By Bryan Lowry, Jason Hancock and Jonathan Shorman | March 29, 2020 As the single mother of a daughter with a congenital heart defect and compromised immune system, Melissa Dodge is taking every precaution she can to limit her exposure to COVID-19. She’s cut her hours at the grocery store where she works in Derby, […]

By Leslie Albrecht | March 25, 2020 Getting tested for the novel coronavirus is now free, but being treated for the respiratory illness could cost up to $20,000, a recent analysis by Peterson-Kaiser Family Foundation Health System Tracker found. People with health insurance through their employer could pay more than $1,300 in out-of-pocket costs if […]

By Cindy Mann and Emily Stewart | March 24, 2020 Uncertainty and fear among the American public continues from coast to coast over the worsening impact of the COVID-19 (Coronavirus) pandemic. People are hurting. According to a new poll, one in five U.S. households has faced a layoff or cut in work hours because of […]

By Lauren Weber | March 21, 2020 Rural hospitals may not be able to keep their doors open as the coronavirus pandemic saps their cash, their CEOs warn, just as communities most need them. As the coronavirus sweeps across the United States, all hospitals are facing cancellations of doctor visits and procedures by a terrified […]

By Jonathan Shorman | March 19, 2020 Less than two weeks ago, Medicaid expansion supporters were led away by police after staging protests outside the Kansas Senate. Some Senate Republicans were blockading the proposal until the House approved an anti-abortion amendment to the state constitution. There was no end to the standoff in sight. Today, […]

By Pastor Charles McKinzie | March 17, 2020 As a pastor in the United Methodist Church, I spend quite a bit of time in scripture. Usually I’m trying to understand “deep truths” found therein and discern how we are to respond in our modern world. One question that continues to keep me perplexed in my […]

By Sheldon Weisgrau | March 13, 2020 State officials recently announced the first death from COVID-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, in Kansas. The imminent spread of the virus will inevitably stress and illuminate the cracks in the health care system. Among the largest of these cracks is the state’s high rate of […]

By Monte Wentz, O.D. | March 8, 2020 As a health care provider, small business owner and a former hospital board member, I understand how important reliable health care is to our community and to our local economy. However, we are facing a real challenge to maintaining health care in rural communities like ours because […]

By the Editorial Board | March 5, 2020 To the 76 Catholic nuns who signed a letter urging the Kansas Legislature to pass Medicaid expansion, we say, thank you for your courage. In the letter, the nuns say it is “deeply immoral” for anyone to go without medical care. “We cannot allow anyone to suffer […]