Health & Safety

A view from the Shark Valley Visitors Center in Everglades National Park. Much of the freshwater that used to replenish South Florida's saw grass prairie has been diverted to agriculture, researchers say.

Rising Seas Push Too Much Salt Into The Florida Everglades

2:02pm May 25, 2016

by Christopher Joyce

Rising sea levels put extra pressure on coastal bedrock in South Florida. Eventually, as seawater moves in, it could contaminate plants on the surface and the region's stores of freshwater beneath.

Queue Listen Now

Margaret Chan (left), director general of the World Health Organization, is among the dignitaries visiting a military base in Conakry, Guinea, on a tour of west African countries affected by Ebola. Also pictured: Guinean President Alpha Conde (fourth from

WHO Aims To Reform Itself But Health Experts Aren't Yet Impressed

12:29pm May 25, 2016

by Michaeleen Doucleff

The health agency is making changes so it can get boots on the ground if a pandemic strikes. But critics say it hasn't gone far enough.

Queue Listen Now

A startup called Opternative offers online vision tests using a computer and a smartphone.

Online Eye Exam Site Makes Waves In Eye Care Industry

10:44am May 25, 2016

by Bradley George

Need a vision test? Now you can do it online with a computer and a smartphone. The site has attracted a lot of attention in the tech world, but eye care professionals have concerns.

Queue Listen Now

WHO Plans To Reshape Itself To Better Handle International Outbreaks

7:14pm May 24, 2016

by Michaeleen Doucleff

Health officials have warned for years that the world is not ready for the next big pandemic. Leaders at the World Health Organization are meeting this week to try to change that.

Queue Listen Now

Small Ohio Town Passes Progressive Parental Leave Policy

5:09pm May 24, 2016

The Village of Newburgh Heights, outside Cleveland, is a working class community of about 2,500 residents.

CDC Report Reveals Decline In American Smokers

4:32pm May 24, 2016

A Centers for Disease Control and Prevention report revealed 15.1 percent of adults smoked cigarettes in 2015. That is down 1.7 percent from 2014 and almost 10 percent since 1997. CDC Director Dr. Tom Frieden explains what's behind the new statistics.

Former White House Ebola Czar Urges Congress To Act Faster On Zika

4:32pm May 24, 2016

NPR's Kelly McEvers speaks with Ron Klain, former White House Ebola response coordinator, about his op-ed piece in the Washington Post about the Zika virus. He says the U.S. needs to create a public health emergency management agency, like FEMA for health emergencies, so our country is ready to act quickly without having to wait for Congress.

For simple care and prescriptions, veterans in Northern California can go to 14 CVS MinuteClinics.

To Cut Wait Times, VA Tries MinuteClinics In Northern California

4:16pm May 24, 2016

by Barbara Feder Ostrov

Veterans can visit 14 CVS MinuteClinics in the San Francisco Bay Area and Sacramento, Calif., for simple care, lab tests and prescriptions. Will the experiment work well enough to go nationwide?

Dr. Abraham Nussbaum argues for medicine to reconnect with its past: Caring for patients should be a calling, not a job, he says.

Doctor Yearns For Return To Time When Physicians Were 'Artisans'

2:20pm May 24, 2016

by Michelle Andrews

Dr. Abraham Nussbaum, author of a book examining the drive toward standardized quality measures and checklists, says he fears medicine is becoming just another job and not the calling it should be.

'Helping Children Succeed' Starts At Birth; A Case For The Power Of Nurture

11:06am May 24, 2016

by Anya Kamenetz

Paul Tough's new book surveys the best new evidence on how to overcome the effects of poverty.