Tennessee Sen. Marsha Blackburn is helping lead an effort to reverse the mandate that servicemembers get the COVID vaccine. Republicans pushed for the concession in exchange for their votes on the defense spending bill that has to pass by the end of the year. Their suggested language was included in the text of the bill […]
Methodist Le Bonheur intends to restart gender-affirming surgeries in Memphis after pause
One of the few hospitals offering gender-affirming surgeries in Tennessee paused procedures in recent weeks. But in response to legal threats from the American Civil Liberties Union, Methodist Le Bonheur in Memphis says the pause will be temporary — indicating procedures will restart by the end of the year.
Gov. Lee appeals to Congress to end COVID vaccine mandate affecting 800 Tennessee guardsmen
Gov. Bill Lee is leading Republican governors around the country, asking Congress to end a COVID vaccine mandate for the military as recruitment and retention are suffering. So far, no Tennessee guardsmen have been discharged from their duties, but hundreds are still refusing to get the vaccine.
How Nashville has backtracked on HIV despite effective prevention options
The South represents more than half of all new HIV cases in the U.S., and the region is making slower progress than the rest of the nation, according to the latest HIV/AIDS figures kept by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
TennCare now expects to drop 350,000 patients after COVID emergency ends
More than 350,000 people may lose Medicaid coverage once the COVID-19 public health emergency ends early next year, as is expected. The projections have grown as the public health emergency has been extended and more have enrolled — with a peak of 1.75 million people on the program now projected for mid-2023.
TennCare to begin dental coverage for all 1.7M of its members starting in January
TennCare officials say they’re on track to provide dental coverage to all members starting Jan. 1. The state’s Medicaid agency is one of the last in the country to cover dental work for adults.
Nashville’s largest HIV prevention clinic ends testing program amid national funding shortfall
Nashville’s largest clinic that offers a daily pill to prevent HIV is cutting back its services. So-called “PrEP” clinics have warned they may be run out of business over changes from drugmaker Gilead, which produces HIV medication.
How optimism can close the coverage gap between TennCare and the ACA marketplace
More than 2 million low-income people are uninsured because they earn too much for Medicaid and too little to qualify for a subsidized plan. Here’s how they can get coverage.
A long COVID patient in Hendersonville shows just how little is known about treatment
Medical equipment is still strewn around the house of Rick Lucas, 62, who has been home from the hospital nearly two years. He picks up a spirometer, which measures his lung capacity, and takes a deep breath, though not as deep as he’d like.
The flu is poppin’ early in Tennessee. Hospitals fear a ‘tri-demic.’
Tennessee now has some of the highest flu activity in the United States, according to the latest tracking by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Along with Alabama, South Carolina and Washington, D.C, Tennessee is rated as “very high” for influenza spread.
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