For Immediate Release: February 14, 2022Contact: Renee Alves, 559-916-5939 Charleston, WV – In May 2016, West Virginia implemented a pilot program that placed time limits on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) eligibility for adults without children in the home (officially referred to as "abled-bodied adults without dependents" or "ABAWDs") across nine counties. Under these time limits, those affected were…
Health
Background In May 2016, West Virginia implemented a pilot program that placed time limits on Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) eligibility for adults without children in the home (officially referred to as “able-bodied adults without dependents” or “ABAWDs”) across nine counties. Under these time limits, those affected were ineligible for SNAP if they could not…
For Immediate Release: February 10, 2022Contact: Renee Alves, 559-916-5939 Charleston, WV – On Thursday February 10, Health Care for All WV, a statewide coalition of health advocacy organizations and individuals working to improve access to health care for West Virginians, held a press conference at the WV State Capitol Complex in support of HB 3001. The legislation, introduced by…
Media Advisory: February 9, 2022Contact: Renee Alves, 304-720-8682 Charleston, WV – On Thursday February 10, Health Care for All WV, a statewide coalition of health advocacy organizations and individuals working to improve access to health care for West Virginians, will hold a press conference at the WV State Capitol Complex in support of HB 3001. The legislation,…
In December, West Virginia state lawmakers in the Joint Committee on Finance discussed the "cliff effect," a phenomenon wherein a small increase in household income makes an individual or family ineligible for public programs like Medicaid and food assistance. The result can often mean less economic security for the individual or family, as the cost…
CNN, Kake - Almost all of the states that produce the most unfavorable economic and health care outcomes for children are among those poised to ban or severely restrict access to abortion if the Supreme Court overturns the nearly 50-year-old Roe v. Wade decision. Read the full article. That pattern underscores the paradox that the states most…
The open enrollment period to sign up for health insurance under the Affordable Care Act (ACA) started on November 1 and continues through January 15. This period allows individuals without existing health coverage to enroll in a private insurance plan or Medicaid – all in one place. As the nation continues to contend with the COVID-19 pandemic,…
The US House of Representatives recently introduced its version of the Build Back Better plan. Under the House plan, 7.6 million people across the country would gain health coverage. Furthermore, health care would become more accessible to millions of Americans via increased subsidies on the individual marketplace. This plan aims to make health care accessible…
Charleston Gazette-Mail - West Virginia’s COVID-19 death toll reached 4,219 Wednesday, including 2,878 deaths of unvaccinated or partially vaccinated individuals since vaccines became available, a point state coronavirus czar Dr. Clay Marsh drove home during the state COVID-19 briefing. Read the full article. Since COVID-19 vaccines became available last December, the virus has killed 3,102…
Medicaid enrollment has increased, both nationally and in West Virginia, in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Recent data show enrollment increased in the Mountain State from its pre-pandemic baseline of 489,000 individuals in February 2020 to 587,000 people in June 2021. The reasons for this are twofold: first, unprecedented pandemic-related job losses, which peaked at nearly 16…