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Nearly 500,000 Virginians in Medicaid have been disenrolled
Of the roughly 2 million Virginians who’d been enrolled in Medicaid before the COVID-19 pandemic, over 480,000 of them have been disenrolled as of this August. Typically eligibility determinations are made annually, but they’d been on pause nationwide amid the pandemic due to federal policy. That’s changed over the past year in what’s colloquially referred […]
Kaine celebrates two-year anniversary of Inflation Reduction Act
Two years ago Congress’ Inflation Reduction Act was signed into law by President Joe Biden after Vice President Kamala Harris cast a tie-breaking vote. Sen. Time Kaine, D-Va visited Henrico County Thursday to celebrate the anniversary and stress its role in reducing healthcare costs. Healthcare-specific components of the IRA have included a $35 cap on […]
Youngkin announces efforts to support formerly incarcerated people
Gov. Glenn Youngkin formally announced a cross-agency strategy to support formerly incarcerated people after their release. Executive Order 36 directs several state departments to coordinate with each other on data sharing and programming and to bolster partnerships with organizations for programming. “There’s no magic wand,” Youngkin said of a single method to improve post-incarceration experiences. […]
Virginia Democrats do not support infanticide, but here’s why Trump keeps saying they do
Former president Donald Trump keeps saying that Virginia Democrats support killing babies. Though the false allegation has been fact-checked numerous times, he’s made the claim multiple times this summer. He said it in the June presidential debate, on a panel at the National Association of Black Journalists conference in July, and more recently during an […]
State-run medical facility in Petersburg to close by 2027
Hiram Davis Medical Center, a state-run facility in Petersburg, will close by 2027. The Virginia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Services announced the start of the process Friday. The 50 year old building has had no major renovations since opening in 1974, and its design isn’t compatible with phased renovations. “The building design does […]
Convention delegates, Virginia voters reflect on immigration policy ahead of presidential election
Since America was founded nearly 250 years ago, debates about immigration policy have ebbed and flowed. And with crossings at the U.S.’s southern border higher in recent years, immigration policy is a key platform in this year’s elections and a top issue for some Virginia voters. Republican presidential nominee and former President Donald Trump’s vision, […]
On anniversary of Voting Rights Act, McClellan, advocates caution against rollbacks
Two years ago, the late Lois Dedeaux McClellan voted for her daughter Jennifer to become the first Black woman to represent Virginia in Congress, but there had been a period in her 91 years of life when the law prevented her from voting at all. Though the suffrage movement granted white women the right to […]
Virginia free clinics hope for funding boost from the state
Jobs come and go, but free health clinics have been something Florence Roane-Bell could always count on. The lifelong Richmond resident has tapped into the Health Brigade — formerly known as the Fan Free Clinic — when she needed it. It was there that she was diagnosed with fibromyalgia (after previous doctors ignored her pain, […]
Strategists, analysts see excitement and pathways for Kamala Harris in Virginia
Jade Harris feels like some of the “Obama magic” she saw as a child during the 2008 presidential election is happening again with Vice President Kamala Harris’ transformation into the likely Democratic nominee for president this year. Harris (who has no relation to the vice president) said the days since President Joe Biden announced he […]
Reproductive rights could be a key platform for Harris in Virginia
Though now somewhat outdated after President Joe Biden dropped out of his campaign for reelection, a recent Emerson College poll showed former President Donald Trump with a two-point lead over him. While forthcoming polling can help shed more light on a matchup between Trump and current Vice President Kamala Harris, the presumptive Democratic nominee, the […]
Va. legislature restores funding for tuition benefit for military families, for now
Legislators met on Thursday and passed bills to repeal changes to a college financial aid program for military veterans’ families and designate $90 million towards sustaining it for at least the next two years. The Virginia Military Survivors and Dependents Education Program (VMSDEP) provides education benefits to children and spouses of severely injured or killed […]
Southwest Virginia health districts launching long COVID study
As COVID-19 rates rise in Virginia and around the nation this summer, the prevalence of long COVID is underreported. Virginia’s health department wants to better understand it, so it’s about to conduct a new study. The latest study will focus on Southwest Virginia residents after an initial analysis on Central Virginia last fall. Long COVID […]