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Anguished parents. Doctors in tears. Utah's long measles outbreak takes a toll
SALT LAKE CITY — Ben Dowse hadn't expected to treat measles when he became a doctor, but there he was, examining a newborn exposed to the virus in the womb. The infected mother had given birth just hours earlier. The hospital had alerted Dowse to the case before delivery, and he'd braced himself for the worst.
Dowse wore a full-body ...Read more
Vitamin D shows promise for hard-to-treat pancreatic cancers
Patients receiving a type of vitamin D lived longer after chemotherapy for pancreatic cancer in a small study run by researchers with the Salk Institute.
Among 36 patients with previously untreated pancreatic cancer that had metastasized or spread, those taking a type of vitamin D called paricalcitol experienced a significant survival boost one...Read more
11 Massachusetts nurses were diagnosed with brain tumors: Is it a cancer cluster?
BOSTON — As the state investigates a possible cancer cluster at a high school, many Herald readers have asked whatever happened with the potential tumor cluster at a local hospital.
Seven current and former nurses in Newton-Wellesley Hospital’s fifth floor maternity wing were diagnosed with brain tumors, the Herald reported last year.
The ...Read more
Connecticut health department confirms first case of measles in state in 2026
HARTFORD, Conn. — The first case of the measles this year has been reported in Connecticut.
The case involves an unvaccinated adult in Hartford County who tested positive over the weekend, according to Brittany Schaefer, spokesperson for the state Department of Public Health.
The Connecticut resident had left the country “recently” and ...Read more
As Affordable Care Act premiums skyrocket, catastrophic coverage is having a moment
Jason Miller watched his monthly health insurance premiums quadruple to $374 from $80 for a silver-level plan when the Affordable Care Act’s enhanced tax credits ran out in December.
“That’s just not functionally doable,” the married father of four children said about the increase.
Worse, he said, “the coverage you’re paying for is...Read more
US immigration policies interfere with prenatal care and parenting choices, hurting people and communities
Late in her pregnancy in the fall of 2025, Jacqueline, a Guatemalan immigrant living in North Florida, began planning for labor alone.
After her husband was detained and deported by Immigration and Customs Enforcement, she stopped leaving her home except when absolutely necessary. Even routine prenatal visits felt risky, she told the ...Read more
For strong bones, drink milk, filtered water and toss PFAs-loaded teflon cookware
Children with more exposure to per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAs, had lower forearm density by age 12 and could face greater fracture risk, researchers found, with girls apparently more vulnerable than boys.
“Adolescence is a key period for building strong bones, and achieving optimal bone mass during this time can reduce lifelong ...Read more
In Pennsylvania, measles cases are rising as providers try to combat low vaccination rates
PHILADELPHIA -- In late April, Joshua Good got a call from a parent at Ephrata Mennonite School: Two of their children had been diagnosed with measles.
Good, who heads the private religious school in Lancaster County, knew he had to act quickly to prevent further spread of the highly contagious disease. But he was not particularly surprised ...Read more
Looming Medicaid cuts supercharge California's latest labor-industry fight
The looming impact of federal Medicaid cuts has reignited a long-simmering, costly battle between California’s medical industry and one of its largest health worker unions.
SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West, with approximately 120,000 members, has put forward two ballot initiatives to cap the pay of medical executives and require community ...Read more
Ask the Pediatrician: Healthy meals for children
Having healthy meals at school, during breaks and at childcare/after-school programs sets kids up for success so they can learn, grow and stay active. Healthy meals are an important tool to help children learn, just as much as textbooks and technology. Research shows that school meals are positive influences in kids' health as they ensure that ...Read more
Upcoming billing change could make pregnancy pricier
Having a baby in the United States is about to get more complicated.
Under new billing codes that take effect in January, doctors who manage maternity care will start charging à la carte for visits and services related to pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum care. It's an about-face from recent years, when doctors have often received a single...Read more
High-potency cannabis fuels state debates over psychosis and addiction risks
When her son was a teenager, Connecticut mom Amy Wadsworth said, he was the type of kid parents rarely worry about.
He played sports, cared about his health and stayed away from drugs. In 2018, when he left West Hartford to start his freshman year at American University in Washington, D.C., she expected his biggest challenge would be adjusting ...Read more
By September, nearly a third of Americans will live in states with legal aid in dying
Jules Netherland traveled from her home in the Bronx to the New York state Capitol in Albany several times in the past few years, hoping to persuade the legislature to pass a medical aid in dying bill, allowing terminally ill patients to end their lives with a lethal prescription.
She spoke at rallies. With other members of the advocacy ...Read more
Officials say possible hantavirus case in San Quentin prison was false positive
A reported possible case of hantavirus in an inmate at the San Quentin Rehabilitation Center in California was determined to be a false positive after further laboratory testing, officials said Friday.
Authorities investigating a potential case of the rare-but-deadly disease initially sent a sample from an inmate to a commercial lab for ...Read more
Officials investigating possible hantavirus case in San Quentin prison with inmates, staff monitored for symptoms
Officials are investigating a potential case of hantavirus, a rare but deadly disease that attacks the lungs, in an inmate at the San Quentin Rehabilitation Center in Marin County, California.
The California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation, which manages the state’s prison system, “is waiting for more lab test results for an ...Read more
Warning of cuts to medical services, LA health officials ask state for emergency funds
LOS ANGELES — The Los Angeles County Department of Health Services has joined a chorus of California hospitals and health systems lobbying the state for a $500-million emergency payment to public hospitals bracing for massive financial losses.
The California Assn. of Public Hospitals and Health Systems is requesting a one-time general fund ...Read more
Missing contacts obscure Congo Ebola outbreak's true extent
Authorities are unable to determine the true extent of the Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo because emergency workers can’t find all the missing contacts of patients infected by the virus, Africa’s top health official said.
Congo reported 676 confirmed cases and 136 deaths as of June 10, the National Institute of Public ...Read more
Trump bought tobacco stocks and raked in industry donations as FDA eased standards
President Donald Trump, who once declared he had “saved” flavored vapes, grew his stock holdings this year to as much as $1.64 million in tobacco giant Philip Morris.
He also had holdings in Altria and a third leading tobacco company, though an apparent discrepancy in his disclosures clouds the extent of his investments. In 2025, tobacco ...Read more
Artificial intelligence is helping Floridians with brain tumors. Here's how
TAMPA, Fla. -- Dr. Brian Collins was completing his medical residency at Georgetown University in the early 2000s when the institution invested in a new and groundbreaking technology that would shape the course of his career. The system was called CyberKnife.
Developed at Stanford University three decades ago, the CyberKnife System is one of ...Read more
Using cannabis for sleep isn’t harmless – a neurologist explains how it can trap people in a cycle of dependency
For millions of people, cannabis has become the unofficial prescription for lost sleep. But what feels like a solution may be quietly making the problem worse.
Consider these two cases:
She is 15 and has been lying in bed for the past hour. It is past midnight, and her brain will not quiet down. Her school bus comes at 6:20 a....Read more
Popular Stories
- 11 Massachusetts nurses were diagnosed with brain tumors: Is it a cancer cluster?
- US immigration policies interfere with prenatal care and parenting choices, hurting people and communities
- Connecticut health department confirms first case of measles in state in 2026
- Vitamin D shows promise for hard-to-treat pancreatic cancers
- As Affordable Care Act premiums skyrocket, catastrophic coverage is having a moment








