Housing is becoming less affordable for many people. As a result, more cities and towns grapple with growing homeless populations. Hundreds of cities across the nation now have laws that prohibit camping on public property to discourage encampments and illegal activity. On this episode of Us & Them, host Trey Kay moderates a community conversation in Morgantown about that city’s approach to housing. Morgantown is one of five West Virginia cities with a public camping ban. Local advocates say there are twice as many homeless people as there are shelter beds available. This year, lawmakers did not have the votes to pass a statewide camping ban, but some leaders say that’s a better approach than patchwork local measures.

Many West Virginians have trouble with their teeth. In fact, there’s a big gap between the folks who can reliably access an affordable dentist and those who can’t. That’s no surprise when half the state’s counties have fewer than six dentists. National rankings consistently put West Virginia at or near the bottom in overall oral health care and a state report shows that by third grade, 56% of children show signs of tooth decay. Twelve percent of older adults have had all their teeth extracted. But as Us & Them host Trey Kay learns in this award-winning encore episode, there are new approaches that aim to change some old habits.

This year, West Virginia lawmakers made significant changes to drug and alcohol treatment programs funded by Medicaid, which many people use. The new legislation ties Medicaid payments to patient outcomes rather than the number of patients served.

The Mountain State has the nation's highest overdose rates, and overdose death rates among Black residents exceed those of any other group. In this episode of Us & Them, host Trey Kay learns how Medicaid funding supports organizations working in recovery and what that work looks like on the ground.

This episode of Us & Them, recently honored with a Regional Edward R. Murrow Award for Excellence in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, is presented with support from The Greater Kanawha Valley Foundation.