Health Care

Idaho Residents Share Worries Over Medicaid, Mental Health, and Dental Care With Lawmakers

Samantha Wright and Associated Press — Fri, 08 Feb 2013 21:40:50 +0000

Dental care for low-income adults. Help for physical and mental disabilities. Expanding Idaho’s Medicaid. Those were some of the issues that came up during a public hearing Friday during a joint meeting of the Legislature’s Health and Welfare Committees.

The Ideological Tug-Of-War Continues Over Creating An Idaho Health Insurance Exchange

Emilie Ritter Saunders — Wed, 06 Feb 2013 01:16:32 +0000

The debate among Idaho lawmakers started in earnest Tuesday over whether the state should create its own health insurance exchange.

Legislators Question What Affordable Care Act Means For Idaho

Samantha Wright — Mon, 30 Jul 2012 22:44:30 +0000

Some Idaho lawmakers met Monday to talk about the implications of the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decision on the Affordable Care Act. Idaho was one of the state’s that brought a lawsuit to strike down the health care law. The court upheld the law and now state legislators on the Health Care Task Force are discussing what's next.

Idaho's Motorcycle Fatalities Drop

Jessica Murri — Mon, 30 Jul 2012 19:52:59 +0000

Sunday’s motorcycle crash on Bogus Basin Road near Boise was the latest in a string of wrecks over the last few weeks. Police say the rider slid on a patch of sand. Paramedics rushed him to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. Other motorcyclists this summer haven’t been so fortunate.

Idaho Researcher Helps Olympian Race with Prosthetic Legs

Jessica Murri — Fri, 27 Jul 2012 23:35:20 +0000

Oscar Pistorius looks like a normal guy, from the knees up. He looks fit, well-dressed, and capable. But without the lower half of his calves and shins, his ability to sprint in the 2012 Olympics were called into question. That is, until a University of Idaho professor helped prove Pistorius can compete beside anyone in the world.

Pistorius was born without fully-developed lower legs. He has used two prosthetic legs all his life. That won’t stop him from racing in the Men’s 400 Meter August 3rd, 4th, and 5th.

Seattle Group Rallies For Idaho Woman Charged With Illegal Abortion

Jessica Robinson — Wed, 18 Jul 2012 15:28:26 +0000

An Idaho woman challenging her state’s anti-abortion laws has not received much attention from groups on either side of the abortion debate. But for the first time, one group is holding a rally to support her in Seattle today.

Jennie Linn McCormack of Pocatello, Idaho was arrested last year after local police learned she had terminated a 20-week pregnancy at home.

Republican House Leaders Reject Medicaid Expansion While Retired Man Launches Petition For It

Molly Messick — Thu, 12 Jul 2012 16:45:25 +0000

Last week, Boise resident Will Cavanaugh, 77, found an email in his inbox. It was from left-leaning political action group MoveOn.org. Would he like to write a petition about anything? “Sure,” he thought. Healthcare was on his mind, given the recent Supreme Court ruling. “How about the Medicaid expansion?”

Idaho Senator Says Some Health Care Rules Will Stay

Wed, 27 Jun 2012 12:00:00 +0000

The U.S. Supreme Court will make a much anticipated decision this week on the nation’s health care law. Idaho's senior senator believes some parts of the law will survive whatever the court decides.

Son Takes Mom’s Ashes On Marathon Ride, To Fight Alzheimer’s Disease

Samantha Wright — Mon, 18 Jun 2012 12:35:24 +0000

This Wednesday marks the longest day of the year with 16 hours of daylight. The Alzheimer’s Association will use this day to honor people who have the disease and their caregivers. The group asks people to use all of that daylight to push their limits physically and to raise money for research.

ISU Researchers Look For Links To Autism

Thu, 07 Jun 2012 21:44:28 +0000

Researchers at Idaho State University used fish to discover a possible environmental trigger for autism. They exposed fish to commonly prescribed drugs at levels typically found in tap water. After a while, those fish showed changes in a genetic process that mimics patterns found in some people with autism.

Michael Thomas, Associate Professor of Biology at ISU, led the research team. He says, "What you’re drinking is a cocktail that represents the net drug dosages of the community upstream from you."

Idaho Woman Arrested For Abortion Is Uneasy Case For Both Sides

Jessica Robinson — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 12:29:10 +0000

An Idaho woman arrested for inducing her own abortion is taking her case to federal court. Jennie Linn McCormack was charged last year under an obscure Idaho law for ending her pregnancy with RU-486. She joins an increasing number of women who get the so-called abortion pill off the internet. McCormack’s attorney says he’s willing to take the challenge all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. Meanwhile, neither pro-choice nor pro-life groups are paying attention to the case.

Idaho's Teen Birth Rate Is Average

Adam Cotterell — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 20:40:44 +0000

A new federal study says Idaho’s rate of teens having babies has fallen to record lows along with most states. But Idaho is only average.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the teen birth rate in the United States has been dropping steadily for several years and now it’s down to the lowest point since it started keeping track in the 1940s. The authors of the study largely credit sex education initiatives. Sex ed can be a sensitive subject in a socially conservative state like Idaho and programs vary widely from place to place.

Care Groups Line Up To Receive Oregon Health Dollars

Chris Lehman — Thu, 05 Apr 2012 15:51:55 +0000

The state of Oregon wants to reshape the way it provides medical services to low income people in rural parts of the state. And it’s getting a robust response from health care providers. Before a deadline this week, state health administrators received more than 50 proposals to create regional collaborations. The strategy is part of what Oregon’s Governor is calling a health-care transformation.

Idaho’s AG Watches Historic Supreme Court Hearing

Samantha Wright — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 23:43:37 +0000

This week the U.S. Supreme Court heard three days of arguments over landmark healthcare legislation. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act generated a large crowd at the Court, all wanting a front row seat. Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden was among them.

Study: Health Insurers Charge Idaho Women Hundreds More Than Men

Jessica Robinson — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 23:31:19 +0000

A new nationwide study says Idaho has one of the widest gaps between how much money insurers charge men and women. The survey by the National Women’s Law Center found women pay around $700 more each year. The practice, known as “gender rating,” is banned under the health care overhaul now before the U.S. Supreme Court this week.

Demand For Volunteer Medical Flights Doubles In Down Economy

Erik Neumann — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 10:30:46 +0000

Angel Flight is a group of volunteer pilots. They fly people with medical needs from small towns to big cities where major hospitals are.

During the down economy the last few years, requests for these missions have nearly doubled. So far the group has managed to keep up, but the growing number of patients needing a ride doesn’t seem to to be slowing down.

Expert Slams Medical Care At Idaho Prison

Mon, 19 Mar 2012 22:09:29 +0000

A federal judge released a doctor’s report today on health care at Idaho’s oldest and largest prison. Dr. Marc Stern wrote the study. Stern “found serious problems with the delivery of medical and mental health care” at the Idaho State Correctional Institution. Stern believes that “authorities are deliberately indifferent to the serious health care needs” of the inmates.

U.S. Doctor Helps Hundreds Of Medical Students In South Sudan

Sadie Babits — Sat, 17 Mar 2012 00:26:47 +0000

It’s hard to imagine the U.S. with just a few dozen doctors to help everyone. But in the country of South Sudan that is the reality. There are 50 licensed doctors to help more than eight million people. Thomas Burke knows this situation well. He’s the chief of the Division of Global Health and Human Rights.