health care

Health & Safety

The Red Cross says the supply of blood for medical use is dangerously low

8:18am January 16, 2022

by Sacha Pfeiffer

Blood supplies are low at hospitals across the country, and the American Red Cross hopes people will continue to donate blood in order to bolster supplies.

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As demand for testing ramps up, community clinics and nonprofits struggle to keep up with the need. These groups have run testing sites throughout the pandemic in low-income and minority neighborhoods, like this one in the Mission District of San Francisc

Essential workers face a tough choice: Find a test or miss work

7:00am January 16, 2022

by Raquel Maria Dillon

Facing lost wages if they can't work, essential workers struggle to get timely COVID tests amid a nationwide testing crunch. Community clinics are struggling to meet the need.

More Black students are headed to medical school, but finances are still a major issue

11:15am January 15, 2022

by Kirk Carapezza

Medical schools are reporting a record increase in Black students. Across the U.S., the number of first-year African Americans is way up – 21 percent — an unprecedented spike since 2020.

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A phlebotomist tends to a blood donor during the Starts, Stripes, and Pints blood drive event in Louisville, Ky., in July. Rising numbers of organ transplants, trauma cases, and elective surgeries postponed by the COVID-19 pandemic have caused an increase

Doctors and patients are facing tough choices because of the national blood crisis

8:56pm January 13, 2022

by Jonathan Franklin

The COVID-19 pandemic has contributed to a 62% drop in blood drives at schools and colleges, according to the American Red Cross.

People and cars line up outside of Boston Medical Center near the emergency room where COVID-19 testing was taking place during the Omicron surge in Boston on Jan. 3, 2022.

ERs are overwhelmed as omicron continues to flood them with patients

8:04pm January 13, 2022

by Will Stone

Omicron may cause milder disease but the sheer number of patients make this wave far worse for the health care system. With packed emergency rooms, patients can wait days to get moved to a bed.

The Biogen Inc., headquarters is shown in Cambridge, Mass. Medicare says it will limit coverage of a $28,200-per-year Alzheimer's drug whose benefits have been questioned.

Medicare proposes covering expensive Alzheimer's drug for those in clinical trials

7:55pm January 11, 2022

by Jonathan Franklin

Aduhelm is the first treatment approved in the country to slow cognitive decline in those living with Alzheimer's. Doctors have refused to prescribe it, given the lack of data and evidence behind it.

Health & Safety

New survey aims to address health needs in High Point

10:36am January 11, 2022

by Neal Charnoff

High Point residents are being asked to weigh in on the community's most pressing health and wellness issues.

A medical worker puts on a mask before entering a negative pressure room with a COVID-19 patient in the ICU ward at UMass Memorial Medical Center in Worcester, Mass., last week.

Health & Safety

U.S. COVID hospitalizations hit new record high, raising risks for patients

10:10am January 11, 2022

There are more patients and, in some places, not enough health care workers to go around. Research shows the crowding will impact care and increase mortality for all patients.

A health worker grabs at-home COVID-19 test kits to be handed out last month in Youngstown, Ohio. Starting Saturday, private health insurers will be required to cover up to eight at-home COVID-19 tests per month for those on their plans, the Biden adminis

How to get insurance to pay for at-home COVID tests, according to the White House

9:59pm January 10, 2022

by Jonathan Franklin

The Biden administration says Americans should be able to order COVID-19 tests online later this month. Those who are eligible can get eight free over-the-counter at-home tests a month.

Jamie Beck, who has a mild intellectual and developmental disability, was placed in a guardianship at the age of 19, after her parents died. She remained in the guardianship for eight years, before transitioning to to a supported decision-making arrangeme

Health & Safety

Britney Spears left her guardianship, but others who want independence remain stuck

7:00am January 09, 2022

by Carter Barrett

If a judge rules a person can't make their own decisions, the next step can be a legal guardianship or conservatorship. Some states allow less restrictive options, but advocates say it's not enough.