HEALTH

Elton John is to address Britain’s Parliament on his work fighting HIV at an event to mark World AIDS Day.

New Zealand’s new prime minister plans to ban cellphone use in schools and repeal tobacco controls in the agenda for his first three months in office.

Survivors of the harmful morning sickness drug thalidomide were in the public gallery when Australia’s Parliament made a national apology for what was described as one of the darkest chapters in Australia’s medical history.

U.S. life expectancy rose last year, but it still isn’t close to what it was before the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Mayo Clinic has announced a $5 billion expansion plan that includes new buildings designed so they can evolve and expand as patient needs change over the coming decades.

A British government-ordered inquiry says it found serious failings at hospitals where an electrician who was later convicted of murder was able to have sex with more than 100 corpses over 15 years without being detected.

France's government plans to ban smoking on all beaches, in public parks, forests and some other public areas.

Former President Donald Trump says he wants to reopen the contentious fight over the Affordable Care Act.

China’s health ministry says a surge in respiratory illnesses across the country that has drawn the attention of the World Health Organization is caused by the flu and other known pathogens and not by a novel virus.

A growing number of states are working to keep food out of landfills over concerns the waste is taking up too much space and posing environmental problems.

The number of people sickened by salmonella from cut and whole cantaloupes has more than doubled in a week.

The World Health Organization said it has confirmed sexual transmission of mpox in Congo for the first time as the country experiences its biggest-ever outbreak.

In a series of moves experts say signal a shift in how developing countries deal with pharmaceuticals, South Africa, Colombia and others have recently adopted a more combative approach towards drugmakers, pushing back on policies that deny treatment to millions of people with tuberculosis and HIV.

Authorities in several West African countries are trying to manage their huge diphtheria outbreaks.

The legality of an agreement by the maker of OxyContin to settle thousands of lawsuits over the harm done by opioids is going before the Supreme Court.

The World Health Organization says it has made an official request to China for information about a potentially worrying spike in respiratory illnesses and clusters of pneumonia in children.

U.S. health officials are reporting more cases of children sickened by fruit puree pouches that were recalled due to lead contamination.

President Joe Biden declared an emergency over lead-in-water contamination in the U.S. Virgin Islands earlier this week after tests on St. Croix revealed levels more than 100 times the limits set by the Environmental Protection Agency – among the worst results a U.S. community has seen in decades.

Poland’s new parliament has begun debating the reinstatement of government funding for in vitro fertilization.

The man who fatally shot five coworkers in April at a bank in Louisville, Kentucky, questioned in newly released journal entries whether he would be able to get a gun despite his mental health struggles.

According to the Virginia Department of Health, COVID-19 and flu cases are on the rise across the region.

Four out of five people in Mexico who got influenza shots so far this year turned down the government's recommendation they get Russian or Cuban COVID-19 boosters at the same time.

The U.K.'s chief medical adviser says Britain’s government was too late in taking action against the coronavirus during the first wave of the pandemic in 2020.

Rosalynn Carter's advocacy for mental health started during her husband's 1966 campaign for governor, when she spoke almost daily with Georgia families struggling to get help for their loved ones.

School leaders made some changes to their workday on Monday to protect kids from the Matts Creek wildfire smoke.

Actress and activist Marlo Thomas is proud that this year St. Jude Children's Research Hospital's Thanks and Giving campaign celebrates its 20th anniversary and passes the fundraising milestone of $1 billion to support the hospital’s efforts to provide free medical care to children with cancer.

A former chief scientific advisor says Boris Johnson struggled as British prime minister to come to grips with much of the science during the coronavirus pandemic.

A cholera outbreak in Zimbabwe is suspected of killing more than 150 people and infecting more than 8,000.

Americans can order four free COVID-19 tests again online.

A 19-year-old college student who has survived two deadly mass school shootings in Michigan says things are looking up, but she remains dismayed by continued gun violence in the U.S. Kylie Ossege was shot and temporarily paralyzed when an armed classmate attacked Oxford High School in 2021.

As crews continue to battle the Matts Creek wildfire, residents in the surrounding areas are being impacted by the smoke.

Veterinary laboratories in several states are investigating an unusual respiratory illness in dogs.

