By Jaymie Baxley North Carolina has less than a year to implement a federal rule requiring “able-bodied” Medicaid participants to prove they are working, volunteering or attending school for at least 80 hours a month. A provision of the federal budget — the One Big Beautiful Bill Act signed into law last summer by President […]

The post NC faces tight deadline, high costs to implement Medicaid work requirement appeared first on North Carolina Health News.

By Y. Tony Yang The Conversation When federal health officials announced on Jan. 5, 2026, that they were taking six out of 17 vaccines off the childhood immunization schedule, they argued that the move would give parents and caregivers more choice. Instead of all U.S. children routinely receiving them, these six vaccines are now optional […]

The post ‘Shared decision-making’ for childhood vaccines sounds empowering – but it may mean less access for families already stretched thin appeared first on North Carolina Health News.

By Rachel Crumpler Mecklenburg County sent the second-highest number of young people into North Carolina’s detention system last year — yet it has no juvenile detention center. In 2025, 2,186 people were admitted to juvenile detention centers statewide, according to data provided to NC Health News by the state Division of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency […]

The post Amid shortage of juvenile detention beds, a facility in Mecklenburg sits empty appeared first on North Carolina Health News.

By Jennifer Allen Coastal Review The two agencies that enforce the Clean Water Act have proposed changes to the waterbodies considered jurisdictional, or under federal protection, and the deadline for the public to comment is here. The Environmental Protection Agency and Army Corps of Engineers published on Nov. 20 in the Federal Register the “Updated […]

The post New year, new definition: Feds set to limit water protections appeared first on North Carolina Health News.

By Jennifer Fernandez Raleigh photographer Abigail Chopel gave birth to her daughter in January 2020, just at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.  It was a scary time, she recalled. She couldn’t get her daughter vaccinated until she was 2 years old. Chopel also worried about the health of her grandmother, who was living with […]

The post NC health officials urge vaccinations after CDC reduces the number of recommended shots appeared first on North Carolina Health News.

By Taylor Knopf Thanos first stepped into the peer cafe across from the bus station in downtown Raleigh looking for his friend — and the promise of a free coffee. What keeps him coming back months later is a community of people and group sessions that have supported his substance use recovery.   “Everybody in this […]

The post Built by peers, backed by the state: Inside North Carolina’s expanding peer support network appeared first on North Carolina Health News.

This story has been updated with additional information. By Will Atwater In North Carolina, debates over how to regulate emerging water contaminants are moving from the lab to the policy arena — and this week, those debates could translate into binding policy. The North Carolina Environmental Management Commission, which sets statewide water quality standards, is […]

The post PFAS, microplastics and what comes next for North Carolina’s water appeared first on North Carolina Health News.

By Jennifer Fernandez Late last year, an Apex man pleaded guilty in connection with a now-shuttered nonprofit accused of selling poorly trained, or untrained and aggressive dogs to families seeking service animals for their children with disabilities. Victims paid between $4,500 and $16,710 for Briard breed dogs that Ry-Con owner Mark Mathis said were trained […]

The post What to know before getting a service dog in NC: training, costs and red flags appeared first on North Carolina Health News.

By Anne Blythe More than 13 years have passed since a group of prominent state retirees filed a lawsuit challenging what was then a new state law that required them to start paying for health care benefits they had received free of charge for years as part of their benefits package. Now, attorneys for the […]

The post NC state retirees challenged health plan benefit changes 13 years ago. They’re still fighting. appeared first on North Carolina Health News.

By Will Atwater, Jaymie Baxley, Anne Blythe, Rachel Crumpler, Jennifer Fernandez, Rose Hoban and Taylor Knopf Making predictions in the current political and social environment — particularly about health care — can be a tricky business. As the great Yogi Berra quipped, “It’s tough to make predictions, especially about the future.” Case in point, who […]

The post From child welfare to climate: Top NC health stories to watch in 2026 appeared first on North Carolina Health News.