Search results for: “covid”
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My Take on the COVID-19 Vaccine: Choice, Lived Experience, and Trust
In 2021 all Missourians are participating, one way or another, in a life-and-death undertaking to bring the pandemic under control by reaching herd immunity as soon as possible. How quickly we reach that goal depends on how well public agencies, nonprofit health care organizations, and private entities can come together to effectively distribute and administer…
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COVID-19 Foundation Update
Like many organizations and companies around the world, Missouri Foundation for Health has been monitoring COVID-19, paying close attention to its impact on our work, staff, and organizational activities. In thinking about what’s best for the Foundation, our people, and our partners and grantees, we’ve decided to alter a few operational things until further notice.…
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Learning During Crisis: Access to contraceptive services amid the COVID pandemic
The health care system has experienced unprecedented disruption during the COVID era. In addition to new virus-related challenges, long-standing health equity issues were magnified by the pandemic. For the Foundation’s The Right Time initiative, which aims to increase access to quality contraceptive services, this difficult time also presented a unique opportunity to learn from the…
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Looking Back, Looking Forward: Hopes for a Healthier 2021
2020 is a hard year. 2021 will soon be here. In my mind, it’s the perfect time to pause and take advantage of Janus’s gift of transition and new beginnings to reflect on the challenging times of the year, where we’re heading in 2021, and guideposts for using a new year to bring forth new…
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What Brings Us Together in Missouri?
Missouri’s recent passage of Medicaid expansion was a significant step toward the long-term goal of everyone having access to affordable health care. The expansion of Medicaid presents numerous possibilities for us all to lean in and do our part to generate positive changes in health. It is worth reflecting on what’s next for keeping us…
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Inequity: Society’s Most Important Pre-Existing Condition
As published and seen in the May 11, 2020, issue of Health Affairs The breadth and expected duration of the COVID-19 pandemic brings the entire range of society’s institutional structures into sharp relief at once. Its pervasive impact stretches from the direct toll, chronicled daily in news reports tracking increased cases and deaths, to extensive…
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Nervous About the New Coronavirus? Knowledge is Power
By now you’ve probably heard about the new coronavirus, which first appeared in China in late 2019. Now known as COVID-19, the virus can cause severe respiratory problems in a subset of people. There is a lot we still don’t know about the disease, but we do know that it is likely to spread inside…
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For the Sake of Racial Equity, It’s Time for Nationwide Medicaid Expansion
It took more than a decade of work from countless organizations and dedicated individuals to make it a reality, but on July 22, the Missouri Supreme Court reaffirmed the will of the state’s voters by unanimously declaring that Medicaid expansion is the law of the land. Having only moved to Missouri and joined the Foundation…
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Revitalizing Public Health in Missouri
In normal times, the public health system operates in the background, largely unnoticed by most of the public. The ability to turn on the tap and get clean water or eat food from a local restaurant without getting sick is simply part of our daily expectations. We don’t think about it until something goes wrong.…
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Medicaid in Missouri: Back to Basics
Medicaid is a safety net insurance program that allows Missourians to see a doctor when they are sick, get checkups, buy medications, and go to the hospital. Having health insurance allows people to maintain their health, go to work, and take care of their families. The Medicaid program, however, is intricate, with many different pieces…
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A Tale of Two Systems – The shortchanging of public health
We have two health systems in this country. One – our health care system – is anchored in medical treatment delivered one patient at a time. The other – our public health system – promotes health and prevents disease in our neighborhoods, communities, and nation. Both health care and public health are crucial to overall…
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Systems Change is the Change We Need
Conversation starter: Ask your friends if they feel optimistic about the times that we’re living in and the progress being made. Depending on who you call friends, I think you’ll get a mix of responses. Those not on the receiving end of society’s marginalizations would probably say yes. Those on the other side of the…