Health
It took months, but these Idahoans got COVID-19 shots. What changed their minds?
Rey Ramos spent 127 days making a decision. But last Wednesday evening, he parked at a Saint Alphonsus mobile clinic in Caldwell. He got out of his car, put on a cloth mask, hesitated for a few minutes, then walked up to get his first dose of the Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine. Ramos was one of […]
Here’s how effective COVID-19 vaccines have been in Idaho. (Hint: Very.)
The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare last week shared a graphic to illustrate how much of Idaho’s COVID-19 activity is among the unvaccinated. Elke Shaw-Tulloch, Idaho’s Public Health Division administrator, was making a point about how getting a coronavirus vaccine can reduce the risk of getting sick with COVID-19, significantly reduce the risk of […]
Biden quietly transforms Medicaid’s safety net
The Biden administration is quietly engineering a series of expansions to Medicaid that may bolster protections for millions of low-income Americans and bring more people into the program. Biden’s efforts — which have been largely overshadowed by other economic and health initiatives — represent an abrupt reversal of the Trump administration’s moves to scale back […]
Who pays for public health? Who sets pandemic rules? Idaho changed the law
Two bills passed through the Idaho Legislature in the 2021 session that changed how Idaho’s public health districts are funded, and how much authority they have. State and local governments are now taking up a big question: “What does the future of public health look like in Idaho?” said Seth Grigg, executive director of the […]
Feds: Florida, Missouri, Texas account for 40 percent of all COVID-19 cases last week
WASHINGTON — Amid a rise in infections and hospitalizations from the surging delta variant of COVID-19, the Biden administration is boosting money and other assistance to the hardest-hit areas of the country. Last week, just three states with lower vaccination rates — Florida, Texas and Missouri — accounted for 40 percent of all cases nationwide. […]
Idaho needs to up its game in providing behavioral health services. These clinics could help.
There is a chronic shortage of behavioral health resources in Idaho. The Kaiser Family Foundation reported that about 100,000 Idaho adults had an unmet need for mental health treatment in 2018-19. Children fare no better in the Gem State. Idaho has received a 46th place ranking among the states for child access to mental health […]
Analysis: In the absence of mandates, educators pin their hopes on vaccine messaging
Originally posted on IdahoEdNews.org on July 22, 2021 As Idaho’s coronavirus case numbers surge again, vaccination numbers continue to lag. And vaccination rates are lowest among young people — just weeks before students are due to return to schools and college campuses. This puts health officials and education leaders in a bind. They say vaccines […]
As delta spreads, Idaho’s COVID-19 cases are ‘headed the wrong direction’
Idaho Health and Welfare Director Dave Jeppesen began the state’s latest COVID-19 media briefing with some bad news: After several weeks of improvement, all of Idaho’s coronavirus indicators are “now headed the wrong direction,” he said. “These trends are very concerning, particularly as we look forward to the fall, with the return of the flu […]
Boise-area hospitals are getting full again. Saint Al’s urges vaccination.
Hospitals in the Boise area are once again starting to hit capacity. It’s not just because of COVID-19 patients. But the more infectious delta variant now spreading through Idaho isn’t helping, a local hospital administrator said. State data show a rise in hospitalized patients with COVID-19. The number of patients statewide with the coronavirus had […]
Health obstacles are not death sentences – but continued funding of NIH, CDC critical for cures
Talking with Idaho Congressman Russ Fulcher about his recent cancer diagnosis a couple of weeks ago hit home with me. In many ways, being lucky is better than being good. The congressman’s cancer was discovered in conjunction with a routine physical examination. Fulcher, who normally is a ball of energy, just happened to mention to […]
Idaho Senate leaders call for meetings, not legislation, to address vaccine requirements
Republican leaders of the Idaho Senate are calling for government and business leaders to partner up to address vaccine requirements from several health care companies instead of adding regulations by writing legislation and passing laws. In a statement issued Thursday, the senators called for business leaders, Gov. Brad Little’s office, and the House of Representatives […]
Influx of med school students could overwhelm Montana resources, program leaders warn
Opening two new medical schools in Montana would stretch and possibly overwhelm the state’s physicians who provide the clinical training that students need to become doctors, according to leaders of a University of Washington medical school program that relies on those teaching physicians. The University of Washington School of Medicine’s WWAMI program in Montana requires […]