Public Health
A Secret Weapon in Preventing the Next Pandemic: Fruit Bats
New research links bat habitat destruction with the spillover of their viruses to humans
Stories by Kaiser Health News
Health Care
Supreme Court to Hear Nursing Home Case That Could Affect Millions
The country’s highest court will decide whether Americans who rely on public assistance can sue states when they believe their rights have been violated
Health Care
Hearing Aids Are Now Available Over the Counter
Once available only with a prescription, hearing aids can now be purchased at Walmart and other stores for $199 and up
Pollution
People Exposed to Harmful Wildfire Smoke Often Live Far from Lung Specialists
Climate change is increasing the frequency and severity of wildfires, and those most affected by their pollution must drive miles to access care
Public Health
A New Way to Measure Heat Risks for People
Facing more sizzling summers, Colorado tests a new risk formula that raises the likelihood of health warnings
Health Care
Patients and Doctors Navigate Conflicting Abortion and Emergency Care Laws
The Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade has put medical providers in the tough position of deciding when emergency abortions and other lifesaving procedures are necessary...
Weather
Heat Waves Affect Children More Severely
Children “are not little adults”—they have more trouble regulating temperature than adults do
Mental Health
A Look at the Mental Health Provisions in the New Gun Law
Most of the $13 billion appropriated in the new legislation Congress recently passed focuses on mental health programs
Health Care
Disposable Hospital Gowns Could Expose Health Workers to Infection
Widely used gowns, intended to protect people, can let too much liquid seep through, new studies suggest
Epidemiology
What You Need to Know about Monkeypox
An infectious disease expert answers questions about how the virus spreads, what its symptoms are and how to get testing and treatment
Reproduction
New Abortion Laws Could Make Prenatal Genetic Screening Harder to Do
States that outlaw abortions after a certain number of weeks could make it difficult or impossible to terminate a pregnancy because of a serious genetic disorder
Medicine
Correcting Misinformation about How ‘Plan B’ Works
As states move to limit access to abortion, some are taking aim at the popular form of emergency contraception
Reproduction
How Abortion Restrictions Could Affect Care for Miscarriages
The drugs and procedures used to terminate a pregnancy are the same ones used to treat patients for early pregnancy loss or ectopic pregnancies
Epidemiology
A Guide to the Different Omicron Subvariants
How to tell the different versions of SARS-CoV-2 apart, and how well vaccines protect against them
Public Health
Making COVID Tests Better at Detecting Infectious People
Scientists are debating whether to use a little-known measure to determine who is truly contagious. The NFL is already using it
Public Health
COVID Still Threatens Millions of Immunocompromised People
People who suffer from diseases or take treatments that leave them highly vulnerable to COVID fear being left behind as the country drops pandemic restrictions
Reproduction
Texas Toughens Ban on Medication-by-Mail Abortions
A new law threatens jail time and hefty fines for anyone who prescribes the pills online or by mail
Politics
Conservative Justices Seem Poised to Overturn Roe’s Abortion Rights
Justices heard arguments on Wednesday in a case over a Mississippi law that would ban most abortions after 15 weeks of pregnancy
Reproduction
California Plans for a Post-Roe World as Abortion Access Shrinks Elsewhere
Abortion providers are preparing for a surge in demand from other states if the Supreme Court overturns the landmark ruling
Vaccines
Biden’s New Plan to Combat COVID is a Start, but Experts Say There Is a Ways to Go
The plan includes vaccine mandates for federal workers and those at companies with 100 or more employees, but some experts say it doesn’t go far enough
