By Taylor Sisk Approximately 36 percent women of childbearing-age in North Carolina suffer from one or more chronic diseases. About 13 percent of those women are in very poor health before they become pregnant. The result, according to a report titled “Healthy Women, Healthy Babies,” released on Tuesday by Action for Children North Carolina, is […]
Posted inFeatured, Health Reform, Rural Health
No Clear Answers for Farmers in Obamacare
Obama administration officials promised that rural residents, in particular, would see reductions in their health insurance rates. But North Carolina’s farmers are still waiting to see. By Brenda Porter-Rockwell Shiloh Avery and her partner, Jason Roehrig, grow certified organic fruits and vegetables at Tumbling Shoals Farm in Millers Creek, just east of Boone, and they’re […]
Posted inChildren's Health, Featured, State Health Policy
School Nurses Push for EpiPens
At their annual conference in Chapel Hill this week, school nurses were buzzing about having the right medications in schools to treat dangerous allergic reactions. By Rose Hoban In January 2012, 7-year-old Amarria Johnson died after accidentally eating a peanut at her elementary school in Chesterfield County, Virginia. Less than four months later, Virginia passed […]
Posted inChronic Disease, Featured, Public Health
Eating Healthy at the State Fair – Yes, It’s Possible
This is an update of an NCHN story from last year. By Rose Hoban Each year, you hear of what new “treat” is on offer at the North Carolina State Fair. This year is no different: The big offering is a Sloppy Joe served up on Krispy Kreme donuts instead of hamburger buns. But what’s […]
Posted inChildren's Health, Featured, Medicaid, Public Health
Infant Mortality Rates Tick Up for Second Year
After years of steady decrease, North Carolina’s infant mortality rate went up for the second year in a row. By Rose Hoban More North Carolina newborns died in their first year of life last year, as the state’s infant mortality rate ticked up for the second year in a row. In 2012, of every 1,000 […]
Posted inHealth Reform, NC Health Briefs, State Health Policy
States’ Medicaid Decisions Cost Community Health Centers
Community health centers will pay a steep price for states’ decisions not to expand Medicaid under the federal health law. By Phil Galewitz Kaiser Health News A new study by George Washington University researchers estimates that 518 health centers in the more than two dozen states not expanding Medicaid will lose out on $555 million […]