Alexa Hornbeck
Alexa Hornbeck was a health care reporter for The Well News from March 2021 to August 2022. She has experience covering health and medicine topics. Her reporting focused on stories at the intersection of health, politics, social trends and science. She tracked health policy changes, women’s health and telemedicine news.
Prior to joining the TWN, Hornbeck worked for hyper local publications in San Francisco, California, and New York City. She attended the University of California, Berkeley, where she received graduate degrees in public health and journalism. Her undergraduate degree was completed in literary studies at The New School in New York City.
Recent Work
Lockdown orders during the COVID-19 pandemic created barriers to providing in-person treatment services for those battling opioid addiction, so Bicycle... Read More
Lockdown orders during the COVID-19 pandemic created barriers to providing in-person treatment services for those battling opioid addiction, so Bicycle Health, which provides evidence-based treatment for opioid-use disorder, decided to go virtual. “When the pandemic hit and the public health emergency was announced, we didn’t need... Read More
Policymakers and representatives of the pharmaceutical industry debated the cost of prescription drugs and the myriad of proposals on Capitol... Read More
Policymakers and representatives of the pharmaceutical industry debated the cost of prescription drugs and the myriad of proposals on Capitol Hill to bring those prices down at last week's Milken Institute Future of Health Summit. Amitabh Chandra, a health care economist at the John F. Kennedy... Read More
The House Committee on Energy and Commerce recently met to discuss 13 bills aimed at rebuilding U.S. public health systems... Read More
The House Committee on Energy and Commerce recently met to discuss 13 bills aimed at rebuilding U.S. public health systems and modernizing the data collection of those systems. “Our hollowed out public health system explains why we see COVID-19 cases tracked using fax machines, and COVID-19... Read More
The Biden administration is being pressured to decide by the end of the month as to whether to reverse Title... Read More
The Biden administration is being pressured to decide by the end of the month as to whether to reverse Title 42, known as the Public Health Service Act, used to restrict non-essential travel across the U.S.-Mexico border to prevent the spread of COVID-19. In March 2020,... Read More
A recent survey conducted by the Public Religion Research Institute and Interfaith Youth Core finds that faith-based approaches supporting vaccine... Read More
A recent survey conducted by the Public Religion Research Institute and Interfaith Youth Core finds that faith-based approaches supporting vaccine uptake can influence members of key hesitant groups to get vaccinated. Religious leaders can help overturn hesitancy by battling popular assumptions that groups like QAnon have... Read More
This week marked the official beginning of summer, and in preparation, the World Against Toys Causing Harm, known as W.A.T.C.H.,... Read More
This week marked the official beginning of summer, and in preparation, the World Against Toys Causing Harm, known as W.A.T.C.H., produced a Summer Safety Report for parents and caregivers to navigate summer heat safety for children whose injuries typically double during the summer months. “We want... Read More
The World Health Organization released new suicide prevention guidance last week aimed at reducing the world’s suicide rate by a... Read More
The World Health Organization released new suicide prevention guidance last week aimed at reducing the world’s suicide rate by a third by 2030. “While a comprehensive national suicide prevention strategy should be the ultimate goal for all governments,” said Dr. Alexandra Fleischmann, suicide prevention expert at... Read More
The Counseling Not Criminalization in Schools Act, a bill recently reintroduced by members of the Senate and House, aims to... Read More
The Counseling Not Criminalization in Schools Act, a bill recently reintroduced by members of the Senate and House, aims to increase the presence of social workers, counselors and other personnel to support marginalized students. “Our legislation is pretty simple. It says that federal dollars from here... Read More
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot declared racism a public health crisis in Chicago this week, pointing to new research from the... Read More
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot declared racism a public health crisis in Chicago this week, pointing to new research from the Chicago Department of Public Health showing that racism is the primary reason for a 9.2-year life expectancy gap between Black and non-Black people living in the... Read More
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More From The Well
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Thursday announced a recommendation for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration to relax restrictions on... Read More
WASHINGTON — President Joe Biden on Thursday announced a recommendation for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration to relax restrictions on cannabis. "This is monumental," Biden said in a video announcement. "Today, my administration took a major step to reclassify [cannabis]... Read More
WASHINGTON — Fifteen members of Congress, Republicans and Democrats, have been named finalists for a Democracy Award, an annual award... Read More
WASHINGTON — Fifteen members of Congress, Republicans and Democrats, have been named finalists for a Democracy Award, an annual award bestowed by the Congressional Management Foundation to recognize excellence in constituent services by members and their offices. Founded in 1977,... Read More
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Natural gas producer CNX Resources said it plans to build a $1.5 billion facility at Pittsburgh's... Read More
HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Natural gas producer CNX Resources said it plans to build a $1.5 billion facility at Pittsburgh's airport to make hydrogen-based fuels, but only if President Joe Biden’s administration allows coal mine methane to qualify for tax credits that... Read More
Marta Moehring voted the way she prefers in Nebraska's Republican primary Tuesday — in person, at her west Omaha polling... Read More
Marta Moehring voted the way she prefers in Nebraska's Republican primary Tuesday — in person, at her west Omaha polling place. She didn’t even consider taking advantage of the state’s no-excuse mail-in ballot process. In fact, she would prefer to... Read More
WASHINGTON (AP) — Two House committees moved ahead Thursday with contempt charges against Attorney General Merrick Garland for refusing to turn over... Read More
WASHINGTON (AP) — Two House committees moved ahead Thursday with contempt charges against Attorney General Merrick Garland for refusing to turn over audio from President Joe Biden’s interview with a special counsel, advancing the matter after the White House's decision to block the... Read More
Kratom, a botanical substance from Southeast Asia with centuries of traditional use, has gained popularity in recent years for its... Read More
Kratom, a botanical substance from Southeast Asia with centuries of traditional use, has gained popularity in recent years for its potential benefits, including relaxation and mood enhancement. However, alongside this surge in interest comes the need for robust regulation to... Read More