U.S. health officials said at least 43 people have been sickened in 15 states by salmonella linked to certain whole and cut cantaloupes and pre-cut fruit products.

Hip-hop legend and marijuana aficionado Snoop Dogg says he’s going to stop smoking.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is screening imports of cinnamon from multiple countries for toxic lead.

A New York woman who died Sunday from cancer has raised enough money to erase million of dollars in medical debt with a posthumous plea for help.

U.S. health officials say at least seven states are seeing high levels of the flu and that cases are rising in other parts of the country.

Wildfires continue to blaze across the Commonwealth, with the Matts Creek wildfire in Bedford County spanning about 3,600 acres as of Thursday night.

One of Haiti's most vulnerable and impoverished communities is recovering from a gang attack that targeted a hospital serving as a lifeline for many.

RSV infections are rising sharply in some parts of the country, nearly filling hospital emergency departments in Georgia, Texas and some other states.

The World Health Organization and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention say measles deaths globally spiked by more than 40% last year.

U.S. health inspectors found a host of sanitation and manufacturing problems at an Indian plant that recently recalled eyedrops sold in the U.S. The problems include cracked floors, barefoot workers and manipulated testing records.

One of the thorniest problems of the 21st century is how to get people to eat less meat.

Britain’s medicines regulator has authorized the world’s first gene therapy treatment for sickle cell disease, in a move that could offer relief to thousands of people with the crippling illness in the U.K. In a statement on Thursday, the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency said it had approved Casgevy, the first medicine licensed using the gene editing tool CRISPR, which won its makers a Nobel prize in 2020.

Lawyers for a group of religious leaders who support abortion rights said during a hearing that Missouri lawmakers intended to “impose their religious beliefs on everyone" in the state when they passed a restrictive abortion ban.

Local doctors are weighing in on the risks associated with wildfire smoke exposure.

A new report says progress against childhood cancers has stalled in recent years for Black and Hispanic youth.

The Federal Trade Commission says it issued warnings to two food and beverage industry groups, as well as to a dozen online influencers and dieticians for failing to adequately disclose paid social media posts that promoted a sweetener and sugary products.

A day after Palestinian authorities called for an evacuation of Gaza’s biggest hospital, Israeli soldiers have raided it and say they were accompanied by medical teams bringing baby food, incubators and other equipment.

It's still spring in Brazil, but a dangerous heat wave is sweeping the country, prompting health alerts and driving up energy demand as people turn to air conditioning and fans to stay cool.

More people are surviving lung cancer, according to a new report from the American Lung Association.

ESPN Bet, a rebranded sports-gambling service owned by Penn Entertainment, has launched.

An expert scientific committee advising the British government recommended for the first time Tuesday that children should be immunized with the chickenpox vaccine — decades after the shots were made widely available in other countries, including the U.S., Canada and Australia.

Internal documents obtained by The Associated Press show that the World Health Organization has paid $250 each to at least 104 women in Congo who say they were sexually abused or exploited by Ebola outbreak responders.

Error-ridden state reviews have purged millions of the poorest Americans from the Medicaid program in recent months.

U.S. health officials are warning doctors to be on the lookout for possible cases of lead poisoning in children.

The White House says Jill Biden will be in charge of a new initiative to boost federal government research into women's health.

More drugmakers are seeking to harness the medical potential of psychedelics for treating depression, addiction and other hard-to-treat conditions.

During National Diabetes Month, one Roanoke business owner is keeping her son’s legacy alive after he died at just 23 years old from complications of diabetes.

A terminally ill baby at the center of a legal battle involving her parents, British health officials and the Italian government has died.

A new large study finds that the popular weight-loss drug Wegovy reduced the risk of serious heart problems by 20% in certain patients.

November is Lung Cancer Awareness Month, and LewisGale leaders are spreading awareness about getting low-dosage cancer screenings that can help patients learn if they have lung cancer.

The Republican congressman who leads the House GOP's investigation of the origins of COVID-19 says he won't seek reelection next year.

A British judge has expressed profound concerns about the tactics of the parents of a terminally ill infant as he refused to allow them to take her home from the hospital to die.

