Health

WASHINGTON — D.C. Department of Health officials announced Tuesday that they are investigating a confirmed case of measles in a person who visited a Five Guys restaurant on I Street NW while contagious. DC Health said it is now in... Read More

AURORA, Ill. (AP) — At her mother’s home in Illinois, Tracy Balhan flips through photos of her dad, Bill Speer. In one picture, he’s smiling in front of a bucket of sweating beers and wearing a blue T-shirt that reads,... Read More

WASHINGTON — Walking into the gym can be a confusing moment. Today, we’ll clear up at least one mystery. What are those big, iron spheres with handles? The answer; kettlebells. They’re free weights that challenge your balance and stability differently... Read More

WASHINGTON — What we eat affects how we feel, not only physically, but mentally. While some comforting food can make you feel good in the short term, consuming a healthy diet influences mental health in the long term. A new... Read More

Pfizer is ending the development of its potential once-daily pill treatment for obesity after venturing into the biggest and most expensive level of clinical testing. The drugmaker said Tuesday that it would stop studying danuglipron after a participant in one of its... Read More

LOS ANGELES — Dark, ashy sediment that has been appearing on Los Angeles-area beaches does not appear to contain chemicals related to wildfires at levels that are dangerous to human health, state health officials said on Friday. The Los Angeles County... Read More

WASHINGTON — YouTube personality “Doctor Mike” Varshavski, whose bête noire is health misinformation on social media and in the pod-o-sphere, will speak at the National Press Club on Friday, May 30. The Headliners event will begin with dinner in the... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — The nation's top health agency will undertake a “massive testing and research effort” to determine the cause of autism, Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. announced Thursday. Kennedy, a longtime vaccine critic who has pushed a... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — Weeks after ordering Food and Drug Administration employees back into the office, the agency is reversing course, allowing some of its most prized staffers to work remotely amid worries that recent layoffs and resignations could jeopardize basic functions, like... Read More

In a significant development for tobacco and vapor policy, Brian King, director of the Center for Tobacco Products at the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, was placed on leave as of April 1. His departure is part of a sweeping overhaul of... Read More

I have dedicated my life to medicine — first as an OB-GYN in private practice, then as the founder of a nonprofit focused on preventing STDs, HIV and infertility, and later as an adviser to the Presidential Advisory Council on... Read More

Across the country, Black individuals face persistent disparities in health care and health outcomes. Black Americans have higher uninsured rates, are disproportionately likely to have medical debt, and are more likely to skip care due to cost.  Several conditions also impact our communities... Read More

WASHINGTON — Now is the time of year when the messaging around building your summer body increases. However, it is always a good time to start exercising, for reasons beyond just your appearance. Cognitive health is an often overlooked benefit... Read More

WASHINGTON — A flash of red, a flutter of wings, a mother feeding her baby, the sound of chirping, the feeling of air on your skin and a sense of calm as you notice each detail. You will experience all... Read More

WASHINGTON — Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., famous for his years of skepticism over the efficacy of vaccines, revealed he’s had a change of heart on Sunday as he touted the MMR vaccine as “the most effective way to... Read More

States increasingly struggling to cover the rising cost of popular GLP-1 drugs like Wegovy, Ozempic and Zepbound are searching for ways to get out from under the budgetary squeeze that took them by surprise. One solution some policymakers may try is restricting... Read More

WASHINGTON — Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is embarking on a brief, multi-state tour to tout the early initiatives he’s put in place as part of his “Make America Healthy Again” agenda. During his three-day tour... Read More

WASHINGTON — One of the largest outbreaks of measles in the past decade continues to worsen while health officials across the country wait to learn if federal funding they've been using for their outbreak-response efforts is going to be reinstated... Read More

WASHINGTON (AP) — A vaccine to fight dementia? It turns out there may already be one – shots that prevent painful shingles also appear to protect aging brains. A new study found shingles vaccination cut older adults’ risk of developing dementia over... Read More

WASHINGTON — Sweeping staff cuts enacted by the Department of Health and Human Services Tuesday could cripple a program created to address the illnesses and injuries of first responders exposed to toxins at Ground Zero following the terrorist attacks of... Read More

Millions of seniors are getting a nasty surprise this year, courtesy of the Inflation Reduction Act, former President Joe Biden's signature legislative achievement: higher prices at the pharmacy for prescription drugs. Biden pitched the law — which imposed price controls... Read More

WASHINGTON — The percentage of Americans who can afford and access prescription drugs and quality health care stands at a new low of 55%, a six-point decline since 2022, according to the West Health-Gallup Healthcare Affordability Index.  The index was... Read More

WASHINGTON — Thousands of Department of Health and Human Services staffers received “reduction in force” notices in their email inboxes Tuesday morning; unfortunately, those emails, sent around 5 a.m., failed to reach many of them before they’d already left for... Read More

More than a dozen years after higher-fat milk was stripped from school meals to slow obesity in American kids and boost their health, momentum is growing to put it back. Federal lawmakers have revived bills that would allow whole and 2% milk... Read More

WASHINGTON — The landscapes and terrain of the Earth have changed gradually over time. Tectonic activity, large-scale weather events, climate change and natural progression have all had an impact. One other key factor? Animals. The Earth provides a home to... Read More

Medications and alcohol just don’t mix. Neither do medicines and tariffs. Tariffs have emerged as a principal tool of the U.S. government in its effort to assure American workers a level playing field and relocate industries to the United States.... Read More

A measles outbreak in Kansas doubled in less than a week to 23 cases and has "a possible link” to outbreaks in Texas and New Mexico that have sickened more than 370, the state health department said Wednesday. And health officials... Read More

WASHINGTON — Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on Thursday announced the department is slashing as many as 10,000 jobs as part of an ongoing reorganization effort. “Over time, bureaucracies like HHS become wasteful and inefficient even... Read More

WASHINGTON — Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has renewed a public health emergency declaration aimed at curbing the nation’s stubborn opioid abuse crisis. The emergency, first declared by President Donald Trump during his first term, was... Read More

ATLANTA — The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention this week informed state and community health departments, as well as a host of international health organizations, that they won’t be receiving approximately $11.4 billion in funding previously allocated to their... Read More