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Millions of Americans will now see a cleaner bill of health on their credit reports, making it easier for many to get an apartment or apply for a loan. Effective July 1, the three major credit reporting bureaus have removed medical debts that went into collection but were subsequently paid. In the past, these types of debts would remain on reports for as long as seven years. More changes are coming, too. (Kelce, 7/11)

A federal court's ruling that a Chicago hospital can sue the state Medicaid agency for allegedly failing to ensure proper payment from private insurers sets the stage for a deluge of similar suits from providers—if the nation's highest court preserves Medicaid participants' right to sue. (Tepper, 7/11)

KHN: Hospital-Acquired Pneumonia Is Killing Patients. Yet There Is A Simple Way To Stop It

Four years ago, when Karen Giuliano went to a Boston hospital for hip replacement surgery, she was given a pale-pink bucket of toiletries issued to patients in many hospitals. Inside were tissues, bar soap, deodorant, toothpaste, and, without a doubt, the worst toothbrush she’d ever seen. “I couldn’t believe it. I got a toothbrush with no bristles,” she said. “It must have not gone through the bristle machine. It was just a stick.” To most patients, a useless hospital toothbrush would be a mild inconvenience. But to Giuliano, a nursing professor at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, it was a reminder of a pervasive “blind spot” in U.S. hospitals: the stunning consequences of unbrushed teeth. (Kelman, 7/12)

KHN: ‘An Arm And A Leg’: One ER Doctor Grapples With The Inequities Of American Health Care

Dr. Thomas Fisher, an emergency room physician at a hospital on Chicago’s South Side, has written “The Emergency,” an up-close chronicle of the covid-19 pandemic’s first year. It also tells the story of his journey as a doctor: how his upbringing on the South Side fueled his career choice, and how the realities and inequities of American health care limited his ability to help his community. Fisher details how the failures of the American health care system — and the racial inequities it perpetuates — leave health care workers with a profound sense of moral injury. (Weissmann, 7/12)

Gregg Meyer, president of MGB’s community division and executive vice president of value-based care at the system, said the expansion marks the culmination of decades of developments that have helped providers better care for patients remotely. At the same time, the health system is increasingly under pressure from state regulators to reduce spending. (Bartlett, 7/11)

Casper, Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta’s first therapy dog, recently died. He was 15. Known for his gentle disposition and uncanny intuition, Casper, a golden retriever and yellow Labrador mix, began his career at Children’s in September 2009 as the hospital’s first four-legged employee. Alongside his handler, Lisa Kinsel, volunteer services manager at Children’s Scottish Rite, Casper helped improve the lives of countless patients and employees. (Oliviero, 7/11)

Dr. Tokoya Williams wanted to be a cardiac surgeon when she began medical school. But when she was diagnosed with breast cancer during her last year of medical school — leading to chemotherapy, a double mastectomy and breast reconstruction — she was forced to put that plan on hold. (Schencker, 7/11)

A federal jury on Monday convicted a Bingham Farms doctor of running a $35 million pill mill that prosecutors say stole money from the government and private insurers and fed  America's opioid addiction - all while a greedy doctor lined his own pockets. (Baldas, 7/11)