ORANGE, Calif. — Carmen Basu, bundled in a red jacket and woolly scarf, stood outside the headquarters of her local health plan one morning after picking up free groceries. She had brought her husband, teenage son, and 79-year-old mother-in-law to help.

They grabbed canned food, fruit and vegetables, and a grocery store gift card. And then ...Read more

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — At first glance, it sounds like a problem that shouldn’t exist.

Since Congress allowed enhanced federal health insurance subsidies to expire, you might expect only people who receive those subsidies to be hurt. After all, Californians who don’t receive federal premium subsidies already pay full price for their ...Read more

SAN FRANCISCO — Fueled by a new viral strain, flu is hitting California early — and doctors are warning they expect the season may be particularly tough on young children.

Concentrations of flu detected in wastewater have surged in the San Francisco Bay Area, and the test positivity rate is rising in Los Angeles County and Orange County, ...Read more

MIAMI — A South Florida man who owned a chain of medical equipment companies and an associate were found guilty on Monday of committing healthcare fraud by paying bribes to generate patients so they could bill $34 million to the federal Medicare program for unnecessary services.

Michael Kochen, 42, of Aventura, and Sandro Herek, 55, of Coral ...Read more

If you are pregnant or a new mother who is struggling with depression or anxiety, you can call or text the National Maternal Mental Health Hotline, 24/7: 833-TLC-MAMA (833-852-6262). Postpartum Support International can help connect you with a local mental health provider at 800-944-4773 or psidirectory.com.

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Before giving birth to her ...Read more

State health officials this week confirmed a case of mpox in an adult Anchorage resident with a history of recent out-of-state travel.

The Alaska Section of Epidemiology said no additional cases or evidence of local community transmission were identified as of Monday, according to a public health alert.

The patient, who is isolating and ...Read more

Maryland officials confirmed a second positive test for bird flu at a commercial poultry operation in Queen Anne’s County last week, the 10th detection in the state this year, as public health experts warn the virus continues to pose a serious threat to animals — but remains a low risk for most people.

State health and agriculture officials...Read more

California’s endangered House Republicans have spent December trying to show how they understand, and are trying to ease, the pain constituents feel as they confront skyrocketing health care costs.

But those Republicans are feeling political pain, as the enhanced federal premium subsidies for tens of thousands of Californians end next week.

...Read more

Health experts typically advise getting your COVID-19 and flu vaccine by the end of October. However, if you’ve missed that window, you can still get them well into the respiratory virus season and see a benefit.

Flu activity, particularly flu A, is on the rise across the U.S. this month, according to the latest data from the U.S. Centers for...Read more

As Americans gather for holiday celebrations, many will quietly give thanks for the health care workers who keep their families and friends well: the ICU nurse who stabilized a grandparent, the doctor who adjusted a tricky prescription, the home health aide who ensures an aging relative can bathe and eat safely.

Will most of us notice how many ...Read more

Each year, about 50,000 children under age 5 end up in emergency departments for poisoning after swallowing medicine unintentionally.

Medications are meant to improve and save lives. But when a medicine gets into the wrong hands and is taken by a child or teen, the results can be deadly. That’s why all prescription drugs, over-the-counter ...Read more

MINNEAPOLIS — The coastal sun was shining on Sarah Bridges, she recalled, when she decided to stage a one-person protest on Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s porch in Hyannis Port.

The Minnesota mom would sit there — after showing up unannounced in 2005 with an 18-inch stack of documents — until the famed environmental attorney agreed to read the...Read more

NORFOLK, Va. — This flu season has been relatively mild so far but medical experts expect it to intensify in the coming weeks due to a new strain that emerged after the current vaccine’s production — though that inoculation remains the best form of protection.

Data out of the United Kingdom indicates the new strain has resulted in the ...Read more

As Congress debates whether to extend the temporary federal subsidies that have helped millions of Americans buy health coverage, a crucial underlying reality is sometimes overlooked: Those subsidies are merely a band-aid covering the often unaffordable cost of health care.

California, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and five other states have set ...Read more

ATLANTA — One of the biggest measles outbreaks of the past two decades is taking place less than 200 miles from Atlanta.

More than 130 people in South Carolina have contracted the infection in recent months — almost all of them children who were unvaccinated. Public health officials in the state said travel over the Thanksgiving holiday ...Read more

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Over a roughly three-year period beginning in March 2020, 1,564 Alaskans died from COVID-19.

That's according to a new report from the Alaska Department of Health, which provides a detailed review of data on how the state fared dealing with the coronavirus between March 2020 and the end of the the federal public health ...Read more

Proton beam radiation therapy performed 10% better at stopping cancer of the throat compared to traditional X-ray radiation, a new study shows, with 15% fewer side effects.

“With this study, it is my personal belief that proton beam therapy is a new standard-of-care treatment for patients with oropharyngeal cancer,” said Dr. Jason Molitoris...Read more