Pandemic led to radical, lasting changes in health care industry
When covid-19 struck, Natalya Rodriguez, fresh out of nursing school, watched as a flood of overwhelmed colleagues abandoned the health care field. Nothing had prepared nurses in the U.S. for a pandemic — or the death and fear it brought. The National Council of State Boards of Nursing estimated 100,000...
Researchers say U.S. government tried to erase sexual orientation from their findings
Two California researchers said Friday a U.S. government health publication instructed them to remove data on sexual orientation from a scientific manuscript that had been accepted for publication. The researchers also said they were told to remove the words “gender,” “cisgender” and “equitable” from their paper, which looked at smoking...
Tuberculosis cases in the U.S. rose to their highest levels in more than a dozen years
NEW YORK — Tuberculosis continued to rise again in the U.S. last year, reaching its highest levels in more than a dozen years. More than 10,300 cases were reported last year, an 8% increase from 2023 and the highest since 2011, according to preliminary data posted this month by the...
High school students flock to career day at Westmoreland Hospital
About 200 high school students gathered Friday at Independence Health System’s Westmoreland Hospital in Greensburg to learn about jobs in the medical field. Students from at least six Westmoreland County school districts — Greensburg Salem, Greensburg Central Catholic, Hempfield Area, Jeannette, Penn-Trafford and the Central Westmoreland Career and Technology Center...
Allegheny Health Network to move workers into North Side’s Nova Place
Allegheny Health Network is preparing to move into Nova Place on Pittsburgh’s North Side. The Nova location will house 200 of the medical system’s remote clinical workforce and other employees beginning in 2026. The new lease is 20 years. Employees on that team include digital nurses, teleICU clinicians and virtual...
This cutting edge hair loss treatment is a repurposed drug from the 1990s
WASHINGTON — The latest trend in treating hair loss may sound familiar — essentially, it’s a repurposed drug first popularized in the 1990s. Back then, TV viewers were inundated with ads for Rogaine, a sticky topical solution that could help treat thinning hair when applied to the scalp. Now dermatologists...
Cancer survivors support those newly diagnosed through AHN’s Ambassador Program
Rachel Machen recalls getting a string of online mammogram reminders from her physician’s office and pushing them to the bottom of her to-do list. “I’m young, and I had no family history. I felt so healthy,” said Machen, 44, of Oakmont. “My diagnosis came as a 100% shock.” Machen spent...
Measles cases reach nearly 300 in Texas and New Mexico. Here’s what you should know
Measles outbreaks in West Texas and New Mexico are now up to nearly 300 cases, and two unvaccinated people have died from measles-related causes. Measles is caused by a highly contagious virus that’s airborne and spreads easily when an infected person breathes, sneezes or coughs. It is preventable through vaccines...
How much sleep do you really need? Experts say it depends
Chances are, if you’re reading this, you got some sleep last night. But are you feeling rested? Experts say it’s an important question to consider. Most of us spend a third of our lives sleeping, but you may need more or less than eight hours a night. The number of...
Highmark Health reports $209M in 2024 losses
Despite reporting $209 million in operating losses for 2024, Highmark Health executives said they are optimistic about the future of the Pittsburgh-based health care insurer and provider. Officials on Thursday released the 2024 earnings report. Highmark’s $11.7 billion in cash and investments and net assets of $9.8 billion mean it...
Reflecting on RFK Jr.’s 1st month as health secretary
WASHINGTON — There sat Robert F. Kennedy Jr., the nation’s top health official, at a Steak ‘n Shake with Fox News host Sean Hannity, raving about the fries. “Steak ‘n Shake has been great, we’re very grateful for them,” Kennedy said, in between nibbles of fries that the Midwestern franchise...
Trump administration yanks CDC director nomination just before Senate hearing
WASHINGTON — The White House withdrew the nomination of former Florida congressman Dr. David Weldon to lead the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention because he wasn’t assured of getting enough Republican support to be confirmed. The Republican-controlled Senate health committee announced Thursday morning that it was canceling a planned...
