Davie County

Students holding colorful cards in a program about suicide prevention

Churches are an unlikely ally in solving the rural internet access puzzle

May 21, 2020 by Liora Engel-Smith

Churches are an unlikely ally in solving the rural internet access puzzle - North Carolina Health News

With the coronavirus pandemic highlighting the depth of rural broadband needs, churches have set their sights on increasing access in their communities.

By Liora Engel-Smith Bridgette Diaz can’t use her cell phone without Wi-Fi. Her cellular carrier does not cover Robbinsville, the tiny mountain town where she has made her home. Diaz doesn’t have an internet connection either. Robbinsville, the Graham County seat, is situated in a four-county pocket with some of the worst broadband adoption rates […]

The Appalachian Mountains near the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina may benefit from the ARC's recovery ecosystem model. The area has a quickly growing outbreak of COVID-19

New dollars target opioid misuse, workforce revitalization in WNC

September 11, 2019 by Liora Engel-Smith

New dollars target opioid misuse, workforce revitalization in WNC - North Carolina Health News

Twenty-nine western North Carolina counties could benefit from a new Appalachian Regional Commission initiative that will invest in workforce training and treatment options for people with addiction.

By Liora Engel-Smith Targeting some of the epicenters of the national opioid epidemic, the Appalachian Regional Commission announced a plan to revitalize the workforce in communities ravaged by addiction. The agency, whose mandate is to promote economic prosperity in 420 counties in 13 states, including North Carolina, outlined a plan to bolster and link programs […]

Image of money with a caduceus superimposed on the bills. We're using this image to denote Medicaid managed care.

Budget impasse delays Initial Nov. 1 rollout of Medicaid managed care

September 4, 2019 by Sarah Ovaska

Budget impasse delays Initial Nov. 1 rollout of Medicaid managed care - North Carolina Health News

Instead of one quarter of the state program going live this fall, the entire state will make the transition to managed care in Feb. 2020

By Sarah Ovaska-Few and Rose Hoban The standoff between North Carolina’s state government power brokers over the state budget and Medicaid expansion has claimed a victim: the planned roll-out this fall of Medicaid managed care. N.C. Department of Health and Human Services Sec. Mandy Cohen announced Tuesday morning she was pushing back the Nov. 1 […]

A county by county map of US colored to show opioid death risk, including access to medication-assisted treatment

Forty-one N.C. counties classified as “high risk” in new opioid study

July 23, 2019 by Yen Duong

Forty-one N.C. counties classified as “high risk” in new opioid study - North Carolina Health News

In a national study, researchers classified 41 North Carolina counties as “opioid high-risk” with few providers of medication-assisted treatment and many opioid-related deaths.

By Yen Duong While conversations about the national opioid epidemic often focus on hardest-hit states such as Ohio, West Virginia and Kentucky, few people have analyzed county-by-county trends, where those state’s policies can make a difference. But a new study, published last month in an open-access version of the Journal of the American Medical Association, […]

2019 Health & Human Services Budget – House & Senate

June 24, 2019 by Rose Hoban

2019 Health & Human Services Budget – House & Senate - North Carolina Health News

Just in time for the conference committee budget, here are how the Senate and the House of Representatives each proposed to spend on health and human services.

By Rose Hoban After 2018’s unusual budget process this year’s budget has unfolded in a more “traditional” way. The House unveiled it’s proposal to spend $5.569 billion on health and human services priorities in early May. The Senate finished it’s work on the budget in early June, asking for a total appropriation of $5.552 billion […]

Millie Veasey stands in the doorway of her home, a smiling man in the doorway looks in. Some programs such as these are not getting as much support because of the budget standoff.

Medicare Advantage to Pay For Community-Based Help

August 30, 2018 by Thomas Goldsmith

Medicare Advantage to Pay For Community-Based Help - North Carolina Health News

Medicare is expanding the types of aid to older people that will qualify for reimbursement — beyond strictly medical services.

By Thomas Goldsmith At a senior center in Asheboro, people dealing with diabetes can learn ways to manage the condition — from healthy eating to stress management — and have Medicare foot the bill. These diabetes self-management classes, each two and a half hours, require significant work on the part of attendees, said Laura Plunkett, […]

shows people sitting at long meeting tables, with hands raised

New Cardinal Board Chosen, Will Include Several Former Members

December 15, 2017 by Rose Hoban

New Cardinal Board Chosen, Will Include Several Former Members - North Carolina Health News

Commissioners from the counties served by Cardinal Innovations met Thursday and picked 16 new board members to oversee the managed care organization.

By Rose Hoban Nineteen county commissioners met in Graham on Thursday to choose a new governing board for Cardinal Innovations, the troubled state-funded mental health agency recently taken over by state officials. The 17 new board members, chosen from dozens of applications submitted over last weekend, will be joined by a handful of members of […]

Life Expectancy Gap Widens for Appalachia

August 30, 2017 by Rose Hoban

Life Expectancy Gap Widens for Appalachia - North Carolina Health News

Smoking, high rates of diabetes, obesity heart disease and poor birth outcomes contribute to worsening life expectancy in Western NC.

By Taylor Knopf While life expectancy and infant mortality rates continue to improve across the United States, the Appalachian region struggles to keep up. Infant mortality is 16 percent higher in Appalachia than other areas of America, according to a study published in Health Affairs this month called “Widening disparities in infant mortality and life […]

Panorama of the new Cherry Hospital in Goldsboro.

Bill Would Make Mental Health Agencies Create Local Crisis Plans

April 28, 2017 by Taylor Knopf

Bill Would Make Mental Health Agencies Create Local Crisis Plans - North Carolina Health News

A bill in the works at the legislature makes a series of changes and tweaks throughout the mental health system.

By Taylor Knopf It’s no secret that North Carolina’s mental health system leaves a lot to be desired, and one of the biggest holes in the safety net is a dearth of crisis services. That’s why state lawmakers are moving forward with a bill that would direct all seven state-funded mental health management organizations to […]

NOAA photograph of blue green algae floating on water next to a dock.

Sounding the Toxic Algae Alarm

April 20, 2017 by Catherine Clabby

Sounding the Toxic Algae Alarm - North Carolina Health News

With evidence that potentially dangerous algal blooms are becoming more common, a push is on to better understand and broadcast their dangers.

By Catherine Clabby Harmful algal blooms, particularly the periodic explosive growth of cyanobacteria species, appear to be increasing in frequency and severity globally, researchers from the EPA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say. While most algae pose no risk, harmful algal blooms, whether green or reddish masses floating on the surface of […]

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