New York is requiring state health officials to develop an outreach program to educate the public on the harmful impacts of medically unnecessary treatments performed on young children born intersex.

The proportion of U.S. kindergartners exempted from school attendance vaccination requirements has hit its highest level ever.

Russian-installed health officials in Crimea say private clinics on the Moscow-annexed peninsula have “voluntarily” stopped providing abortions, which means that the procedure is now only available there in state-run medical facilities.

Amazon is taking another step toward becoming a regular health care source for customers with the launch of a service centered on virtual care.

Surgeons in New York have performed the world's first transplant of an entire human eye, an extraordinary addition to a face transplant.

Federal regulators say a new version of the popular diabetes treatment Mounjaro can be sold as a weight-loss drug.

A judge at Britain’s High Court has ruled that life support for a terminally ill 8-month-old baby should be withdrawn at a hospice or hospital.

After voters in Ohio approved a constitutional amendment protecting the right to abortion and other forms of reproductive health care, advocates in at least a dozen states are hoping to take abortion questions to voters in 2024.

Close to 400 people connected to fossil fuel industries in some way or another attended last year’s United Nations climate talks in Egypt.

Authorities in Croatia have recommended that people drink only tap water as they investigate reports of several people getting sick or suffering throat injuries allegedly after consuming bottled beverages.

The Biden administration has asked a federal appeals court to uphold health care guidance issued last year that says hospitals must provide abortions for women whose lives are at risk due to pregnancy.

Syphilis cases in U.S. newborns again are on the rise.

Masks are back on the New Delhi streets as residents grapple with the annual surge in air pollution that has engulfed the Indian capital region.

Ohio voters have approved a constitutional amendment that guarantees the right to abortion and other forms of reproductive health care.

An 8-month-old terminally ill British girl has been granted Italian citizenship after a court in Britain authorized the withdrawal of life-supporting invasive treatment.

The decades-old surgical drug ketamine has found a new use — as an alternative to opioids for patients with chronic pain.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has received more reports of illness linked to lead-tainted pouches of apple cinnamon fruit puree marketed for children.

Almost every major city in the United States generally allows drivers to turn right at red lights, but that could be changing.

Hours after Hamas militants attacked southern Israel on Oct. 7, the country’s new fortified, subterranean blood bank kicked into action.

A judge says a former UCLA gynecologist who was sentenced to prison for sexually abusing student patients can be retried on charges involving four other women.

A shortage of half-pint milk cartons is affecting school meals in cafeterias across the U.S. School officials from New York to California are scrambling for backup options after a main supplier of cartons said demand has outstripped supply.

Less than a week after his death, a foundation has been established in the name of Matthew Perry to help people dealing with addiction.

Legal settlements could provide local and state governments $50 billion to fight the deadly U.S. opioid overdose crisis.

New Delhi’s government has shut primary schools and banned polluting vehicles and construction work in an attempt to reduce the worst haze and smog of the season.

Brunch dates and flag football games might be a little easier to get to this Sunday, when phones grace early-risers with an extra hour of rest before alarm clocks go off.

New research is underway on long COVID, a prolonged illness after a coronavirus infection, and how it impacts our community.

A new government report shows fewer high school students are vaping.

Gov. Glenn Youngkin has issued a new executive order with the aim of keeping parents informed about overdoses in school divisions throughout the Commonwealth.

A group of volunteer doctors in Chicago is spending their Saturdays providing street medicine for the growing number of migrants.

Migrants who have crossed the U.S.-Mexico border and travel to cities around the country are running into a disjointed health care systems when they need treatment.

A constitutional amendment to protect abortion rights in Ohio will be decided in what is expected to be a preview of abortion battles across the country in 2024.

The state of Tennessee has agreed to pay $150,000 to settle a federal lawsuit by its former vaccine leader over her firing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The time to shop for health insurance on the Affordable Care Act’s coverage marketplaces is back.

The Environmental Protection Agency spent more than a year investigating whether Louisiana's oversight of industrial air emissions discriminated against Black residents.

The U.S. infant mortality rate rose 3% last year, which is the largest increase in two decades.

A Missouri appeals court has ruled against a Republican-written description of abortion-rights ballot measures, calling his summaries politically partisan.