Cancer patients frustrated as revamped state priorities kick them further down the COVID-19 vaccine wait list abc11.com - get the latest breaking news, showbiz & celebrity photos, sport news & rumours, viral videos and top stories from abc11.com Daily Mail and Mail on Sunday newspapers.
Proposed health plan for South Dakota farmers would fall outside state and federal regulations
The measure, Senate Bill 87, was passed by the South Dakota Senate on Feb. 3 on a 19-15 vote; it passed in the House of Representatives by a 50-16 vote on Feb. 10. The bill now moves to Gov. Kristi Noem for consideration.
Written By:
Bart Pfankuch / South Dakota News Watch | 5:02 pm, Feb. 17, 2021 ×
Nick and Bekah Ihnen of Tulare are a farming family that has had to make tough choices to ensure they have health insurance. Nick Ihnen recently testified in favor of Senate Bill 87, saying it would create a more affordable option for health care coverage for farm families. Photo: Courtesy Red River Farm Network
Opinion By Thomas Farrington
February 16, 2021 at 5:00 am ET
The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in harmful barriers to care for patients living with or at risk for prostate cancer and has exacerbated many of the underlying health disparities affecting communities of color. President Joe Biden recently announced plans to improve access to health care, including reopening enrollment on the federal health insurance exchange. However, more must be done.
As the administration seeks to improve health equity and address the health disparities that disproportionately impact under-resourced and racial and ethnic communities, it must focus on increasing access to prostate cancer care and screening for Black men.
COLUMBUS – The next group of Ohioans eligible for COVID-19 vaccines includes those with conditions that put them at a higher risk of complications from the potentially deadly respiratory disease.
That s because Ohio prioritized conditions that started at birth or childhood and continued into adulthood, Ohio s chief medical officer Dr. Bruce Vanderhoff said in a Friday interview.
For example, the list of eligible Ohioans includes people born with severe heart defects requiring regular, specialized medical care but doesn t include heart conditions, such as heart failure or coronary artery disease. Type 1 diabetes, known as juvenile diabetes, is on the list if the person has been hospitalized in the past year while type 2 diabetes, which most often develops after age 45, is not.
Pierre, SD, USA / DRGNews
Feb 11, 2021 3:02 PM
A cancer advocacy group is urging Gov. Kristi Noem to veto legislation that would allow the South Dakota Farm Bureau to offer a health insurance program to its members.
David Benson is the government relations director for the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network in South Dakota. He says they believe everyone should have quality, affordable health care coverage, however, the plans offered under SB 87 will not have to comply with requirements that limit out-of-pocket costs and may not provide coverage of essential health benefits.
South Dakota Farm Bureau says the legislation would allow them to offer a health care coverage option to members that would include a national network of providers and operate much like health care coverage options offered at companies with self-funded pools. The health benefit plan would be offered under a self-funded arrangement through an entity licensed as a third-party administrator, and as an