DHW Voice
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From DHW Director Dave Jeppesen: Idaho Medicaid serves the vulnerable, the poor, the young, and the old
With all the news around Medicaid Protection, I wanted to take a few minutes to offer some information about who Idaho Medicaid serves across the state. Idaho Medicaid staff is working hard to provide about 425,000 vulnerable Idahoans, many of whom are children, with affordable healthcare when they don’t have other options. Medicaid serves about 40% of all the children in Idaho.
Medicaid is the main way in Idaho and nationally that home and community based services and
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Over the past few weeks, we have seen the effects of a very, very contagious Omicron variant of the virus that causes COVID-19. Omicron currently makes up more than 88 percent of cases in Idaho. The percent of positive tests (percent positivity) doubled from 8.6 percent on Dec.
Omicron is more contagious than other variants of the virus that causes COVID-19. It is rapidly spreading in Idaho and across the nation.
Getting vaccinated and boosted at the right time is still the very best way to protect yourself and your loved ones from serious illness,
Mission: Dedicated to strengthening the health, safety, and independence of Idahoans
Making progress toward Strategic Goal 3: Help Idahoans become as healthy and self-sufficient as possible
The Department of Health and Welfare (DHW) is engaging in groundbreaking strategic work
The work of our child welfare staff is often unseen. They work with families experiencing some of the most difficult times of their lives, and the work they do is not often visible to others because child welfare cases are confidential to protect the privacy of the families
NOTE: Welcome to the new and improved DHW Voice blog! Previous blog posts are still available at https://dhwblog.com/.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Idaho has conducted research to help us respond to the concerns of Idahoans when it comes to the COVID-19 vaccine, as well as
How long do the antibodies protect you from COVID-19?
Nobody knows if there is a certain level of antibody, or certain types of antibodies (such as neutralizing antibodies) that can predict protection, although antibody levels are used in clinical trials as a way to estimate
Every year, we create and distribute our Facts, Figures, & Trends, where you can find robust and detailed information about the work of the department’s eight divisions. The book highlights how our employees live our mission daily: to strengthen the health, safety, and
Idaho has a critical need for foster families so children have a safe and nurturing place to live and go to school while their parents get the help they need to provide a safe place at home. But becoming a foster parent is a big decision, and many people have lots of questions.
Obesity is a common and serious disease that puts people at risk for many other serious diseases and increases the risk of severe illness from COVID-19.
A study of COVID-19 cases shows that hospitalizations, intensive care unit (ICU) admissions, need for
Making progress toward Strategic Goal 2: Protect children, youth, and vulnerable adults
As part of the department’s mission to strengthen the health, safety, and independence of Idahoans, we strive to consider what this means for all Idahoans, including those with
Getting screened for colorectal cancer is something Idahoans aged 45 and older should consider because it is the second-leading cause of cancer deaths among adults in Idaho. In fact, 3,194 cases of malignant colorectal cancer were diagnosed among Idahoans from 2015-2019, and