Because polio has been vanishingly rare in the United States for nearly a half-century, doctors may not consider it when diagnosing patients with typical symptoms. Here are the signs and the science behind an infectious disease that is largely a mystery to modern society.
Shortly after birth, babies are pricked in the heel so their blood can be tested for life-threatening conditions. States generally save leftover blood from those samples, and parents and privacy experts are concerned that information could be used without consent years later.
California and New York would be the first states to require anyone under 18 to obtain prescriptions to purchase over-the-counter weight loss products, which some research has linked to eating disorders.
California state Sen. Richard Pan, who spearheaded some of the country’s most ambitious vaccine mandate legislation, is leaving office this year because of term limits. A pediatrician, he plans to practice medicine full time but has not ruled out a future run for office.
San Jose and Sacramento this summer joined scores of other California cities and counties that have banned the sale of flavored tobacco products such as menthol cigarettes and candy-flavored e-cigs. In November, California voters will decide whether to allow a statewide ban to take effect.
A study published in JAMA leads to questions about the uneven distribution of pediatric nephrologists nationwide. Children with end-stage kidney disease feel the impact.
Public health experts say heat waves pose health risks for children, whose bodies may not be as effective at cooling and who rely on caretakers to prevent and notice the signs of heat-related illness.
Legislators are considering two bills that address online addiction among children by taking aim at website features such as push notifications and targeted posts. But Big Tech is fighting the effort, saying companies are already taking steps to protect children.
In a rare surprise for official Washington, Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer and Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) announced a deal to expand the planned health bill in the Senate to include provisions raising taxes and addressing climate change. The measure would include a third year of expanded subsidies for the Affordable Care Act, but not health care coverage for people left out of Medicaid in states that failed to expand the program. Meanwhile, the ACA goes back to court, and the Biden administration restores anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ people that were rolled back by the Trump administration. Joanne Kenen of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and Politico, Sarah Karlin-Smith of the Pink Sheet, and Alice Miranda Ollstein of Politico join KHN’s Julie Rovner to discuss these issues and more. Also this week, Rovner interviews Dr. Céline Gounder of KHN about the latest on the monkeypox outbreak.
Click here for a transcript of the interview. A University of Pennsylvania professor shares advice on navigating the intersection of gun violence and social media as part of KHN’s new “Spotlight” interview series. Buffalo, New York. Uvalde, Texas. Highland Park, Illinois. Graphic imagery and news about the recent string of mass shootings has ricocheted across […]
