El juicio de Florida sobre la elegibilidad para Medicaid, que resultó en la pérdida de cobertura de 1.8 millones de personas, se pospuso indefinidamente porque el juez que supervisó el caso tuvo una muerte en su familia. La demanda colectiva sostiene que la Agencia de Florida para la Administración de Atención Médica y el Departamento de Niños y Familias de Florida terminaron indebidamente la cobertura de Medicaid para individuos sin proporcionar razones específicas ni permitirles apelar la decisión antes de la terminación. Los defensores dicen que está relacionado con un informe reciente que muestra que Florida ha dado de baja a unos 600 mil niños de Medicaid y del Programa de Seguro Médico Infantil desde que se levantaron las protecciones de cobertura relacionadas con el COVID. Norín Dollard es analista de políticas de Kids Count del Florida Policy Institute y cree que el estado podría hacer más para evitar la pérdida de cobertura.

"Quiero decir, esa es una pérdida significativa de atención médica. Los niños son un poco diferentes a los adultos porque, en términos generales, Medicaid solo está disponible para personas con bajos ingresos. Pero es mucho más probable que los niños sean elegibles para Medicaid, y es una parte sustancial del seguro médico para niños," indicó además la entrevistada.

Los abogados estatales inicialmente intentaron posponer el caso, argumentando que el lunes en la mañana no era tiempo suficiente para prepararse eficazmente. Sin embargo, el juez no estuvo de acuerdo. Ahora, ambas partes tendrán que esperar para saber cuándo se fijará una nueva fecha del juicio y si el estado se verá obligado a restablecer la cobertura y revisar la forma en que notifica a los destinatarios.

Dollard dice que hay varios desafíos legales en juego, incluido uno por parte del estado, que demandó al Centro de Servicios de Medicaid para impedir que aplique la elegibilidad continua de 12 meses en el programa CHIP del estado.

"El estado explica que pueden cancelar la cobertura por falta de pago, mientras que los Centros de Servicios de Medicaid y Medicare dicen que no pueden, por lo que actualmente estamos esperando ver qué ordenará el juez al respecto," insistió también Dollard.

Sin embargo, la demanda colectiva, presentada por el Programa Nacional de Ley de Salud y el Florida Health Justice Project en agosto pasado, representa a cinco demandantes nombrados y a una clase más amplia de personas excluidas de Medicaid desde el 31 de marzo de 2023. En última instancia, Dollard espera que el estado puede hacer más para que el proceso sea más fluido y los avisos pueden ser más específicos para que los destinatarios puedan responder a las solicitudes del estado.



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People who are part of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, known as DACA, will be dropped from their CoveredCA health plans at the end of August.

The move comes after the Trump administration changed a Biden-era definition of "lawfully present" to revoke health care eligibility for thousands of immigrants.

Christine Smith, policy and legislative advocate for the nonprofit Health Access California, said people only have a few weeks to get medical appointments in before their coverage ends.

"If you're enrolled in Covered California and you're a DACA recipient, the Trump administration just ended your coverage," Smith emphasized. "People should use as much of your health care as you can before the August 31st deadline."

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services defended the move, saying it will save taxpayers money. CoveredCA estimated the change affects about 2,400 DACA recipients in the state who make too much to qualify for Medi-Cal and have jobs not providing health insurance. They can still buy private insurance but it is much more expensive. People who prepaid for their coverage can seek a refund.

Smith predicted it will be a blow not just to those who lose coverage but to the state's health care system as a whole.

"The lines in the ERs are going to be longer because people are not going to be able to get affordable preventive care," Smith projected. "They're just going to get sicker and then end up in the ERs. People will overall incur more medical debt. Hospitals will have more uncompensated care."

The change is nationwide. As of mid-July, about 538,000 people in the DACA program across the U.S. are ineligible to enroll in any state-based insurance marketplace and are unable to access premium subsidies or cost-sharing assistance.

Artificial intelligence is appearing more prominently in many aspects of life and research suggests older populations are curious, yet remain wary of using the technology in their everyday lives.

According to Stats Indiana, there are more than 1.5 million Hoosiers aged 65 and older, or 18% of the state's population. Experts said it is likely the demographic will use AI in some form in the next few years, either by choice or necessity.

Dr. Shaun Grannis, vice president of data and analytics for the Regenstrief Institute on Aging, said AI offers real benefits.

"It can reduce loneliness through conversation, provide reminders for medications and appointments," Grannis outlined. "It can support cognitive stimulation via games, storytelling, news updates."

The technology can also offer a low-pressure way to access information on public services, he added, which is valuable for those with mobility issues or those who feel intimidated by technology.

Grannis cautioned any tool which can be used for good can also lead to problems. He noted AI can create a false sense of companionship and mask social isolation. Overdependence is a legitimate concern, he argued, if the technology becomes a "crutch" for all forms of interaction.

"All cognitive activities or decision-making, it can actually lead to and create a negative feedback loop, lead to a decline in engagement and even basic self-management skills," Grannis explained. "This is risky."

Grannis believes one solution is designing AI systems to complement, not replace, human interaction. He stressed it can be done though building broader support ecosystems including family, friends, caregivers and community services. Grannis emphasized it would encourage real-world activity, prompting the user to go for a walk, call a grandchild or attend a local senior event.

If you have an extra five minutes, you can save a life because you can learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation at no cost from a new mobile, hands-only CPR kiosk.

The new kiosk is in the lobby of Saint John's Health Center in Santa Monica. The machine's touch screen gives a brief overview of hands-only CPR and you can practice right there, on a mannequin.

Dr. Rigved Tadwalkar, cardiologist at St. John's, said it is an easy way for people to get more comfortable giving chest compressions in an emergency.

"It's a lot like a video game but of course, a lot more important than a video game," Tadwalkar pointed out. "It gives real-time feedback about the depth and rate of compressions, proper hand placement, which are all factors that influence the effectiveness of CPR."

The American Heart Association operates the St. John's mobile kiosk and a stationary model at L-A-X with support from the hospital. Santiago Canyon College in Orange County also has a mobile hands-only C-P-R kiosk now through September, sponsored by Edwards Lifesciences.

Steven Munatones, an Orange County business owner, said he survived what's known as a "widowmaker" heart attack which led to cardiac arrest nine years ago, thanks to his 17-year-old son, who gave him immediate CPR with instructions from a 911 operator.

"You don't have to put your mouth to anybody's mouth," Munatones explained. "You just put your hand on their chest and pump. He saved me, and others can do the same, anywhere. So, it's absolutely a lifesaving, heroic act that anybody can do."

Statistics show 350,000 Americans suffer from cardiac arrest outside a hospital each year and about 90% die, in part because they do not receive CPR. About 70% of those cardiac arrests happen at home, so people often depend on family or friends to give CPR before an ambulance arrives.