KFF Health News, Author at Word In Black

Serenity Cole was one of the first patients to undergo gene therapy for sickle cell disease under a new Medicaid program in which the federal government negotiates the therapies’ cost on behalf of states — with payment depending on the treatment’s success. She says the treatment has alleviated her pain and kept her out of the hospital. (JUDD DEMALINE FOR KFF HEALTH NEWS)

Medicaid Tries New Approach With Sickle Cell

by KFF Health News January 21, 2026January 21, 2026

Pharmaceutical companies will get paid only if costly gene therapies work.

St e’ Aira Ballard , who holds a photo of her mother, Tamala S m ith . Smith died after having cosmetic surgery in California . (Nic Antaya for KFF Health News

When Cosmetic Surgery Ads Hide the Risks

by KFF Health News January 5, 2026January 5, 2026

Tyeesha Ferguson, mother of Quincy Jackson III, in Springfield, Ohio, in May 2025. Ferguson has been advocating for her son to receive mental health treatment for most of his adult life. He has been in and out of hospitals and jails for about a decade. (Meg Vogel for The Marshall Project/KFF Health News)

Criminally Ill: State Mental Hospitals Are Turning Into Prisons

by KFF Health News December 23, 2025December 23, 2025

Guns, Race, and Profit: The Pain of America’s Other Epidemic

by KFF Health News August 19, 2025August 19, 2025

turning 26 health insurance

Why Young Americans Dread Turning 26: Health Insurance Chaos

by KFF Health News August 11, 2025August 11, 2025

Georgia Kept a Brain-Dead Pregnant Woman Alive — But Why?

by KFF Health News July 31, 2025July 31, 2025

Belinda McLoyd and other residents in southwestern Georgia’s Dougherty County face steep barriers to accessing healthy food, from tight budgets and high poverty rates to limited access to grocery stores and transportation.

RFK Jr. Wants a Healthier Diet? SNAP Cuts Say Otherwise

by KFF Health News July 24, 2025July 24, 2025

A pregnant African-American woman with her doula or birth support coach. The expectant mother, who has pink hair and is wearing a pink shirt, is on her hands and knees. The doula, a mixed race woman, is standing behind her, holding a fabric scarf around her belly. This technique used by Mexican midwives, called rebozo sifting, can help ease pain during pregnancy and labor. Both women are in their 30s.

More States Now Cover Doulas Through Medicaid, Even GOP Ones

by KFF Health News July 11, 2025July 11, 2025

HHS Eliminates CDC Staff Who Made Sure Birth Control Is Safe for Women at Risk

by KFF Health News July 1, 2025July 1, 2025

‘We Need to Keep Fighting’: HIV Activists Organize to Save Lives as Trump Guts Funding

by KFF Health News June 25, 2025June 25, 2025