Measles case detected in eastern Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania’s first measles case of 2025 has been reported in Montgomery County — outside of Philadelphia. The Montgomery County Department of Health and Human Services Office of Public Health said March 2 that it was investigating a confirmed case of measles in an unvaccinated child in the county. As of...
Inside the government study trying to understand the health effects of ultraprocessed foods
BETHESDA, Md. — Sam Srisatta, a 20-year-old Florida college student, spent a month living inside a government hospital here last fall, playing video games and allowing scientists to document every morsel of food that went into his mouth. From big bowls of salad to platters of meatballs and spaghetti sauce,...
New Pa. bill would relieve debt from childbirth, other medical care
This story first appeared in How We Care, a weekly newsletter by Spotlight PA featuring original reporting and perspectives on how we care for one another at all stages of life. Medical debt harms people in different ways. It can lead them to seek payday loans, take money out of...
Utah will be the 1st state to ban fluoride in drinking water
SALT LAKE CITY — Utah will become the first state to ban fluoride in public drinking water, despite widespread opposition from dentists and national health organizations. Republican Gov. Spencer Cox said he would sign legislation that bars cities and communities from deciding whether to add the mineral to their water...
Top health agency makes $25,000 buyout offer to most of its employees
WASHINGTON — Most of the 80,000 federal workers responsible for researching diseases, inspecting food and administering Medicare and Medicaid under the auspices of the Health and Human Services Department were emailed an offer to leave their job for as much as a $25,000 payment as part of President Donald Trump’s...
5 years after covid struck, Pennsylvanians assess pandemic’s impact
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5 years after covid struck, Pennsylvanians assess the pandemic’s impact
Five years ago this month, Pennsylvania’s chief executive scrambled to manage a global health crisis for which no one in the world was prepared. As leader of the nation’s fifth most-populous state, then-Gov. Tom Wolf found himself winging it like everyone else. He had no playbook for covid-19. “It looked...
Measles is popping up in the U.S. Here’s how to avoid one of the world’s most contagious viruses
Measles is not often seen in the United States, but Americans are growing more concerned about the preventable virus as cases continue to rise in rural West Texas. Last week, an unvaccinated child died in the outbreak, which involves nearly 200 cases. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention...
Kennedy and influencers bash seed oils, baffling nutrition scientists
Until recently, most Americans had never heard the term “seed oils,” even though they’ve likely cooked with and consumed them for decades. It’s the catchy description coined by internet influencers, wellness gurus and some politicians to refer to common cooking oils — think canola, soybean and corn oil — that...
Nearly 100 people died of cholera in less than a month in Sudan’s White Nile State
CAIRO — Nearly 100 people died of cholera in two weeks since the waterborne disease outbreak began in Sudan’s White Nile State, said Doctors Without Borders. The international medical aid group, also known as Médecins Sans Frontières, said Thursday that 2,700 people have contracted the disease since Feb. 20, including...
New Mexico adult dies with measles, though cause of death isn’t yet confirmed
An adult who was infected with measles has died in New Mexico, state health officials announced Thursday, though the virus has not been confirmed as the cause. The person who died was unvaccinated and did not seek medical care, a state health department spokesperson said in a statement. The person’s...
2.3M birds culled in Pa. this year as flu spreads in commercial, backyard flocks
Ken Pounds has a coop full of turkeys, and with justifiable concerns about bird flu, that’s all he wants in there. No flies if he can help it. Definitely no people who don’t need to be there. And certainly no other birds. “The biggest thing you can do is have...
‘Read this e-mail immediately’: CDC tells about 180 fired employees to come back to work
NEW YORK — The nation’s top public health agency says about 180 employees who were laid off two weeks ago can come back to work. Emails went out Tuesday to some Centers for Disease Control and Prevention probationary employees who got termination notices last month, according to current and former...
