Our timeline maps the health benefits when you stop drinking
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HHS Eliminates CDC Staff Who Made Sure Birth Control Is Safe for Women at Risk
For more than a decade, a small team of people at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention worked to do just that, issuing national guidelines for clinicians on how to prescribe contraception safely for millions of women with underlying medical conditions — including heart disease, lupus, sickle cell disease, and obesity.
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Wildfire smoke can make your outdoor workout hazardous to your health – an exercise scientist explains how to gauge the risk
Wildfires produce huge quantities of airborne particles, also called fine particulate matter. These particles are less than 2.5 micrometers in diameter – about a tenth the size of a pollen grain.
Particles of that size, which air quality experts refer to as PM2.5, raise serious health concerns because they are tiny enough to be carried to the air sacs in the deepest parts of the lungs. From there, they can cross into the blood stream, leading to bodywide inflammation – essentially, the immune system’s fight response – which can promote or aggravate multiple chronic illnesses.
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Why Washington faces huge fallout from the Medicaid cuts in Trump’s megabill
Huge cuts to Medicaid included in the megabill President Donald Trump signed Friday could prove ruinous for the finances of both the state and its hospitals, especially in rural areas, as well as for the low-income residents who rely on the program for health care coverage, advocates say.
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Governor Ferguson: Washington will cover gap caused by federal attempt to defund of Planned Parenthood
President Trump’s ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ bans all Medicaid funding for Planned Parenthood for a year
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Suicide Rates Remain Higher in Rural Areas, Study
Between 2018 and 2020, the suicide rate again increased across the country, but more so in rural areas, the researchers found. When looking at urban areas overall, researchers found that suicide rates averages about 14 suicides per 100,000. Looking at the overall rural area, average rates neared 20 per 100,000.
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Spokane was one of hundreds of cities expecting federal funds to help manage rising heat wave risk – then EPA ended the grants
In 2021, 19 people died in Spokane County and about 300 visited hospitals with signs of heat-related illnesses. Scientists say it’s not a matter of if, but when, another deadly heat wave descends on the region.
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Online therapy as effective as in-person therapy, finds large study
We aren’t certain why remote care works, but one reason might be that the most important aspects of good therapy – things like building trust between patient and therapist, using evidence-based treatments and regular follow-up – can still occur online. In fact, for some people, meeting by video can make it easier to show up and feel comfortable.
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FDA Layoffs Could Compromise Safety of Medications Made at Foreign Factories, Inspectors Say
Rx Roulette:The FDA’s Dangerous Gamble on America’s Drugs
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Republican Megabill Will Mean Higher Health Costs for Many Americans
Under the legislation Trump’s expected to sign on Friday, Independence Day, reductions in federal support for Medicaid and Affordable Care Act marketplaces will cause nearly 12 million more people to be without insurance by 2034, the Congressional Budget Office estimates. That in turn is expected to undermine the finances of hospitals, nursing homes, and community health centers — which will have to absorb more of the cost of treating uninsured people. Some may reduce services and employees or close altogether
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Idaho banned abortion. Three years later, minors and seniors struggle to get routine care
It’s been three years since the U.S. Supreme Court issued the Dobbs ruling that ended federal abortion protections and allowed more than a dozen states to implement abortion bans. States that were already struggling with physician shortages say they’re getting worse, especially in rural areas, where many labor and delivery units have also closed their doors. Clinics have closed and resources become more strained with every passing year.
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Proposed Federal Cuts Put Rural Behavioral Health Resources on the Line
The proposed FY2026 Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) budget would cut nearly $1 billion and dozens of programs from SAMHSA following a March announcement that SAMHSA would be one of five agencies folded into a new, centralized Administration for a Healthy America. BCOR is one of the grants eliminated in the current budget proposal.
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Health tips for a safe 4th of July
Food, water, air, fire and heat
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Home test kits boost screening for cervical cancer
Women who used at-home test kits were more than twice as likely to complete screening for cervical cancer than women who received only telephone reminders.
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Your summer burn survival guide: from sunburn to BBQ mishaps
Even minor burns deserve serious attention. Yet many people try to brush them off, slap on a brave face, or dismiss sound advice.
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