Blake Farmer

Across the U.S., there's geographic variation in the number of organs recovered for transplants. In response, the Trump administration is rolling out new rules for organ procurement organizations.

Health officials are changing how they assess the regional nonprofits that find organs to transplant. The goal is to understand, and eventually fix, the geographic disparities in organ availability.

Many U.S. hospitals are struggling to find enough space and staff to treat COVID-19 patients. The surge in new cases has forced them to rethink how they use space, manage staff, and handle treatment.

Many U.S. hospitals are struggling to find enough space and staff to treat COVID-19 patients. The surge in the coronavirus has made them come up with creative treatment and staffing solutions.

A snafu with Operation Warp Speed leaves at least 14 states short of the vaccine doses they were promised. Lulu Garcia-Navarro talks with WPLN's Blake Farmer about what that means in Tennessee.

Once Pfizer's vaccine gets delivered, it's up to individual states to actually get people vaccinated. States have different priorities and plans.

Last spring, nurses and doctors traveled to New York and other COVID-19 hot spots to help overwhelmed hospitals. But with the virus spreading everywhere, hospitals now have nowhere to turn for help.

The coronavirus pandemic is not easing up in time for the Thanksgiving holiday. With COVID-19 spreading unchecked in nearly every state, we hear from reporters in three hard-hit states.

Nurses and doctors across the U.S. pitched in when New York City was overwhelmed with the coronavirus. Now with the pandemic simmering coast to coast, hospitals can't count on reinforcements.

Trump voters in Tennessee react to the election outcome and President-elect Joe Biden's call for cooperation and civility during his administration.

The Trump administration has given states ways to restrict spending on the government insurance program for low-income Americans. A Biden administration would expand Medicaid coverage.

Medicaid provides health care for millions of low-income Americans. The presidential election could reshape Medicaid — at a critical moment for health care.

The CARES Act provides funds to pay medical bills for uninsured COVID-19 patients. But a young man's death in Nashville, Tenn., shows people often don't know about the program until it's too late.

Plus, of all U.S. homes that include someone with a disability, 63% report serious financial hardship during the pandemic, and 37% have used up all or most of their savings.

More than 200,000 people in the U.S. have died of COVID-19. We hear from three areas of the country about how the pandemic has affected life there.

There's a push to have minority volunteers take part in coronavirus vaccine trials. Recruitment is happening, but it often means overcoming a deep-seated mistrust of the medical system.

Some pharmaceutical companies are well into the final phase of clinical trials for a coronavirus vaccine. But efforts to recruit patients from minority groups are just beginning.

Many are worried that Labor Day will be like the Fourth of July and Memorial Day, when travel and celebrations fanned the flames of viral spread, especially across the U.S. South and West.

The rare migratory birds have made a pit stop in downtown Nashville. Residents are delighted, turning out at dusk to catch a glimpse of the Purple Martins before they head south for winter.

Congress required health plans to fully cover COVID-19 testing, but insurance companies are starting to argue they should only have to pay if patients show symptoms or tests are ordered by a doctor.