Poverty News and Research

RSS

How to get rid of medical debt — or avoid it in the first place

Lori Mangum was 32 when apple-size tumors sprouted on her head. Now — six years and 10 surgeries later — the skin cancer is gone. But her pain lives on, in the form of medical debt.

1 Jul 2022

East African newborns nearly five times more likely to have neural tube defects

Newborns, whose brains, spines or spinal cords do not properly develop in utero, can be born with neural tube defects (NTD), increasing their risk of physical disabilities, intellectual impairments and death.

30 Jun 2022

Genetic screening results just got harder to handle under new abortion rules

Ann was 15 weeks pregnant with her fourth child when the results of her prenatal genetic test came back last August.

27 Jun 2022

UK announces new program to support girls’ education in Pakistan

Launched in May this year, the Prime Minister's Girls' Education Action Plan sets out practical steps to deliver the UK's global objectives on girls' education.

26 Jun 2022

Trump’s legacy looms large as Colorado aims to close the Hispanic insurance gap

Armando Peniche Rosales has a crooked toe that for years has predicted the weather, growing sensitive when rain or cold is coming.

23 Jun 2022

Medical bills can shatter lives. North Carolina may act to ‘de-weaponize’ that debt.

When Erin Williams-Reavis faced a $3,500 surgery bill, the hospital offered to let her pay in $300 monthly installments.

21 Jun 2022

Area-level education and income linked with patients' lung cancer stage at the time of diagnosis

Lung cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related deaths in the United States, and early detection and treatment are key to prolonging survival in patients.

20 Jun 2022

Double shifts, credit card debt, and family loans when twins were born early

There were times after her sons were born 10 years ago when Allyson Ward wondered whether she and her family would lose their home.

16 Jun 2022

Nineteen surgeries over five years. Then they lost their house.

Cindy Powers was 34 when doctors discovered she had a twisted intestine, a potentially life-threatening condition that doctors told her required immediate surgery.

16 Jun 2022

Hospital lawsuits and garnished wages on top of diabetes

Woodruff, who was diagnosed with diabetes in his 20s, had a good job. He worked for a truck dealership in this small city 175 miles northwest of New York while his wife, Elizabeth, completed her degree in social work. His job had health benefits. The couple had recently bought a home.

16 Jun 2022

Denied care for a dangerous infection because of past-due bills

Ariane Buck knew it was important to stay on top of his health care.

16 Jun 2022

A surgery shatters retirement plans and leads to bankruptcy

Sherrie and Michael Foy thought they'd made all the right preparations when they moved to rural southwestern Virginia after Michael retired from Consolidated Edison, New York's largest utility.

16 Jun 2022

Upended: How medical debt changed their lives

Some lost their homes. Some emptied their retirement accounts. Some struggled to feed and clothe their families.

16 Jun 2022

100 million people in America are saddled with health care debt

Elizabeth Woodruff drained her retirement account and took on three jobs after she and her husband were sued for nearly $10,000 by the New York hospital where his infected leg was amputated.

16 Jun 2022

Stanford researcher outlines pollution and climate change threats to children's health

Horror stories of children trapped in hot cars make headlines, but air pollution and impacts from a changing climate are more constant threats.

15 Jun 2022

Social stress factors have a direct impact on cellular mechanisms that drive deadly breast cancer

Chronically stressful conditions of daily life such as racism, pollution and poverty have a direct impact on the cellular mechanisms that drive lethal, invasive forms of breast cancer, according to a study led by Duke Cancer Institute researchers.

13 Jun 2022

Ventilation key to reducing COVID-19 spread in schools

Recently, Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) evaluated the aforementioned data on ventilation improvement strategies implemented in kindergarten through grade 12 (K–12) public schools in the United States.

8 Jun 2022

Fathers’ depression in economically struggling families may be damaging to the couple's relationship

When fathers in economically struggling families show symptoms of depression, the effects may be particularly damaging to the couple's relationship, a new study suggests.

8 Jun 2022

Pandemic-era changes to prescribing opioid use disorder treatment improved treatment outcomes

Pandemic-era changes to prescribing guidelines for the lifesaving drug buprenorphine led to improved treatment outcomes for patients with opioid use disorder in Philadelphia, according to a recently published study in the journal Drug and Alcohol Dependence Reports from researchers at Drexel University's Dornsife School of Public Health.

3 Jun 2022