Hannah Critchfield

We see a masked person exiting a Durham Harris Teeter on an overcast day. Behind him, a sign tells customers to wear a mask.

Are NC businesses enforcing the Governor’s mask mandate? It depends.

July 10, 2020 by Hannah Critchfield 7 Comments

Are NC businesses enforcing the Governor’s mask mandate? It depends. - North Carolina Health News

Many patrons, employees and owners question how much of an impact the Governor’s order has had on increasing customer mask use.

By Hannah Critchfield On Monday, Lora Spencer walked into Dick’s Sporting Goods in Morganton for a quick shopping trip before lunch. She was relieved to be in a state with a mandated mask policy — her husband had just returned from Florida, a current hot spot for the novel coronavirus, on a frightening Allegiant flight […]

A hand holds an iPhone with the Plume website open.

Telehealth offers transgender people a new way to receive hormone therapy, during the pandemic and beyond

July 8, 2020 by Hannah Critchfield Leave a Comment

Telehealth offers transgender people a new way to receive hormone therapy, during the pandemic and beyond - North Carolina Health News

The COVID pandemic has paved way for virtual visits to continue for transgender patients, offering easy - and private - access to hormone replacement therapy and other care.

By Hannah Critchfield Taylor made the video call from the car. The vehicle was as familiar as an office by now – before the pandemic hit, it was where 27-year-old Taylor changed into dresses before going out with friends, and where they wiped the makeup off their face before returning home each night. It was […]

An older black man holds a black sign with a pink triangle and the words, "Silence = Death," below it at The AIDS Coalition to Unleash Power, or ACT UP, 25th anniversary march in New York City in 2012.

“It’s kind of terrifying how little has changed:” Reflecting on two pandemics faced by the Black & LGBTQ communities

June 30, 2020 by Hannah Critchfield 1 Comment

“It’s kind of terrifying how little has changed:” Reflecting on two pandemics faced by the Black & LGBTQ communities - North Carolina Health News

This June marks the 50th anniversary of the first Pride parade, which arose in protest against police brutality and for the rights of LGBTQ people. Health equity has always been an indispensable part of that struggle.

By Hannah Critchfield Brad Batch was at a party in Garner when he first heard about the virus. The 30-year-old had recently moved back home after a few years in New Orleans. A friend approached him and asked a strange question about his old college boyfriend, who was now living in New York. “Did you […]

Shows a large roadside sign that reads "Welcom Cherokee Indian Reservation" State officials worry that American Indians have been undercounted in the COVID case counts.

North Carolina lacks critical racial data for a third of its COVID-19 cases. Here’s why.

June 19, 2020 by Hannah Critchfield

North Carolina lacks critical racial data for a third of its COVID-19 cases. Here’s why. - North Carolina Health News

Until recently, exactly what data they collected was somewhat ad hoc -- a contact tracer might ask for someone’s name and birthday but neglect to ask about gender or race.

By Hannah Critchfield American Indians account for 1 percent of the COVID-19 cases in the state, according to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services website, according to the U.S. Census, about 2 percent of North Carolinians identified as American Indian in the last census. But Gregory Richardson, executive director of the North […]

NC Correctional Institution for Women entrance

Pregnant NC prisoners hopes of release fading

June 17, 2020 by Hannah Critchfield

Pregnant NC prisoners hopes of release fading - North Carolina Health News

The state wants to release pregnant prisoners to protect them from COVID outbreaks. So what’s the hold up?

By Hannah Critchfield The call Beth had been waiting for came unceremoniously in late April. “Your daughter’s being released,” the Carteret County probation officer told her. Beth breathed a sigh of relief, for both for her child and grandchild – her daughter Michele was serving a five-month sentence inside the coronavirus outbreak-riddled state women’s prison, […]

Members of the Henderson County Rescue Squad enter the decontamination tent outside Cherry Springs Village, an assisted living facility. The squad assist staff remove PPE.

WNC strike team fights back as long-term care residents contract COVID-19

June 11, 2020 by Hannah Critchfield

WNC strike team fights back as long-term care residents contract COVID-19 - North Carolina Health News

Residents of a Hendersonville assisted living home started testing positive for COVID-19 in early April. A carefully assembled “strike team” gathered diverse forces to keep the disease under some level of control.

By Hannah Critchfield and Thomas Goldsmith The calls from Cherry Springs Village came at night. Assisted-living roommates Alicia Rodgers, 50, and Margaret Osteen, 66, were getting results on April 4 from a test for the novel coronavirus that had been taken two days earlier. The disease had infected both women, family members learned. And they […]

Jail suicides are on the rise in North Carolina

North Carolina jail suicides reached record high last year, amid calls for reform

June 4, 2020 by Hannah Critchfield

North Carolina jail suicides reached record high last year, amid calls for reform - North Carolina Health News

Advocates say the deaths highlight the critical need for reform of outdated state jail policies, which remain in limbo at the state legislature.

By Hannah Critchfield In the first month of the new year, Melissa Middleton Rice, 49, was left alone in the booking room at the Jackson County Detention Center. Nearly an hour later, an officer would check on her for the first time, even though on a closed circuit monitored by guards, she had not moved […]

Additional Thanks

Categories