hospitals

U.S. President Donald Trump signed an executive order Wednesday halting the at-the-border separation of immigrant children and families. Coming up, we wade through the details of the decision and consider its significance moving forward. 

Later, we talk about chronic pain and its impact on young children. We hear from a Connecticut mother whose son was diagnosed with amplified musculoskeletal pain syndrome (AMPS) and learn about the out-of-state program that treated him.

In the U.S., an estimated 100,000 Americans live with sickle cell disease, or SCD.

Yet, despite its impact, the disease and its patients remain largely out of the public eye.

This hour, C-HIT reporter Peggy McCarthy helps us understand why. We discuss the realities of SCD awareness and hear from a New Haven resident living with the disease.

Plus: inside U.S. drug courts.

What approach do these programs take in addressing the nation’s opioid crisis? And are they accessible here in Connecticut? We find out. 

Connecticut consumers were billed for more than $1 billion in facility fees for outpatient services in 2015 and 2016, documents filed with the state Office of Health Care Access (OHCA) show.

In light of mismanaged abuse allegations involving two former staffers, U.S. Congresswoman Elizabeth Esty announced Monday she will not seek re-election in November.

This hour, we discuss the significance of Esty's decision -- including what it means for Connecticut's Fifth Congressional District race this year.

Plus: With former VA Secretary David Shulkin out, what lies head for U.S. Veterans Affairs? Is the federal agency on track to become privatized? We find out.

And finally: We sit down with a local Army veteran who recently received a discharge upgrade. Could his story help other Connecticut veterans with less than honorable discharges? 

So far this winter, more than 60 people have died in Connecticut of the flu. In many of those cases, the actual cause of death is respiratory failure -- the lungs stop working.

This hour: following reports of abuse by staff at Connecticut’s maximum-security psychiatric unit -- news of an order separating Whiting Forensic from Connecticut Valley Hospital. 

Coming up, we discuss the significance of the split -- including what it means for the safety and oversight of patients.

Earlier this month, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention declared that influenza is now widespread in Connecticut.

When we met Dr. Bolivar Arboleda Osorio in the city of Caguas a few weeks back, he talked about his experience treating patients in the aftermath of the storm -- first came the trauma victims, then came the chronic and severe cases that were becoming emergencies as time dragged on and the lights stayed off. Electronic records were stuck in the cloud. Patients, not able to call for an appointment, just showed up.

For immigrants in the country illegally, the fear of running into U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents has made some public places appear threatening. In the current environment, that can include a visit to the emergency room.

Robert Fuller was loading his car with supplies in San Juan, getting ready to leave the battered capital for a trip inland to survey damage to local health facilities, when we caught up with him by phone.

We spend over three trillion dollars on health care every year and we have worse outcomes than any other developed country - all of which spend on average about half of what America spends per person. 

The systematic mistreatment of a patient at Connecticut's maximum security forensic hospital has sparked outrage and calls for major changes at the facility.

Nine mental health workers at Whiting Forensic Division, the maximum security facility at Connecticut’s only state psychiatric hospital, have been arrested for the abuse of a patient. 

Say you break your leg. Fortunately you have insurance, so you head to an emergency room that’s in your insurance network -- and you think, at least when it comes to your medical bill, you’re all good.

But a new study out of Yale University finds you may not be.

As Connecticut lawmakers continue to try and work out a new two-year budget, the parents of children and adults with developmental disabilities worry about the services they might lose.

This hour, we hear from these families and learn what’s at stake.

We spend over three trillion dollars on health care every year and we have worse outcomes than any other developed country - all of which spend on average about half of what America spends per person.