Health & Safety

Health & Safety

Is the resurgence of weight loss drugs a blow to the body positivity movement?

9:18am October 15, 2023

by Ayesha Rascoe

NPR's Ayesha Rascoe speaks to author Virginia Sole-Smith about the future of the body positivity movement in the wake of weight loss drugs like Ozempic.

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New atlas of brain cells offers insight on disorders like autism and ADHD

10:10am October 14, 2023

by Jon Hamilton

An NIH-led effort to create an atlas of human brain cells will help researchers understand autism, ADHD, and schizophrenia. (This story first aired on All Things Considered on October 12, 2023.)

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Striking Kaiser Permanente workers on the picket line in front of a hospital in Vallejo, Calif., on Oct. 6. A deal to avert another strike came together Friday.

Health & Safety

After historic strike, Kaiser Permanente workers win 21% raise over 4 years

8:12pm October 13, 2023

by Selena Simmons-Duffin

The health care giant and the coalition of unions that walked out for three days earlier this month announced a contract deal that averts another strike.

Kimberley Seals Allers, was inspired to start Irth because of stories she her from many mothers as well as her own experience of bias in the health care system during the delivery of her first child.

Health & Safety

'Irth' hospital review app aims to take the bias out of giving birth

7:14pm October 13, 2023

by Andrea Muraskin

Founded by a Black mom, the app gathers reviews by and for people of color about their experience with the health care system during pregnancy and delivery.

People injured from Israeli air strikes on Oct. 12 wait outside a hospital to be treated. The sheer volume of medical need is overwhelming the small and exhausted number of staff at Gaza's medical facilities, says Dr. Mohammad Mattar, head of the radiology department at Al Shifa Hospital, the Gaza Strip's largest medical complex.

Doctors in Gaza describe the war's devastating impact on health care — and civilians

4:38pm October 13, 2023

by Ari Daniel

After the brutal attack on Israel by Hamas militants, Israel has begun air strikes on Gaza. The World Health Organization warns that the health system there is at a breaking point.

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Gov. Roy Cooper and NCDHHS Secretary Kody Kinsley

Health & Safety

North Carolina Medicaid expansion still set for Dec. 1 start as federal regulators give final OK

12:17pm October 13, 2023

by Associated Press

Federal regulators have given their final approval for North Carolina to begin offering Medicaid to hundreds of thousands of low-income adults

AI similar to the kind used to make images is now being used to design synthetic proteins. Scientists say its radically sped up their research.

New proteins, better batteries: Scientists are using AI to speed up discoveries

11:28am October 12, 2023

by Geoff Brumfiel

New artificial intelligence tools are being rapidly developed across the sciences. They may not be able to solve every problem, but in some cases, they're shortening the time to new breakthroughs.

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Health & Safety

North Carolina's newborn screening program receives federal grant

10:20am October 12, 2023

by Neal Charnoff

North Carolina will receive $1.7 million to support its newborn screening program. The money will be distributed to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services over five years. The funding has been awarded from a division of the U.S. Health Resources and Services Administration. The goal is to improve and build upon advancements in the state’s newborn screening system.

Health & Safety

Vaccine hesitancy affects dog-owners, too, with many questioning the rabies shot

7:35am October 12, 2023

by Pien Huang

A survey finds more than half of U.S. dog owners question the safety, efficacy or usefulness of the vaccine for rabies, which is a lethal disease. (Story aired on ATC on Oct. 11, 2023.)

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two people hold a banner at a rally for LGBTQ youth

Transgender residents in North Carolina, Montana file lawsuits challenging new state restrictions

7:03pm October 11, 2023

by Hannah Schoenbaum and Amy Beth Hanson, Associated Press

Transgender residents of North Carolina and Montana added Wednesday to a growing list of lawsuits challenging the recent onslaught of Republican state laws aimed at transgender individuals.