"Facility fees" originally meant to help struggling hospitals keep emergency room doors open 24 hours a day are now being applied to outpatient services and between 2017 and 2022, the fees cost Colorado patients and their insurers more than $13 billion, according to a new report mandated by Colorado lawmakers.

Priya Telang, communications manager for the Colorado Consumer Health Initiative, said the hidden fees are being piled onto health costs many cannot afford to pay.

"Patients are not going to seek care and health outcomes are going to be worse," Telang contended. "They are going to have to seek a higher level of more expensive care by avoiding those smaller, outpatient procedures."

Telang noted the state's critical access hospitals, which are more likely to experience financial struggles, are not responsible for the bulk of fees charged. The report showed 80% of fees went to 10 of the state's largest hospital groups. UC Health, which took in one-third of all fees, is urging lawmakers not to act on the report's findings. UC Heath said there was not enough time, data or participation from stakeholders for it to be reliable.

Telang noted facility fees, which are separate from fees charged for doctor care, have proliferated in recent years as hospitals consolidate and gain more marketplace power.

"As we see these huge hospital systems buying up smaller providers and expanding their reach, we're going to see more of these facility fees being charged, because they can," Telang asserted.

UC Health, which has $6 billion in reserves, has grown from owning five hospitals to 14 across Colorado in the past decade. Telang believes action at the state and federal level is needed to protect consumers.

"It's our lawmakers' duty to help their constituents not be saddled with immense medical debt that is crushing and they can't afford," Telang stressed.

Health officials across Texas remain on high alert after a deadly measles outbreak in the South Plains region.

The state health department said one child has died and 146 people have been diagnosed with the illness. A majority of those infected are unvaccinated children.

Dr. Donna Persaud, medical director for homeless outreach medical services at Parkland Hospital in Dallas, said they have seen a steady decline in vaccinations in recent years.

"The vaccine rate amongst kindergartners has decreased throughout the 2000s, and part of that has been the inclusion and addition of nonmedical exemptions," Persaud explained. "They've fallen to rates where outbreaks are likely."

She pointed out the vaccine rate among kindergartners is less than 95%. Among the victims, 70 are between the ages of 5 and 17.

Most of the current patients live within a Mennonite community but cases are also being diagnosed in other parts of the state. Measles is an airborne illness and highly contagious. Persaud emphasized the medical community is concerned.

"All the clinics and health care entities, we're about to convene a special committee," Persaud noted. "We're looking at putting up signs, posters and looking at the CDC recommendations. These are now the questions: What about adults? Should I get another vaccine? Should I get a booster?"

Persaud stressed if you have had the measles, if you were born in or before 1957, or if you have proof of receiving two vaccines, you are immune. She added some measles vaccines in the '60s were not effective, and anyone born during that decade should check with their doctor.


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A recent study showed high rates of tooth decay among young children in Kentucky, particularly in rural areas, and dental health advocates are pushing for better preventive and treatment care.

The Kentucky Oral Health Coalition is backing proposed legislation to allow Public Health Registered Dental Hygienists the ability to treat school children and others.

Jennifer Harrison, registered dental hygienist and member of the coalition, said House Bill 223 would allow hygienists with additional qualifications an exemption from current regulations.

"In Kentucky, dental hygienists have to work for a dentist," Harrison explained. "For them to see a patient, that patient must have had an exam from a dentist. There are exceptions, one of which is the PHRDH model. And it just removes barriers so that hygienists can go straight out into the community."

Public health hygienists are allowed to provide assessments, cleanings, education, fluoride varnish and sealants to mainly underserved populations.

Harrison pointed out currently, public health hygienist programs in Kentucky are limited to public health departments, often serving children through school-based programs. Expanding the program to Federally Qualified Health Centers could increase access to preventive dental care for more children.

"We've been working to expand it," Harrison noted. "But local health departments have a particular regular budget amount, and whether or not they prioritize oral health as one of those interventions in their community is truly up to them."

Harrison added people often think young children do not need dental care because they still have their baby teeth, which will eventually fall out. But she cautioned poor care at a young age can mean a lifetime of dental problems.

"We're talking about permanent teeth and the overall wellness of the child, because if they're in pain or they have an infection, they can't think, they can't behave, learn, sleep well," Harrison outlined. "It really impacts their quality of life."


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Two-thirds of Virginians over the age of 18 regularly take prescription medication, and - according to
ARRP - support establishing maximum prices for those medications.

A bill passed by the General Assembly may do just that.

The legislation headed to Gov. Glenn Youngkin's desk would establish a Prescription Drug Affordability Board.

The board would have the power to conduct affordability reviews of medications sold in the Commonwealth. If a review found a medication's price too high, the board could establish limits.

Jared Calfee, state advocacy director with AARP Virginia, said any price change would also have ripple effects up and down the supply chain.

"And in the event that the drug is not affordable for the people who need it, that high cost is not justifiable, they would have the ability to set what's called an upper payment limit," said Calfee, "the highest price that could be paid for the drug throughout the supply chain, which would apply to everyone in Virginia, from the manufacturer purchase level to the pharmacy counter."

Youngkin vetoed similar legislation in 2024, writing that it would limit treatment and hinder medical research for rare, life-threatening diseases.

Other federal efforts in past years have worked to lower the cost of prescription drugs. Those include caps on insulin costs - and the ability for Medicare to negotiate the costs of some prescription drugs.

Calfee said addressing the price of prescription drugs will help people of all ages across the Commonwealth.

"This is not just a problem with seniors or people over 50," said Calfee. "This is everybody who is taking prescription drugs and is dealing with the problems associated with high costs. I mean, people of all ages are having to make choices about putting food on the table, keeping a roof over their head or taking their medication as prescribed."

According to AARP research, half of Virginians who take a prescription drug pay more than $50 a month for the medication.