health care

Woman pushing man in wheelchair up ascending pulse trace graph.

Health & Safety

Is Your Heart Doctor In? If Not, You Might Not Be Any Worse Off

10:15am December 26, 2014

by Jordan Rau

Researchers find that high-risk heart patients in teaching hospitals fared better when their cardiologists were away at national conventions instead of working at their usual jobs. Why?

Obama Administration Downplays Court Challenge To Health Law

10:24am December 24, 2014

by Julie Rovner

With this year's enrollment in Obamacare brisk, Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia Burwell says she's not worried that the U.S. Supreme Court may yet overturn a key provision of the law.

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Have questions about your health coverage?

Health & Safety

Can I Keep My Marketplace Insurance If I Enroll In Medicare?

10:31am December 23, 2014

by Michelle Andrews

While you can keep your private plan after you join Medicare, it may not make much sense financially. For one thing, you'd be disqualified from receiving marketplace premium subsidies.

Why Does It Take A Movie Robot To Show What Nurses Really Do?

3:13pm December 22, 2014

by Kelli Dunham

If TV and movie nurses took care of us when we're sick, we'd be in a heap of trouble. Those images of nutty, slutty and clueless nurses are bad news for the profession, and for patients.

This graphic lays out the possible outcomes for 10,000 women if they start getting annual screening mammograms at age 50 and continue that for 10 years.

What Happens After You Get That Mammogram

7:48am December 22, 2014

by Nancy Shute

What are the odds that you'll get a false positive when you get a mammogram? How likely is it that it will detect cancer? Here's one way to look at it.

Graphic: How Prepared Is Your State For The Next Outbreak?

Is Your State Ready For The Next Infectious Outbreak? Probably Not

4:12pm December 19, 2014

by Nancy Shute

Public health has a way of slipping off the radar when people aren't scared about Ebola or anthrax. But that doesn't mean the threats go away. And most states aren't prepared for the next one.

NYU Langone Medical Center is one of the teaching hospitals being penalized by Medicare for its rate of medical errors.

Health & Safety

Teaching Hospitals Hit Hardest By Medicare Fines For Patient Safety

2:18pm December 19, 2014

by Jordan Rau

Medicare will cut payments to hospitals with high rates of patient infections and injuries. Half of the nation's academic medical centers will be docked for making too many medical mistakes.

Sandra Lopez (left) and her dog, Coco, greet hospice nurse Heather Meyerend last fall. In the weeks before Lopez died, Meyerend stopped by weekly to check her physical health, pain levels and medications.

Too Little, Too Late For Many New Yorkers Seeking Hospice

4:27pm December 17, 2014

by Fred Mogul

Evidence shows hospice care can extend life and save money, but only if patients and doctors dare ask for the help. One New Yorker said hospice gave her back life at peace, pain subdued.

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A nurse checks a man's blood pressure during a health clinic In Los Angeles.

Managed Care Plans Make Progress In Erasing Racial Disparities

4:25pm December 17, 2014

by Lisa Aliferis

Though blacks still lag whites nationwide in health, disparities have been largely eliminated in the western states, a study finds. Kaiser Permanente's Medicare HMOs did best on that.

Health & Safety

Few Employers Cover Egg Freezing For Women With Cancer

8:56am December 17, 2014

by Michelle Andrews

Although egg freezing is the perk of the moment at some high-profile companies, the benefit isn't often available, even for women with serious illnesses that could affect their fertility.