Lauren Sausser

ORANGEBURG, S.C. — Amari Marsh had just finished her junior year at South Carolina State University in May 2023 when she received a text message from a law enforcement officer.

Amari Marsh had just finished her junior year at South Carolina State University, Orangeburg, in May 2023 when she received a text message from a law enforcement officer.

When Preston Nafz was 12, he asked his dad for permission to play lacrosse.

By the time Preston Nafz limped off the field during a lacrosse tournament last year, he was experiencing hip pain so intense that he had trouble with simple activities, such as getting out of a car. Months of physical therapy and anti-inflammatory drugs didn’t help. (Charity Rachelle for KFF Health News)

An Alabama teen was told he needed surgery for debilitating hip pain. But his family's insurer denied coverage for the procedure, which lacked a medical billing code.

When Preston Nafz was 12, he asked his dad for permission to play lacrosse. “First practice, he came back, he said, ‘Dad, I love it,’” recalled his father, Lothar Nafz, of Hoover, Alabama. “He lives for lacrosse.”But years of youth sports took a toll on Preston’s body. By the time the teenager limpe...

Amari Marsh of Orangeburg, South Carolina, was charged with murder/homicide by child abuse three months after losing her pregnancy in 2023. A grand jury cleared her of that charge in August. Now, Marsh says she wants to finish college and continue working toward her dream of becoming a doctor. (Sam Wolfe for KFF Health News)

ORANGEBURG, S.C. — Amari Marsh had just finished her junior year at South Carolina State University in May 2023 when she received a text message from a law enforcement officer.

Content warning: This story contains details of a pregnancy loss. ORANGEBURG, S.C. — Amari Marsh had just finished her junior year at South Carolina State University in May 2023 when she received a text message from a law enforcement officer. “Sorry it has taken this long for paperwork to come back,” the officer wrote. “But […]

When Preston Nafz was 12, he asked his dad for permission to play lacrosse.