Health
Workforce woes, nursing home closures pressure sustainability of long term care
Iley and Frank Petereit bought their burial plots two decades ago. Frank likes to think of himself as a planner, so he has most everything worked out for when they eventually, in his words, “kick the can.” The now 92-year-olds have a gravestone at the site, already etched with everything but the year of their […]
House sends Medicaid work requirement ballot measure to Senate
A resolution that would put Medicaid back on the ballot in 2024 passed the House of Representatives and will head to the Senate. The House passed HJR 5004 with a 60-8 vote. The resolution would ask South Dakota voters to amend the state constitution to let the state impose work requirements on “able-bodied” people eligible […]
Ban on youth transgender care passes committee after impassioned debate
PIERRE – A bill that would ban some forms of health care for transgender youth passed its first committee today at the Capitol, sparking a passionate debate among supporters and opponents. The bill has been met with resistance from LGBTQ advocacy groups, medical professionals and concerned citizens. They argue the bill violates the rights of […]
Minnesota lawmaker seeks authority over mergers in response to Sanford-Fairview plan
Minnesota House Democrats on Monday warned a merger between Fairview Health Services and Sanford Health could increase health care costs or lead to hospital and clinic closures. In November, Fairview and Sanford announced their intention to merge into one health care system run by Sanford’s current CEO Bill Gassen. The target date to complete the […]
Treating health care as a commodity has not driven costs lower
Assuring effective health care to a population is a challenge for every society. As care options become more complex — and expensive — the challenges increase. In the U.S. both the organization and the financing of health care are perennial issues in public discussions, political campaigns and among social policy researchers. Basically there are two […]
New bill would ban several forms of transgender health care for youth
PIERRE – A group of South Dakota Republicans introduced a bill Tuesday that would prohibit physicians from providing some services to transgender youth. A Democratic legislator and the American Civil Liberties Union of South Dakota immediately condemned the bill, which the ACLU labeled as “discriminatory.” Rep. Bethany Soye, R-Sioux Falls, introduced the “Help Not Harm […]
Here’s what you need to know about new workplace protections for pregnant, nursing workers
The $1.7 trillion federal spending bill President Joe Biden signed last week ushers in expanded protections for workers who are pregnant or nursing. Proponents of the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act and the PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act — both included as amendments to the spending bill — say the measures clarify rights for these workers, […]
1 million free COVID tests, one year later: Some used, some not, some nearly thrown out
Mellette County Emergency Manager Karen O’Brien has hundreds of unused, free COVID-19 tests sitting in a box in her office. With COVID-19 still circulating across South Dakota and the country, she’d gladly hand them out to any residents of the rural, south-central South Dakota county who want them. But they expired in November, according to […]
Climate change is pushing wildfire smoke farther east in South Dakota
South Dakotans like to brag about their clean air, and for the most part, they’re right. But that boast isn’t as true as it once was, especially in the half of the state to the right of the Missouri River on a map – a region known as East River. Five East River cities have […]
Telehealth brings expert sexual assault exams to rural patients
Amanda Shelley was sitting in her dentist’s waiting room when she received a call from the police. A local teenage girl had been sexually assaulted and needed an exam. Shelley, a nurse in rural Eagle County, Colorado, went to her car and called a telehealth company to arrange an appointment with a sexual assault nurse […]
Nursing home complaints surge 117% higher since 2021
Nursing home complaints are on the rise this year after falling during the early pandemic years of 2020 and 2021. The state Department of Health, which oversees more than 100 long-term care facilities, according to its website, fielded 39 complaints as of Dec. 9. That’s an increase of 117% over 2020 and 2021, when the […]
Congress on track to scrap Pentagon’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate in defense bill
WASHINGTON — Members of the U.S. military would no longer be required to get the COVID-19 vaccine under a proposal Congress could pass as soon as this week. The provision eliminating the vaccine mandate is tucked into the massive National Defense Authorization Act, the annual defense policy bill that Congress has passed each year for […]