Among babies born in the United States each year, approximately 1 in 10 are born prematurely. And Georgia is in the group of states with the highest rates of preterm and low-birth-weight babies. Now, new data from the federal government show that the health of pregnant women and babies is only getting worse. The chances…
The enterprise is nestled inside a nondescript office complex in Gwinnett County. No signage proclaims the nature of what’s behind the front door, and inside, there’s little in terms of furnishings or décor. Despite this unassuming façade, the Norcross office is the base for an operation that’s helping an increasing number of Georgians afford their…
The White House is again slashing funds for the “navigators’’ who help enroll people in the Affordable Care Act insurance exchanges. The cuts will almost certainly reduce the in-person assistance provided to Georgians seeking an exchange health plan for next year. Macon-based Community Health Works, which oversees a navigator program in the state, said Wednesday…
Stacey Abrams is making health care a central issue of her campaign for Georgia governor. The Democratic nominee this week issued a statement reiterating her call for the state to expand its Medicaid program. Abrams also pointed to gains from the Affordable Care Act, also known as Obamacare, especially its protection for people with pre-existing…
The state has seen a decrease of more than 85,000 in its number of uninsured children since the Affordable Care Act was implemented, a new report says. Georgia had the fourth-highest such decrease among states from 2013 to 2016, said the report from the University of Minnesota’s State Health Access Data Assistance Center. The decline…
Joy Kramer was diagnosed with lymphoma 13 years ago. She recovered a year later, and remains cancer-free today at 59. But for years after her treatment, Kramer fought to get affordable insurance. Her premiums and deductibles soared because of her pre-existing medical condition. For a while she gave up, going uninsured for several months. The…
How healthy is your city? A newly released “City Health Dashboard’’ tracks 36 measures affecting health for the 500 largest U.S. cities – those with populations of about 66,000 or more. In Georgia, 11 cities were measured on factors ranging from education and poverty to their rates of chronic diseases and their walkability. The report…
A new report estimates that a full Medicaid expansion in Georgia would provide health insurance to 473,000 more residents in 2019. The Urban Institute policy brief, released Wednesday, is the latest to predict the effect of expansion on the state. Georgia is among 19 states that have not expanded Medicaid as outlined by the Affordable…
Two recent surveys point to an expected but troubling trend: The U.S. rate of uninsured people is rising. And the increase may continue into next year. The Commonwealth Fund on Tuesday released a survey of working-age Americans that found that 15.5 percent were estimated to lack health insurance coverage as of February and March 2018. That’s up from…
Georgia remained at 41st in a national ranking of the healthiest states compiled by the United Health Foundation. Placing in the 40s is a typical ranking for the Peach State on health measures. Other Southern states did equally poorly. In America’s Health Rankings, released last week, Massachusetts, Hawaii, Vermont, Utah and Connecticut ranked as the five…