Macon County

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, […]

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Feds identify more of NC’s most troubled nursing homes

June 17, 2019 by Thomas Goldsmith

Feds identify more of NC’s most troubled nursing homes - North Carolina Health News

Two U.S. senators pushed to have a confidential list of problematic nursing homes released to the public. Eight facilities in North Carolina face increased scrutiny as a result.

By Thomas Goldsmith In January, an 89-year-old woman who lived in a Lillington nursing home went into the hospital for treatment of a large, foul-smelling necrotic bed sore with an underlying infection. It had been almost four weeks since staff first made written notice of the spot as a much less severe pressure sore. Grim […]

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Seeking Conviction: Questions of consent can make NC sexual assault cases tough to prosecute

March 21, 2019 by Seeking Conviction Investigative Collaboration

Seeking Conviction: Questions of consent can make NC sexual assault cases tough to prosecute - North Carolina Health News

North Carolina is the only state where withdrawing consent doesn’t make continued sex after someone changes their mind into a crime.

By the Seeking Conviction Investigative Collaboration Even if a rape case makes it to trial, it can still be tough to convince juries — especially if the perpetrator says it wasn’t a crime at all, but a consensual act. In fact, Cumberland District Attorney Billy West said he believes that “getting a conviction in a […]

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Mission and HCA Agree to Terms of Potential Sale

August 31, 2018 by Mark Tosczak

Mission and HCA Agree to Terms of Potential Sale - North Carolina Health News

Any deal still has to be approved by N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein before it can be completed, but that looks likely.

By Mark Tosczak Mission Health’s board of directors has signed an agreement to sell the Asheville-based health system to for-profit hospital operator HCA Healthcare for $1.5 billion. The deal still has to be approved by N.C. Attorney General Josh Stein before the transaction can be finalized. HCA is also committing to invest $430 million over […]

NC Counties Gear Up for Accreditation Tests by Looking at Local Needs

August 15, 2018 by Thomas Goldsmith

NC Counties Gear Up for Accreditation Tests by Looking at Local Needs - North Carolina Health News

Each NC local health department has to achieve accreditation based on more than 100 standards, based on a pioneering legislative fiat.

By Thomas Goldsmith When leaders in Anson County looked at public health needs recently, childhood obesity emerged as one of the most troubling trends among the county’s 26,000 citizens. Statistics show that more than a third of adults are obese in Anson, located about 60 miles southeast of Charlotte. And county health director Fred Thompson […]

Mountain Maternity Wards Closing, WNC Women’s Lives on the Line

September 29, 2017 by Carolina Public Press

Mountain Maternity Wards Closing, WNC Women’s Lives on the Line - North Carolina Health News

Two western NC hospitals are planning on closing their labor and delivery services. Where are the pregnant women served by these institutions supposed to go?

By Catherine Pearson and Frank Taylor Carolina Public Press, HuffPost On a frosty January evening, Nancy Kerr felt the first twinges of contractions. Snow was piling up outside her house in the mountains of rural Spruce Pine, in Mitchell County, but the contractions were mild, and she was a week shy of her due date, […]

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Blue Cross Will Continue as the Face of State Employee Insurance

September 20, 2017 by Rose Hoban

Blue Cross Will Continue as the Face of State Employee Insurance - North Carolina Health News

The three-year contract was awarded despite the fact that the insurer remains in a contract standoff in western counties with Mission Health.

This story has been updated to include reaction from legislators. By Rose Hoban North Carolina state Treasurer Dale Folwell announced his decision Tuesday to continue contracting with Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina to administer the health plan for more than 700,000 teachers, state employees, retirees and their families. Folwell said he and his […]

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 […]

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Environmental Bills Shaping Up Post-Deadline

May 1, 2017 by Catherine Clabby

Environmental Bills Shaping Up Post-Deadline - North Carolina Health News

With crossover in the rear view mirror for legislators, there’s a degree of clarity about upcoming environmental legislation at the General Assembly.

By Catherine Clabby Last week’s crossover deadline in the General Assembly clarified some of the environmental measures that legislators are expected to hash out in coming weeks. Crossover is that legislative deadline by which bills need to complete passage through one chamber to survive the rest of the biennial session. The deadline only applies to […]

North Carolina Hospitals Honored for ‘Treating Their Neighbors’

May 12, 2016 by Rose Hoban

North Carolina Hospitals Honored for ‘Treating Their Neighbors’ - North Carolina Health News

Seven rural North Carolina hospitals receive national recognition for excellence. By Taylor Sisk These are trying times for the state’s rural hospitals. Like their counterparts across the nation, they’re facing reduced reimbursements; aging, declining populations; and difficulties recruiting health care professionals. But the news isn’t all bad. On Monday, iVantage Health Analytics released its annual […]

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