Your Health

An active lifestyle can be the best defense against falls in older age.

Health & Safety

To Prevent Falls In Older Age, Try Regular Exercise

1:04pm April 17, 2018

by Allison Aubrey

After reviewing the medical evidence, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force recommended exercise as the most effective approach for older people seeking to minimize the risk of falling.

Free-standing ERs tend to have lower standby costs than hospital-based facilities that have to be ready to treat dire injuries. But the free-standing ERs typically receive the same Medicare rate for emergency services.

Medicare Advisers Recommend Payment Cuts To Many Free-Standing ERs

5:00am April 17, 2018

by Michelle Andrews

An agency that advises Congress recommends a 30 percent reduction in some federal reimbursements to free-standing ERs that are within 6 miles of a hospital.

A combination of an immunotherapy drug from Merck and standard chemotherapy led to improved survival for cancer patients.

Health & Safety

Merck Immunotherapy Drug Shines In Lung Cancer Study

5:43pm April 16, 2018

by Richard Harris

Research finds that more than two-thirds of lung cancer patients who received Keytruda plus chemotherapy would be alive a year later, compared with about half of people who only got chemotherapy.

Carolina Reapers are some of the hottest peppers in the world. So hot, in fact, that for one man, participating in a pepper-eating contestant resulted in a painful, serious "thunderclap headache."

The Super-Hot Pepper That Sent A Man To The ER

9:53am April 16, 2018

by Richard Harris

Carolina Reapers are some of the hottest peppers in the world. So hot, in fact, that for one man, participating in a pepper-eating contestant resulted in a painful, serious "thunderclap headache."

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Soda for sale at a supermarket in the Port Richmond neighborhood of Philadelphia. A sticker on the shelves tells customers the items are subject to the city's sugar tax.

Philadelphians Drink Less Sugary Soda, More Water, After Tax

3:38pm April 13, 2018

by Allison Aubrey

A new study suggests that residents of Philadelphia are 40 percent less likely to drink sweetened beverages daily compared with people in cities that don't have a soda tax in place.

University of Puget Sound chemist Dan Burgard keeps a freezer full of archived samples from two wastewater treatment plants in western Washington in case he needs to rerun the samples or analyze a specific drug he didn't test for the first time.

Canada To Measure Marijuana Use By Testing Sewage

10:14am April 13, 2018

by Menaka Wilhelm

People responding to surveys sometimes misstate their drug use. Canada will check wastewater for traces of drugs to more accurately assess consumption.

Under current law, Medicare generally reimburses audiologists for diagnosing hearing loss in older adults but not for providing assistance to fit, adjust and teach the best way to use them.

Can You Hear Me Now? Senate Bill May Make The Answer 'Yes'

1:00pm April 11, 2018

by Michelle Andrews

The measure would allow Medicare to reimburse audiologists for a range of services, including helping patients learn how to use and adjust their hearing aids for different social situations correctly.

Sen. Tammy Duckworth walks across stage at the Democratic National Convention in 2016. She is the first senator to give birth while serving in office.

Make Room For Baby: After Giving Birth, Duckworth Presses Senate To Bend Rules

11:43am April 11, 2018

by Emmarie Huetteman

The Illinois Democrat is the first sitting senator to give birth. She's using the opportunity to call on the Senate to adjust its rules to accommodate new parents and elevate family-friendly policies.

Plaques located in the gray matter of the brain are key indicators of Alzheimer's disease.

Scientists Push Plan To Change How Researchers Define Alzheimer's

3:00pm April 10, 2018

by Jon Hamilton

Research scientists say they want to define Alzheimer's by the biological changes it causes in the brain, rather than by symptoms like memory loss.

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Why is the price of a CT scan 33 times higher in a hospital emergency room than in an outpatient imaging center just down the street?

Bill Of The Month: A Tale Of 2 CT Scanners — One Richer, One Poorer

7:17pm April 09, 2018

by Alison Kodjak

Why is the price of a CT scan 33 times higher in a hospital emergency room than in an outpatient imaging center just down the street?

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