Health
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‘I literally was crying last night because I’m nervous about what I’m going to find out’: a record 51% of Americans aren’t ‘cost secure’ on health
Twannetta Weaver felt like she made the responsible choice when she enrolled in a high-deductible health insurance plan through her employer, an option that avoided high premiums and allowed her to save for retirement. Then, in 2025, she slipped a disk in her back, requiring medication and physical therapy. Suddenly, the medical bills were so…
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Utah’s measles outbreak has slowed, but the start of school and colder weather in the fall may create another surge. ‘It’s still transmitting’
Utah has spent the past year fighting measles outbreaks — a grim milestone that could affect whether the United States can keep its measles-free designation. More than 680 people have gotten sick since the state’s first outbreak began on June 20, 2025. Unlike measles outbreaks in Texas, South Carolina and Arizona, the spread in Utah…
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The highest-paid hospital CEO made $43 million last year all while Americans hold $220 billion in medical debt
Once again, for-profit hospital executive compensation numbers are out, and once again, people are outraged. Even Congress is getting frustrated, as the House Ways and Means Committee held a hearing in April questioning hospital CEOs on their spending and growing healthcare costs. People in the US owe a collective $220 billion in medical debt, according…
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Half of U.S. adults under 50 get health information from influencers who mostly aren’t medical professionals, Pew finds
Tens of millions of Americans now go to TikTok, Instagram and YouTube when they’re worried about their health. A recent Pew Research survey found that half of U.S. adults under 50 turn to influencers and podcasts on mostly those three platforms when they’re trying to take better care of their health, and they stumble across…
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Needles used to detect breast cancer in shortage from recall
The Food and Drug Administration said that the US is experiencing a shortage of breast biopsy needles after Hologic Inc. recalled the products earlier this year, potentially causing delays in diagnosing the most common cancer in women. The shortage is expected to last through March 2027, the FDA said in a statement. It advised doctors…
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Infant mortality in the U.S. fell to an all-time low in 2025 thanks to antibody shots and RSV vaccines
Infant mortality in the U.S. dropped to a new all-time low in 2025, according to preliminary government data. There were slightly fewer than 5.4 infant deaths per 1,000 live births in 2025, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While that appears to be a small decline from about 5.5 in 2024 and…
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Middle-aged adults taking GLP-1s for obesity can save over $192K on lifetime medical costs, higher if they don’t have college degrees, new study finds
Over 40 million Americans have reported using GLP-1 drugs for weight loss, a behavior reshaping everything from the healthcare industry to pop culture and consumer behavior—and the drugs’ use could balloon into as much as a $240 billion market. While these weight-loss drugs pumped billions into pharma giants Eli Lilly and Novo Nordisk as social…
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Meet the lone star tick: the primary U.S. source of alpha-gal syndrome, which is a life-threatening meat allergy that’s on the rise
It’s common knowledge that ticks can spread infections that cause serious illnesses, including Lyme disease. Now health officials are trying to raise awareness of a lesser-known problem: a life-threatening allergy to meat triggered by tick bites. The problem, known as alpha-gal syndrome, was first linked to a particular species of ticks about 15 years ago.…
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You probably think you’re a really open-minded person, but the real thing raises your death anxiety
Most people think they are open-minded and would like others to perceive them as such. But for the things that matter most – religious beliefs, for example, or the meaning of life – few of us are genuinely willing to consider that we might be wrong, let alone do the hard work of revising beliefs.…
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Why is the FDA approving kid-friendly, fruit-flavored e-cigarettes?
Fruit-flavored e-cigarettes recently authorized by the Food and Drug Administration were not significantly better at helping smokers quit than tobacco-flavored e-cigarettes, according to a new memo that’s likely to stir more questions about the agency’s decision. The FDA last month gave its first OK to fruit-flavored vapes — essentially endorsing them as a less-harmful alternative to traditional cigarettes. The decision…