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Republicans in Congress have proposed substantial cuts to the budget of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, taking aim at one of former President Donald Trump鈥檚 major health programs: a push to end the HIV epidemic in the U.S.
Excessive heat contributed to 1,670 deaths nationwide last year, according to federal data 鈥 the highest rate in at least two decades. An increase in drug use and homelessness, along with hotter temperatures, were among the reasons.
Congress returns from its summer recess with a long list of tasks and only a few work days to get them done. On top of the annual spending bills needed to keep the government operating, on the list are bills to renew the global HIV/AIDS program, PEPFAR, and the community health centers program. Meanwhile, over the recess, the Biden administration released the names of the first 10 drugs selected for the Medicare price negotiation program.
Federal research linking 鈥渇orever chemicals鈥 to testicular cancer confirms what U.S. military personnel long suspected. But as they seek testing for PFAS exposure, many wonder what to do with the results. There鈥檚 no medical treatment yet.
Unsafe sleep environments are among the main reasons accidental suffocation or strangulation is a hard-to-solve public health problem.
Regina G. Barber from NPR鈥檚 鈥淪hortwave鈥 podcast speaks with physician-epidemiologist C茅line Gounder about two men who were among the public health heroes who helped wipe out a 3,000-year-old virus, and the lessons that victory offers for the next public health emergency.
Studies suggest official numbers vastly underestimate heat-related injuries and illness on the job. To institute protections, the government must calculate their cost 鈥 and the cost of inaction.
The medical dangers of heat are real. But people often ignore public heat alerts or don't realize how vulnerable they are. A new alert system prompts clinicians to talk about heat with patients.
Anti-vaccine tech entrepreneur Steve Kirsch, whose wild assertions have been repeatedly debunked, wrongly attributes deaths following vaccination to the vaccines themselves. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which runs the database, calls that inaccurate and irresponsible.
Montana has earmarked $3.7 million to address widespread high levels of lead in school drinking water. But it likely isn鈥檛 enough to solve the problem.
In Bangladesh, smallpox eradication workers went to great lengths to vaccinate even one person, sometimes traveling by speedboat, crossing rickety bamboo bridges or leech-infested paddy fields. Episode 4 of the 鈥淓radicating Smallpox鈥 podcast is about what it takes to bring care directly to people where they are.
Where trees are growing 鈥 and who has access to their shade 鈥 affects health and well-being, especially in one of the hottest states in the country.
As chatter and images about guns and violence slip into the social media feeds of more teens, viral messages fueled by 鈥渓ikes鈥 can lead to real-world conflict and loss.
Teens share photos or videos of themselves with guns and stacks of cash, sometimes calling out rivals, on Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, or TikTok. When posts go viral, fueled by 鈥渓ikes鈥 and comments, the danger is hard to contain.
Though health policies in general got little airtime, the discussion of whether candidates support a federal abortion ban underscored how Republicans, in a post-Roe environment, face political challenges on the issue.
Flu. Covid. RSV. When and how to get vaccinated against them can be confusing. Here are some of the most important things to know.
Mandy Cohen, the new director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, earned praise for her leadership and communication as the face of North Carolina鈥檚 response to covid-19. People in the state鈥檚 most vulnerable communities tell a more complicated story.
A new poll from KFF shows many Americans aren鈥檛 willing to embrace misinformation 鈥 but aren鈥檛 willing to reject it either. And they don鈥檛 know whom to trust.
Chagas disease, caused by a parasite, affects people primarily in rural Latin America. But an estimated 300,000 residents of the U.S. have the disease, which can cause serious heart problems. Patient advocates call for much more aggressive efforts to fight it.
In early 2020, U.S. public health labs received covid-19 tests from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention that were flawed, as a result of poor design and contamination. Now the CDC is overhauling its lab operations, but efforts to be better prepared for future threats won鈥檛 be easy, observers say.
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