The new facility is expected to open in November 2023 and will have 18 hemodialysis stations.
Healthcare Regulation and Reform
![Paul Gakpo (second from the left) lives in Kentucky with his wife, Michelle (far right) and son, Louis. The family poses for a p](https://centerforhealthjournalism.org/sites/default/files/styles/teaser_list_thumbnail_large/public/title_images/download (2).jpg?itok=b6VC85UJ)
Health interventions have made it possible for people with sickle cell in the U.S. to live well into adulthood. But the transition out of pediatric care comes with many challenges.
![Jennifer Gomez drives past the Marathon refinery in Wilmington, California](https://centerforhealthjournalism.org/sites/default/files/styles/teaser_list_thumbnail_large/public/title_images/06132022_Wilmington_HCN_PU_19.jpg?itok=mXsd6uGL)
A new community survey exposes widespread cancer, asthma, anxiety, and depression in Wilmington, California.
![Photo of U.S. Renal Care location in Hawaii.](https://centerforhealthjournalism.org/sites/default/files/styles/teaser_list_thumbnail_large/public/title_images/U.S.-Renal-Care-Beretania-Dialysis-v2-640x427.jpg?itok=tLeEUF2c)
More states are lifting or reforming regulations governing the opening of new dialysis facilities.
![A bed inside Whitfield Regional Medical Center, which is partnering with UAB to bring high tech fibroid treatment to rural women](https://centerforhealthjournalism.org/sites/default/files/styles/teaser_list_thumbnail_large/public/title_images/ONG57OLJENHMNILPKRQHF4NRPE.jpg?itok=dZ-II3H4)
Black women have high rates of fibroids – which are one of the leading causes of hysterectomies. Women in rural areas may have a harder time gaining access to alternative treatments such as uterine fibroid embolization that are available at large hospitals or specialty centers.
![Bexar County Hospital District Board Chairman Jim Adams listens to discussion. The board on Tuesday approved plans to build two](https://centerforhealthjournalism.org/sites/default/files/styles/teaser_list_thumbnail_large/public/title_images/ratio3x2_1200.jpg?itok=wVNoqKAN)
In Texas, the Bexar County Hospital District’s board of managers unanimously approved plans to build two new hospitals in medically underserved areas.
![Kim Pagan adjusts her husband’s blood pressure device as he practices on the in-home dialysis machine.](https://centerforhealthjournalism.org/sites/default/files/styles/teaser_list_thumbnail_large/public/title_images/Kalani-Pagan-Dialysis-wife-Kim-Pagan-v1-640x427.jpeg?itok=YEjccuaW)
The treatment can help eliminate exhausting commutes and relieve overcrowding at a growing number of dialysis centers in the state.
![Phillip Sanders, a sickle cell patient in Arkansas, sought out fertility treatment after he and his wife were unable to get preg](https://centerforhealthjournalism.org/sites/default/files/styles/teaser_list_thumbnail_large/public/title_images/90.jpg?itok=gX6VqtwC)
Many in the resource-strapped sickle cell community find they are unable to access fertility treatments.
![Anuj Shrestha para Noticias Telemundo y NBC News](https://centerforhealthjournalism.org/sites/default/files/styles/teaser_list_thumbnail_large/public/title_images/title-image.jpeg?itok=sh8ztxyQ)
Inmigrantes latinos en apuros económicos participan una y otra vez en ensayos clínicos para ganar dinero. No siempre les explican los riesgos para su salud y, cuando algo sale mal, buscar justicia puede ser agónico.
![Gary Gibson, CEO of The Martin Center Sickle Cell Initiative in Indianapolis, is the longest serving employee in the nonprofit.](https://centerforhealthjournalism.org/sites/default/files/styles/teaser_list_thumbnail_large/public/title_images/img-6584.jpeg?itok=b23hEvQR)
The vast majority of people with sickle cell disease are Black. Sickle cell researchers, physicians and patients believe these disparities exist – and persist – because of systemic racism.