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Colorado blames Biden team and drugmakers for delaying Canadian imports

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Colorado officials say their plan to import cheaper medicines from Canada has been stymied by opposition from drugmakers and inaction by the Biden administration, according to a state report obtained by KFF Health News.

The Dec. 1 report, prepared for the state legislature by Colorado’s Department of Health Care Policy & Financing, says that ...Read more

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Feds fix loophole preventing soldiers from getting 9/11 health care

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

The federal government is fixing a mistake that excluded members of the U.S. armed services who worked at Sept. 11 crash sites and came down with a 9/11 illness from getting pivotal health coverage, the New York Daily News has learned.

Additions to the bipartisan National Defense Authorization Act will now allow soldiers and sailors, other ...Read more

First gene therapies to treat sickle cell disease get FDA approval

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

The Food and Drug Administration approved two gene therapies for the treatment of sickle cell disease Friday, including a CRISPR gene-editing therapy to treat the disease, the first treatment approved in the U.S. using CRISPR technology.

Casgevy and Lyfgenia, the gene therapy treatments, will be available for patients 12 and older for treatment...Read more

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Consumer Health: Flu vaccination and cancer

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

It's especially important that you get a flu shot if you have cancer.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Mayo Clinic recommend a yearly flu vaccination for everyone 6 months and older, with rare exceptions. Vaccination is your best defense against flu. If you haven't gotten your flu shot yet, now's the time.

For most people, ...Read more

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Mayo Clinic Q and A: Health benefits of volunteering

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: My neighbor recently retired, and I've been trying to convince her to volunteer at the library with me. She's not swayed by my stories of feeling good from helping others. Can you share some other benefits of dedicating her time and energy to a cause?

ANSWER: Thank you for volunteering in your community and for trying to ...Read more

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Many would-be kidney donors are ineligible because of their weight or smoking habits. This project helps them qualify

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

CHICAGO -- More than 70 kidney transplants were performed every day in the United States last year. Rachel Watson wanted to be one of the donors, but was told she didn’t qualify — at first.

Watson, a 27-year-old digital marketer living in Warrenville, Illinois, had been moved by a news story about a local politician in need of a kidney. In ...Read more

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The rainbow of urine colors: What's typical, what's not

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Regular urine color varies but usually ranges from clear to pale yellow. The exact hue depends on how much water you drink. Fluids dilute the yellow pigments in urine. So the more you drink, the clearer your urine looks. When you drink less, the yellow color becomes stronger.

Some foods and medications can change the color of urine. For example...Read more

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Many people of color worry good health care is tied to their appearance

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Many people from racial and ethnic minority groups brace themselves for insults and judgments before medical appointments, according to a new survey of patients that reaffirms the prevalence of racial discrimination in the U.S. health system.

The KFF survey of nearly 6,300 patients who have had care in the past three years found that about 55% ...Read more

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Not getting a COVID-19 vaccine could lead to preterm birth in pregnant women, new study shows

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

COVID-19 infection can lead to preterm birth, a study published last week in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences shows, but getting vaccinated protects against it.

Researchers found a serious adverse effect on preterm birth from COVID infection during pregnancy, a risk that had plummeted to zero by fall 2022, following ...Read more

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Biden wants states to ensure Obamacare plans cover enough doctors and hospitals

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

The Biden administration plans to push states to boost oversight of the number of doctors, hospitals and other health providers insurers cover in Obamacare plans, under rules proposed in November.

The annual regulatory proposal, known as the payment parameters rule, also seeks to expand access to adult dental coverage in Affordable Care Act ...Read more

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Mayo Clinic Minute: Do you need more vitamin D in the winter?

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Vitamin D is a nutrient your body needs to keep your bones healthy and strong. It also has properties that support your immune system and neuromuscular health.

Dr. Jesse Bracamonte, a Mayo Clinic family medicine physician, says one of the main ways your body gets vitamin D is through direct sunlight on the skin. And during winter in the ...Read more

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'Forever chemicals' found in freshwater fish, yet most states don't warn residents

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Bill Eisenman has always fished.

“Growing up, we ate whatever we caught — catfish, carp, freshwater drum,” he said. “That was the only real source of fish in our diet as a family, and we ate a lot of it.”

Today, a branch of the Rouge River runs through Eisenman’s property in a suburb north of Detroit. But in recent years, he has ...Read more

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FTC chief gears up for a showdown with private equity

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

A recent Federal Trade Commission civil lawsuit accusing one of the nation’s largest anesthesiology groups of monopolistic practices that sharply drove up prices is a warning to private equity investors that could temper their big push to snap up physician groups.

Over the past three years, FTC and Department of Justice officials have ...Read more

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Patients expected Profemur artificial hips to last. Then they snapped in half

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Bradley Little, a physical education teacher in Arizona, was leading his class through a school hallway in 2017 when he collapsed. Little feared he was having a stroke. Or, in a sign of the times, that he’d been shot. He tried to stand, but his leg wouldn’t move.

A student ran for help. Firefighters arrived and hoisted Little onto a gurney....Read more

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Mayo Clinic Minute: 3 tips from a dietitian on managing holiday indulgences

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Whether it's work parties, social gatherings or family get-togethers, December joins people for holidays and social events centered around plenty of food and drinks. But overindulging during the holiday season can bring unwelcome consequences.

Andrea Delgado, a Mayo Clinic dietitian, shares three tips to help manage holiday indulgences this ...Read more

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State abortion bans bar exceptions for suicide, mental health

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

In the year since the Supreme Court outlawed the national right to an abortion, 18 states have implemented abortion bans that specify that mental health or suicidality do not qualify as a health-related exception for the woman — a deviation that’s occurring despite growing national momentum to treat physical and mental health equally.

...Read more

Environmental Nutrition: All you need to know about apple cider vinegar

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

Q: How is apple cider vinegar made and is it healthy?

A: Vinegar can be made from a variety of fermentable carbohydrates, including grapes, berries, rice and, yes, apples. While it is fermenting, yeast turns food sugars into alcohol, and if acetic acid bacteria (acetobacter) are present, then the alcohol is converted to acetic acid, the main ...Read more

7 foods for stress relief

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

We all feel wrung out sometimes by the stress of daily life and, unfortunately, we tend to reach for junk food. But high-calorie or sugary foods only trick us into thinking we feel better. Eating healthy food (and making that a conscious choice) can actually offer some real stress relief. End the cycle of turning to foods when you're stressed ...Read more

Denial: How it hurts, how it helps, and how to cope

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

At some point in life, everyone experiences denial, a natural response when you’re unable or unwilling to face the facts. Denial is not always a bad thing. But it might be easier to recognize in others than in yourself.

“It’s hard to look at your own life and take a good inventory of what's going on. It takes a lot of work,” says ...Read more

Mayo Clinic Q&A: How to support a loved one with depression

Health Advice / Health & Fitness /

DEAR MAYO CLINIC: My brother has been diagnosed with depression. I want to help him, but I do not know what to do. Can you give me ideas for how best to support him?

ANSWER: When a loved one is affected by depression, it can be difficult to understand what is happening or what you can do to help. It is OK to be confused and wonder how you can ...Read more