On Aging

Celina Raddatz and her mother, Guadalupe Pena Villegas, at home in California.

More Than A Job: Home Care For A Mom With Alzheimer's Disease

8:39am March 19, 2018

by Franziska Monahan

Celina Raddatz worked in eldercare for about 30 years, until her mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer's and she quit her job to take care of her. Now Raddatz works as a paid caregiver for her mother.

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Leon Beers, a retired railroad engineer who lives near Sacramento, Calif., has a form of Parkinson's disease. His live-in caregiver, Timothy Wehe, helps him get outside using a walker.

Lifting Medicare's Annual Limits On Physical Therapy Helps Ease Patients' Pain

5:01pm March 13, 2018

by Susan Jaffe

Last month's congressional budget deal included some benefits for Medicare recipients that may reduce their drug expenses and increase the coverage for certain therapies.

As early as your mid-40s, especially if you're sedentary, your heart muscle can show signs of aging, losing its youthful elasticity and power. But moderately strenuous exercise can change that.

Hearts Get 'Younger,' Even At Middle Age, With Exercise

4:06pm March 12, 2018

by Patti Neighmond

As early as your mid-40s, especially if you're sedentary, your heart muscle can show signs of aging, losing its youthful elasticity and power. But moderately strenuous exercise can change that.

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When it comes to chronic pain, how do patients and doctors find the right treatment?

Questions And Answers About Opioids And Chronic Pain

8:09pm March 09, 2018

Are opioids the best way to manage long-term pain? NPR's Ari Shapiro talked with Dr. Ajay Wasan, a pain specialist at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, to find out.

Gerald A. Goines Sr. sits in the waiting room of Chapman's clinic in Northeast Washington, D.C.

The Opioid Crisis Is Surging In Black, Urban Communities

12:04pm March 08, 2018

by Marisa Peñaloza

Opioid overdose deaths among middle-aged black men have increased 245 percent in the past three years in Washington, D.C.

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Maxine Stanich celebrated her 90th birthday with friends and family in 2010, more than two years after her implanted defibrillator was deactivated by Dr. Rita Redberg to comply with Stanich's "do not resuscitate" directive.

Health & Safety

Too Late To Operate? Surgery Near End Of Life Is Common, Costly

12:42pm February 28, 2018

by Liz Szabo

Nearly 1 in 3 Medicare patients undergoes an operation in the final year of life. The benefits are often limited, but the costs and side effects can be substantial.

Confused about whether your health plan is ACA-compliant? To be sure you're using your state's official marketplace, start with HealthCare.gov, and click on "see if I can change."

Your 2018 Health Plan Must Comply With ACA Rules Or You Risk Tax Penalties

7:59pm February 27, 2018

by Michelle Andrews

The tax reform law passed in December did repeal the Affordable Care Act's penalties for not having comprehensive health insurance. But the penalties are still in effect until 2019.

When wildfire smoke choked their community last summer, Amy Cilimburg (left), the director of Climate Smart Missoula, helped Joy and Don Dunagan, of Seeley Lake, Mont., get a HEPA air filter through a partnership with the Missoula City-County Health Depar

When Wildfire Smoke Invades, Who Should Pay To Clean Indoor Air?

8:14am February 25, 2018

by Nora Saks

Public health agencies are set up to regulate air pollution from cars, trucks and factories. Wildfire smoke presents a different set of threats, prompting some of those agencies to rethink priorities.

Wildfire smoke filled the sky in Seeley Lake, Mont. on Aug. 7, 2017. Weather effects concentrated the accumulating smoke, chronically exposing residents to harmful substances in the air.

Montana Wildfires Provide A Wealth Of Data On Health Effects Of Smoke Exposure

8:08am February 24, 2018

by Nora Saks

Last summer's wildfires handed scientists a rare chance to study effects of smoke on residents. Most previous work had been on wood-burning stoves, urban air pollution and the effects on firefighters.

Royal Australian Navy Lt. Elizabeth Livingstone and Singapore Army Maj. Paul Zhao perform cataract surgery aboard the hospital ship USNS Mercy during a visit to Quy Nhon, Vietnam in 2010.

Health & Safety

Anthem Says Eye Surgeons Should Monitor Cataract Anesthesia Themselves

12:03pm February 20, 2018

by Michelle Andrews

The insurer says it is not usually medically necessary to have an anesthesiologist or nurse anesthetist on hand most of the time during the common surgery.