Health & Safety

When Dr. Boie Jalloh got the call to join the fight against Ebola in Sierra Leone, his friends told him he'd be crazy to sign on. It's a good thing he didn't listen.

To Prevent The Next Plague, Listen To Boie Jalloh

10:20am October 09, 2015

by Amy Maxmen

He's a doctor, an imam and a millennial. His ideas about fighting Ebola in Sierra Leone are part of the reason that, this week, the three countries at the center of the epidemic reported no new cases.

Despite Sweeping Aid-In-Dying Law, Few Will Have That Option

10:00am October 09, 2015

by Robin Marantz Henig

People with uncertain prognoses or dementia can't end their lives under California's new medical aid in dying law. Proponents say those limits reflect the uncertainties of death, and of politics.

Health & Safety

Why Most People Don't Shop Around For Medical Procedures

7:57am October 09, 2015

by David Kestenbaum

We shop around when we get a plane ticket or buy a couch. But we spend thousands of dollars on health care without comparing prices. What happens when you pay patients to choose the cheaper option?

Queue Listen Now

A doctor examines the thyroid of a child at a temporary housing complex in Nihonmatsu, about 31 miles from the tsunami-crippled Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant, in 2013.

Fukushima Study Links Children's Cancer To Nuclear Accident

8:06pm October 08, 2015

by Geoff Brumfiel

The study says rates of thyroid cancer are high for children who lived near the tsunami-crippled nuclear plant in Japan. But other scientists are skeptical of the findings.

Retailers in Berkeley, Calif., are passing about 70 percent of the extra cost from the 1-cent-per-ounce tax on to consumers, a study finds.

Berkeley's Sugary Drinks Are Getting Pricier, Thanks To New Tax

7:33pm October 08, 2015

by Eliza Barclay

Berkeley, Calif., passed a 1-cent-per-ounce tax on sugary beverages in 2014. Researchers say soda prices went up three months after it was implemented — a first step toward reducing consumption.

Children and teens in foster care are much more likely to be prescribed antipsychotic drugs.

California Approves Laws To Cut Use Of Antipsychotics In Foster Care

6:03pm October 08, 2015

by Elaine Korry

The laws are intended to reduce inappropriate prescribing of powerful antipsychotics to children and teens in foster care. Public health nurses will monitor medical records.

Only about a third of U.S. hospitals offer women breast-feeding help after they leave the hospital, according to report released Tuesday by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Hospitals Still Don't Give Moms Enough Support For Breast-Feeding

1:39pm October 08, 2015

by Michaeleen Doucleff

Although an increasing number of U.S. hospitals and other birthing centers now encourage women to breast-feed and teach them how, other common practices by staff can hinder moms from sticking with it.

Now in tenth grade, Mulando is already planning how to negotiate her tuition for 11th grade. She's also trying to figure out how to get to medical school.

Can't Afford School? Girls Learn To Negotiate The Harvard Way: #15Girls

9:51am October 08, 2015

by Gregory Warner and Laura Starecheski

Madalitso Mulando needed help. She didn't have the money to pay for her 10th-grade tuition. Then she learned the art of negotiation from the gurus at Harvard Business School.

Queue Listen Now

A girl looks away from the body of an assassinated man, who was killed by a gang member in San Salvador.

The Surreal Reasons Girls Are Disappearing In El Salvador: #15Girls

3:12pm October 07, 2015

by Kelly McEvers

Refuse to share a pencil, reject a boy, say no to your imprisoned dad — all of these can get a teen girl killed in El Salvador's gang war.

Queue Listen Now

Unhappy With Your Company's Health Savings Account? Move It

3:12pm October 07, 2015

by Michelle Andrews

Even if an employer contributes to an HSA, the money belongs to the worker, who can move it to find better services or lower fees.