skip to main content
skip to newscasts

Thursday, March 28, 2024

Public News Service Logo
facebook instagram linkedin reddit youtube twitter
view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Pulling back the curtains on wage-theft enforcement in MN; Trump's latest attack is on RFK, Jr; NM LGBTQ+ equality group endorses 2024 'Rock Star' candidates; Michigan's youth justice reforms: Expanded diversion, no fees.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg says rebuilding Baltimore's Key Bridge will be challenging and expensive. An Alabama Democrat flips a state legislature seat and former Connecticut senator Joe Lieberman dies at 82.

view newscast page
play newscast audioPlay

Historic wildfires could create housing and health issues for rural Texans, a Kentucky program helps prison parolees start a new life, and descendants of Nicodemus, Kansas celebrate the Black settlers who journeyed across the 1870s plains seeking self-governance.

Nevada Making Major Progress in Insuring Women 18-44

play audio
Play

Thursday, May 23, 2019   

CARSON CITY, Nev. – Nevada is making major progress reducing the ranks of the uninsured – with one of the sharpest drops in the nation – 13 percentage points for women age 18 to 44, from 2013 to 2017 – according to a new report.

The report, co-sponsored by the Georgetown University Center for Children and Families, credits the state's expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act.

Center Executive Director Joan Alker says the expansion of coverage for mothers has major benefits for their children.

"Things like maternal-depression screening and treatment, treatment for substance-use disorders, smoking cessation – all of those are benefits that Medicaid can and does cover,” says Alker. “So, those are likely to have really positive, two-generational impacts."

The report also recommends that mothers have access to continuous coverage before the birth and for 12 months afterward.

Some states have moved to ensure that parents with a temporary bump in pay from a seasonal job don't lose Medicaid eligibility. Nevada hasn't done that yet, but the state Senate health committee just passed SB 198 – which would ensure 12 month continuous coverage for children on Medicaid.

Emma Rodriguez, children's health policy manager with the Children's Advocacy Alliance in Nevada, says the improvement is significant but there's still work to do.

"Nevada's uninsured rate for women of childbearing age is still much higher than the national average,” says Rodriguez. “We went from 29% down to 15.8%. However, the national average is 12.3%, so we still have a ways to go to improve."

Rodriguez says in the future she'd like to see Nevada start doing automatic renewals on Medicaid if publicly available income data shows the person remains eligible. Currently people are required to resubmit forms every year.

Disclosure: Georgetown University Center for Children & Families contributes to our fund for reporting on Children's Issues, Health Issues. If you would like to help support news in the public interest, click here.


get more stories like this via email
more stories
A report from the Tennessee HealthCare Campaign recommended the federal government needs to strengthen 340B drug pricing and other federal negotiation mechanisms to make needed medicines more readily available and less expensive for hospitals to purchase and administer. (Spotmatikphoto/AdobeStock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

A recent report examined how some rural Tennessee hospitals have managed to stay afloat despite financial challenges. The report includes interviews …


Social Issues

play sound

Earlier this month, a new Arizona Public Service rate hike went into effect and one senior advocacy group said those on a fixed income may struggle …

Social Issues

play sound

Michigan recently implemented a significant juvenile justice reform package following recommendations from a task force made up of prosecutors…


Nearly 13 million Americans receive health coverage through unique plans under both Medicare and Medicaid. They are known as Dual-Eligible Special Needs Plans. (Adobe Stock)

Health and Wellness

play sound

Medicare and Medicaid are key sources of health coverage for many Americans and some people qualify for assistance under both programs. With lagging …

Social Issues

play sound

A mix of policy updates and staffing boosts has helped to put wage theft enforcement on the radar in Minnesota, and officials leading the efforts are …

Social Issues

play sound

Missouri lawmakers are concerned with protecting people from the potential risks of the increasing accessibility of AI-generated images and videos…

Social Issues

play sound

A 2023 study from the University of Nebraska Medical Center concluded the number of Nebraskans with a mental health or substance abuse disorder has pr…

 

Phone: 303.448.9105 Toll Free: 888.891.9416 Fax: 208.247.1830 Your trusted member- and audience-supported news source since 1996 Copyright © 2021