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N.C. State study finds COVID sites fail accessibility standards
Researchers from North Carolina State University say none of the country's COVID-19 resource websites met accessibility standards in 2023.
Some sites weren't compatible with screen readers, some had limited contrast, making them hard to see, and some didn't include alternative text for their images.
It creates a barrier to accessing COVID resources that may result in people not getting vaccinated or being infected again, the study said.
Riverside to use AI to help read mammograms
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and Riverside Health System is using artificial intelligence to help radiologists read mammograms.
Dr. Benjamin Pettus, a radiologist with the health system, said AI might catch patterns or warning signs doctors may miss.
"The computer ... it's good at this, the shape and the features and it's not overwhelmed by the size or the number of images. It doesn't have any sort of fatigue factor,” he said.
Usually, medical professionals review the images to look for irregularities associated with cancer.
AI mammograms will cost patients the same as traditional ones. Riverside is covering the cost of using AI technology.
Halfway through unwinding, 15% of Virginia Medicaid enrollees have lost coverage
More than 160,000 Virginians have lost Medicaid coverage as of Oct. 23.
The unwinding process is intended to cancel coverage for those who are no longer eligible after COVID-19 federal emergency statutes expired.
But a new report from the Kaiser Family Foundation says 76% of Virginians who lost coverage lost it because of procedural reasons rather than ineligibility.
Insurance doesn’t typically cover Virginians’ obesity treatment
Nearly two-thirds of Virginians were obese in 2021 according to the Joint Commission on Healthcare.
Despite that, a report from the same agency says there are significant barriers to obesity care.
Treatments for obesity, like nutrition programs, weight loss drugs like Ozempic or bariatric surgery are not categorized as essential health benefits.
Every insurer, public or private, has to cover certain essential health benefits to operate in Virginia. If it’s not an essential health benefit, companies don’t have to include coverage.
Medicaid doesn’t cover those treatments for people who don't already have diabetes.
