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Latest IN HEALTH NEWS
Max McCoy
Kansas to boost access to behavioral health care with share of $72M grant
State officials say Kansas’ shift to 18th from last in the nation in an assessment of mental illness and access to behavioral health care is a direct outcome of investment in quality care.
Max McCoy
Kansas to boost access to behavioral health care with share of $72M grant
State officials say Kansas’ shift to 18th from last in the nation in an assessment of mental illness and access to behavioral health care is a direct outcome of investment in quality care.
MORe HEALTH NEWS
FDA grants full approval to Pfizer’s COVID-19 shot, now known as ‘Comirnaty’
The U.S. has its first fully approved vaccine against COVID-19, with federal health officials announcing Monday the approval of Pfizer-BioNTech’s two-dose vaccine.
Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector
ICU doctors make emotional plea for public to get vaccinated against delta variant
Physicians made life-or-death appeals Friday for Kansans to accept vaccination against COVID-19 to save themselves and loved ones at a time when spread of the delta variant threatened to buckle the KC healthcare system.
Douglas County Commission approves mask mandate for kids ages 2-11
A new mask mandate for kids ages 2-11 is now in effect in Douglas County, despite public commenters drawing comparisons to the Holocaust and threatening to unenroll their kids from public schools Wednesday night.
Tessa Weinberg/Missouri Independent
Biden mandates nursing homes require COVID vaccine or lose Medicare, Medicaid funds; facilities concerned about losing staff
Nursing homes will be required to ensure their staffers are vaccinated against COVID-19, or risk losing federal Medicare and Medicaid dollars, the Biden administration announced Wednesday in a major move on vaccinations as the Delta variant sweeps many states.
Kansas health officials report 62 deaths from COVID-19 since Monday
Steve Stites, chief medical officer at the KU Health System, says the low rate of vaccination from COVID-19 and a lack of social distancing or wearing a face covering has allowed the delta variant to bring “so much of this country to its knees.” And it’s only the beginning.
Lawrence Times graphic
Lawrence health officials working to plan COVID-19 vaccine boosters for those who are eligible
The health department has been working with partners to determine how many Douglas County residents might qualify for COVID-19 booster shots.
Tessa Weinberg/Missouri Independent
AARP calls for vaccine mandates as COVID reenters Kansas, Missouri nursing homes
With cases on the rise among both residents and staff, the nation’s leading advocacy group for the retirees is calling on nursing homes to mandate COVID-19 vaccines.
Celia Llopis-Jepsen / Kansas News Service
Kansas investigates obscure but powerful part of the drug supply chain: Pharmacy middlemen
Kansas is investigating the pharmacy middlemen industry, which claims to drive down drug costs but profits as prices escalate.
KU announces its incentives for vaccinated students: $235K in prizes
The University of Kansas is not mandating that students get COVID-19 vaccines to attend classes this fall, but it has just sweetened the pot for those who do.
Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector
COVID-19 is killing more Kansans now than a year ago
More Kansans are dying from COVID-19 now than they were a year ago, as new cases continue to escalate and the vaccine rate remains flat.
Tim Carpenter/Kansas Reflector
Kansas hospitals hesitate to require COVID-19 vaccine for staff before FDA approval
Kansas health care providers aren’t ready to mandate COVID-19 vaccines for employees, despite rising COVID-19 case numbers and a desire to promote the efficacy of vaccines.
Tessa Weinberg/Missouri Independent
As threat of delta variant looms, 44% of Kansas nursing home staff are unvaccinated
In Kansas, just more than 56% of nursing home workers are vaccinated. The state ranks 35th.
Jeff Burkhead via LMH
Wave of new COVID-19 cases in Lawrence stalls vaccination data collection; 1 vaccinated person hospitalized at LMH
Until Friday, Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health had not confirmed any reports of vaccinated Douglas County residents being hospitalized with COVID-19.
August Rudisell / The Lawrence Times
Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health launches virus transmission indicator tool; county currently in Yellow phase
A new tool from Lawrence-Douglas County Public Health officials hopes to offer simple guidance to community members and help people understand current levels of COVID-19 transmission.
Prescription for faulty communication in operating rooms: Be explicit, not polite, study shows
Research by a University of Kansas linguist and University of Missouri-Kansas City physicians pointed to the potential medical harm of ambiguous communication in operating rooms that also complicated the training of surgeons.
