Your Health

Medical debt is the most common reason for collection calls, a federal study found.

Medical Debt Is Top Reason Consumers Hear From Collection Agencies

2:45pm January 24, 2017

by Michelle Andrews

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau reports that 59 percent of people contacted by a debt collector had outstanding medical bills. Telecommunications and utility bills trailed far behind.

Giving dads a task — in this case, reading — seemed to suit them better than the kind of parenting classes favored by moms.

How To Get Dads To A Parenting Class? Ask Them To Read To Their Kid

2:54pm January 23, 2017

by Jessica Boddy

In a world of mom-focused parenting classes, this class got low-income Latino dads engaged by focusing on a tangible skill: reading to their preschoolers. It ended up helping dads and kids alike.

Salma Shabaik holds her newborn son, Ali. When he was born, she held him naked against her bare skin, a practice called kangaroo care. Ali is wearing an ear cap to correct a lop ear.

Kangaroo Care Helps Preemies And Full Term Babies, Too

7:56am January 23, 2017

by Patti Neighmond

Holding a newborn on a parent's bare chest has long been used to help premature babies. Hospitals increasingly recommend it for full term babies, too. Doctors say it reduces pain and lowers stress.

Queue Listen Now

A large collage decorates a wall of one exam room at the Haight Ashbury Free Medical Clinic in San Francisco, Calif. Dr. David Smith, founder of the clinic, says patients and staff call the mural the Psychedelic Wall of Fame.

Haight Ashbury's Free Health Clinic: Middle-Aged And Still Groovy

6:09pm January 22, 2017

by Laurie Udesky

A series of mergers with other nonprofit clinics has transformed the 50-year-old San Francisco clinic into a $110 million health care system that provides networked care up and down California.

Kellyanne Conway, now an adviser to President Donald Trump and seen here at a November campaign rally, said on NBC News that the Trump administration plans to move Medicaid financing to block grants administered by states.

Republican Plan To Replace Obamacare Would Turn Medicaid Over To States

8:26am January 22, 2017

by Alison Kodjak

Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway says Medicaid block grants are part of the new administration's plan to replace the Affordable Care Act.

Encore: California Nail Salons Start To Invest In Worker Safety

8:16am January 21, 2017

by Jenny Gold

A California project is trying to improve safety for nail salon workers who are exposed to chemicals. A statewide collaborative of salons now has 120 members.

A still from the game "At-Risk For College Students".

Can An Online Game Help You Learn To Help Struggling Friends?

5:00am January 21, 2017

by Angus Chen

It's hard to ask someone if they're depressed or suicidal. Colleges are using an online game to help students learn how to have those conversations. The goal: more support and empathy.

Truvada, when taken daily, can vastly reduce the risk of getting HIV in people at high risk.

Spreading The Word About HIV Prevention For African-American Women

1:22pm January 20, 2017

by Jose Soto

African-American women are more likely to be infected with HIV than other women. So the District of Columbia is launching an effort to inform them about PrEP, medication that can reduce their risk.

An overhaul of Obamacare could still change health coverage for people who get insurance on the job at large companies.

How Large Employer Health Plans Could Be Affected By Obamacare Overhaul

9:20am January 19, 2017

by Michelle Andrews

With the future of the Affordable Care Act on the line, health insurance benefits for workers at large companies hang in the balance.

Secretary of Health and Human Services nominee Rep. Tom Price, R-Ga., (right) and Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., get settled before the start of Price's confirmation hearing Wednesday before the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.

6 Senators Assessing Trump's HHS Nominee Own Health Care Stocks, Too

9:58pm January 18, 2017

by Sydney Lupkin

A half-dozen senators involved in confirmation hearings for Rep. Tom Price to head the Department of Health and Human Services have health care investments made by themselves or family members.