Health & Safety

Health & Safety

5 non-travel related cases of malaria have been reported in the U.S.

5:06am June 28, 2023

by Pien Huang

Several people in the U.S. have come down with malaria. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said it was the first time in 20 years that malaria has been locally transmitted in the U.S.

L holds her baby at Casa Mía in San Antonio, which provides housing and support for pregnant people and new mothers struggling with addiction. Her son, who's now 2 months old, was born healthy despite L's history of substance abuse. NPR is not using L's full name out of concern for her safety; L says she was in an abusive relationship when she became pregnant.

In Texas, a rare program offers hope for some of the most vulnerable women and babies

5:00am June 28, 2023

by Katia Riddle

Many pregnant people struggling with substance abuse don't want to get help for fear of losing their children to the state. Casa Mía offers safe harbor.

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A Texas program works to help some of the most vulnerable women and babies

6:17pm June 27, 2023

by Katia Riddle

In the wake of the Dobbs ruling, there have been tens of thousands fewer abortions. People carrying these pregnancies are often marginalized. A Texas program helps some of the most vulnerable parents.

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This 2014 photo made available by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows a feeding female Anopheles gambiae mosquito. The species is a known vector for the parasitic disease malaria.

Malaria cases in Texas and Florida are the first U.S. spread since 2003, the CDC says

5:40pm June 27, 2023

by Ashley Westerman

Four of the cases were found in Florida, while the fifth was logged in Texas, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

South Carolina's top court hears arguments on 6-week abortion ban

4:28pm June 27, 2023

South Carolina is the latest state to debate a six-week abortion ban. The state's Supreme Court heard arguments Tuesday.

What ALS has taken from one couple and how they've held on to love

4:28pm June 27, 2023

NPR's Juana Summers talks with Brian Wallach and Sandra Abrevaya about the impact living with ALS has had on their lives.

Health & Safety

Canadian wildfire smoke likely to return to the Triad Wednesday, forecasters say

4:16pm June 27, 2023

by April Laissle

Forsyth County could see another few days of suboptimal air quality this week, due again to the effects of wildfires in Canada.

Syed Ali Raza and Rukhsana Jafri hold up a photograph of their son, Zain, who is missing after the migrant shipwreck. The family lives in Budho Kalas village, Punjab province, where Zain was a police officer. He had quit his job to start a business that wasn't profitable enough, then set off on an illegal migration to Europe for more lucrative employment.

Health & Safety

They set sail with dreams and met disaster: Stories from the ill-fated migrant ship

3:33pm June 27, 2023

by Betsy Joles

Hundreds of illegal migrants from Pakistan and other nations were aboard, hoping to land lucrative jobs in Europe. We talk to family members, some still awaiting news of the fate of their loved ones.

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Health & Safety

Intermittent fasting may be equally as effective for weight loss as counting calories

5:10am June 27, 2023

by Will Stone

Patients trying to lose weight are often counseled to count calories, but new research finds intermittent fasting can be just as effective. (Story aired on All Things Considered on June 26, 2023.)

Bethany Birch paid more than $5,200 toward her medical debt after getting sued by Ballad Health in 2018. Owing to a Tennessee court judgment, she accrued an additional $2,700 in interest over that time.

Health & Safety

The hospital bills didn't find her, but a lawsuit did — plus interest

5:00am June 27, 2023

by Bram Sable-Smith

After emergency gallbladder surgery, a Tennessee woman said she spent months without a permanent mailing address and never got a bill from the hospital. She ended up in court a few years later.