded Medicaid coverage for adults making under 138% of the federal poverty limit, which 60.6% of Idaho voters approved via a 2018 […]
Biden signs bill declassifying information on the origin of COVID-19
WASHINGTON — The U.S. director of national intelligence has three months to declassify information on potential links between China’s Wuhan Institute of Virology and the origin of COVID-19, after President Joe Biden signed legislation Monday. The bill was one of the first Biden has signed since a 118th Congress split between the two parties began […]
Ending a pregnancy in 14 states leaves few options. Some are looking to Europe and India for help.
The pills came in a dark salmon-colored envelope sealed with a plastic covering that traveled more than 7,000 miles, over a dozen time zones from Nagpur, India, in almost exactly one week. They were placed partially under the doormat of a home in a state with one of the most restrictive abortion bans in the […]
Idaho House kills Medicaid budget
The Idaho House of Representatives voted Monday to kill the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare’s Medicaid budget, placing a potential barrier in the way of wrapping up the 2023 legislative session this week. House Bill 334 failed on a 34-36 vote after several Republicans complained about the overall cost of the Medicaid budget, which […]
Bill criminalizing gender care for trans youth clears hurdle in Idaho Legislature
A few Idaho state senators from both major political parties said in a Friday committee hearing that they can’t support an existing bill to criminalize all gender-affirming medical care for transgender youth — but the committee’s Republicans were open to supporting an amended version. The Senate Judiciary and Rules Committee sent House Bill 71 to […]
Citing staffing issues and political climate, North Idaho hospital will no longer deliver babies
Idaho’s Bonner General Health, the only hospital in Sandpoint, announced Friday afternoon that it will no longer provide obstetrical services to the city of more than 9,000 people, meaning patients will have to drive 46 miles for labor and delivery care moving forward. “We have made every effort to avoid eliminating these services,” said Ford […]
New report shows Idaho’s shortage of direct care workers is worse than national average
A new report released to the Idaho Legislature on Thursday by the Office of Performance Evaluations found the state needs at least 3,000 more direct care workers to serve older and disabled Idahoans who rely on those professionals to remain in their homes. The report found Idaho’s direct care workforce shortage is worse than the […]
As opioids overdose deaths keep rising, report urges lawmakers to develop new approaches
WASHINGTON — Lawmakers should view America’s staggering opioid crisis, including the rise of illicit fentanyl, through an “ecosystems” approach, argues a massive RAND Corporation report published Thursday. That means they should examine the gaps and interconnections among emergency response, data collection, education, treatment, housing and law enforcement, the report advises. The 600-page volume — which […]