Means testing Medicare is one of the few areas where Democrats have shown a willingness to even consider the subject of spending less on the program. But not everyone supports that idea.
The 2012 flu season started strong and eight states have already reported widespread flu activity. This is the earliest regular flu season since 2003-2004. With only about 37% of the population vaccinated so far, the influenza virus still has the potential to have a severe impact.
Democrats are worried that cuts to the program will go beyond the impact on the people it serves. It will also affect the Affordable Care Act, which calls for expanding Medicaid to as many as 16 million more people. The states are watching closely because the federal government has promised it will pay most of those additional costs.
In the Supreme Court's Affordable Care Act ruling this summer, it decided that states' plans for expansion of the Medicaid program should be optional. That led governors to ask if they could expand the program in part but still receive federal funding. The administration has said no.
Stroke is usually a problem that comes with age, but a surprising number of children have strokes, too. Many kids have conditions that put them at higher risk. But surgeons have developed a technique that cuts the risk in some of these kids by giving part of the brain a new blood supply.
In Escape Fire: The Fight to Rescue American Healthcare", director Matthew Heineman exposes what he sees as flaws in the U.S. healthcare system, such as a doctor who can spend just minutes with her patients to a soldier addicted to painkillers. Colonel Chester 'Trip' Buckenmaier III, of the U.S. Army Medical Corps, describes the military's efforts to swap pain pills for alternative therapies, like acupuncture and yoga.
A year ago, some of President Obama's biggest supporters were dismayed when the administration did not lift the age requirements for obtaining the pill without a prescription. But advocates now see a new opportunity to push the issue.
Researchers found a surprising number of mutations, including several associated with disease, in the genes of normal healthy people. Their study raises questions about whether widespread genetic sequencing could end up scaring people for no good reason.
Officials at Spelman College, a historically black women's college in Atlanta, have decided to scrap the school's NCAA program. With few students participating in organized sports, the college has decided to devote those funds to a fitness program designed to reach the entire student body.
New research suggests older adults may have less activity in the area of the brain that processes risk and subtle danger. Another possible reason older adults don't pick up on warning signs is an increasing bias against negativity.