Health

About a third of Americans living in rural areas say they probably or definitely would not get a COVID-19 vaccine, according to a recent analysis from the Kaiser Family Foundation.

Gov. Polis made the decision to move up 70-and-up Coloradans in the state’s prioritization plan, but many are finding it difficult to make appointments due to low supply.

Dulce Leyva is a bilingual contact tracer who lives in Reno, Nevada. Her job is to reach out to people who have tested positive for the novel coronavirus and make sure they're self-isolating. And she tries to help them remember who they've been around and could have been exposed to the virus.

When the COVID-19 vaccines become more widely available, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services will partner with retail pharmacies such as...

Some of the reasons why Latinos in Weld County are disproportionately affected by COVID-19 have to do with work-related risks. Another factor is communication barriers that have kept people from getting information about the virus — particularly undocumented, Spanish-speaking Latinos. KUNC's Leigh Paterson reports on the messengers who are working to bridge that gap.

Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, Latinos in Weld County have been hit harder than any other demographic — representing nearly 40% of the reported cases. KUNC’s Adam Rayes examines the complex and long-standing economic factors that have put these communities at greater risk and talks with some of the people affected.

On Jan. 1, Health First Colorado is expanding its substance use disorder benefit. Residential and inpatient treatment and withdrawal management services will be part of Medicaid’s covered services. The expansion was authorized by the state legislature in 2018. The additional services will give members access to a full range of treatment options.

Two members of the Colorado National Guard are at the center of the state’s efforts to trace how a more-contagious variant of COVID-19, first encountered in the United Kingdom, is spreading in the United States. One of the members, a man in his 20s, was confirmed on Tuesday as the first case of the variant in the country.

The local health department has diverted thousands of dollars of CARES Act funding to create a special mobile health clinic specifically for delivering COVID-19 vaccines to rural communities.

Health officials said Tuesday that the more-contagious variant of COVID-19 first discovered in the U.K. is now in the United States. Colorado officials said a lab confirmed what is believed to be the first U.S. case — an Elbert County man in his 20s with no travel history.