Hospital beds for the nation’s sickest kids are disappearing
The gap in care is acute in rural places. Cutbacks are happening across community hospitals, whether owned by small nonprofits or massive private equity companies. Medical researchers and organizations warn such gaps will widen due to cuts in federal Medicaid spending.
Latest health Reporting
Montana lawmakers allege disability discrimination in fight over psychiatric facility
An attorney for the city of Laurel received a draft copy of the letter about an hour and a half before the meeting last week, the city’s mayor said. He and others with the city watched the hearing and sent a five-page response the next day asking the committee to reconsider and to review a…
Confusion and angst follow state’s early rollout of Medicaid work rules
Medicaid advocates worry that the expedited timeline in some states will lead to thousands of people losing coverage because they’re confused about the new rules, even if they are eligible for the program — and that Montana may offer a troubling preview of what will happen nationwide next year. State health department officials maintain they…
A cancer survivor hoped to work — then she lost her Medicaid disability coverage
Patients with disabilities have long struggled with administrative hoops, blunders, and confusion when trying to qualify for federally subsidized health coverage because of their illness. Now, new federal Medicaid work requirements mean states face the additional task of deciding who qualifies for a medical exemption. That means reviewing medical cases for an even larger swath…
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MORE HEALTH COVERAGE
Abortion services coming to Bozeman, Planned Parenthood of Montana says
For the first time in the organization’s history, Planned Parenthood of Montana has announced plans to establish a Bozeman clinic that will provide abortion services, a move that would expand the state’s options for where people can terminate pregnancies.
Medicaid work rule leaves homeless people in the cold
Montana is among the first states enforcing new federal Medicaid work requirements. Because homelessness isn’t an automatic exemption, advocates fear people with the greatest health needs could lose coverage over paperwork and bureaucratic hurdles.
American scientists see prosecutions as part of federal campaign against them
The Trump administration has stepped up arrests and public condemnation of federal scientists studying viruses as the world faces one of its worst Ebola epidemics.
As Medicaid work requirements loom, questions about system gaps remain
Top officials at the state health department have said the agency has not yet hired the dozens of new positions to review applications, that it does not yet have access to medical claims data to verify if someone is exempt from the new requirements, and that it has only recently identified the diagnoses that could…
What we learned investigating one hospital’s heart program
Since 2022, Benefis Health System in Great Falls has sought to bring a specialty heart procedure to the vast region it serves in central Montana. The endeavor introduced a new option for patients, but it was also a competitive move to align the hospital’s services with similar programs in Missoula and Billings.
A Montana hospital tried to build a cutting-edge heart program. It drove doctors away.
Three former Benefis doctors said the health system’s approach to patient selection for its TAVR program was a direct factor in their decisions to seek work elsewhere. When Benefis administrators appeared indifferent to their concerns, the doctors said, they chose to leave the hospital entirely.
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MORE HEALTH REPORTING
Montana hurries to adopt Trump’s Medicaid work rules amid budget woes
Montana plans to be one of the first states to enforce President Donald Trump’s work mandate for Medicaid enrollees, adding another challenge for state health officials trying to plug a massive budget hole.
Starting Sept. 30, Montanans may no longer use SNAP dollars for candy, soda
Gov. Greg Gianforte announced on Tuesday that the U.S. Department of Agriculture had approved his request to prohibit people from purchasing soft drinks, junk food and candy with SNAP, the food assistance program funded by the federal government.
Montana moves ahead with doula pay but warns Medicaid cuts still may come
Montana officials said they are moving forward with plans to allow Medicaid to pay doulas, reversing a previous statement that budget problems had prompted them to pause the effort to reimburse the birth workers.
Montana wants to ban ‘junk food’ from SNAP. Experts warn the waiver could backfire.
In late March, Montana became one of nearly two dozen states aiming to limit which foods low-income families can purchase with SNAP, the food assistance program funded by the federal government. Though Montana might be months or years away from putting the new food limitations into effect, experts say that SNAP restrictions threaten to place…
This Northern Cheyenne doula was about to start getting paid — then Medicaid cuts hit
Montana was set to join at least 25 other states that reimburse doulas through their Medicaid programs to ease gaps in care. Montana lawmakers approved the payments last year, authorizing up to $1,600 per pregnancy. But the state Department of Public Health and Human Services postponed adding doula services to its Medicaid program in late…
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