September 2012 - NPR Health Blog - The Network of Care

Medicaid Helps Washington, D.C., Clinic Care For Ex-Prisoners

After they are released, former prisoners often don't have jobs or health insurance. The federal health law's Medicaid expansion could change that soon, though. Some states and the District of Columbia are getting a head start. Read More...

Published Mon, Sep 17 2012 1:25 PM by Shots - Health Blog

Who's Next In Line For A Kidney Transplant? The Answer Is Changing

The non-profit in charge of distributing organs wants to revamp the system for distributing kidneys for the first time in 25 years. But some transplant specialists and bioethicists fear the changes could end up discriminating against some patients. Read...

Published Thu, Sep 20 2012 1:31 PM by Shots - Health Blog

The Next Frontier For Elite Med Schools: Primary Care

Mount Sinai School of Medicine is adding a Department of Family Medicine. It is now one of the only top medical schools to offer family medicine as a specialty for its students. Read More...

Published Sun, Sep 23 2012 1:15 PM by Shots - Health Blog

As Genetic Sequencing Spreads, Excitement, Worries Grow

The cost of deciphering a person's genetic code has dropped faster than the price tag on flat-screen TVs. But some experts are concerned that access to genomic information could stoke fears and invade privacy. Read More...

Published Tue, Sep 18 2012 12:34 AM by Shots - Health Blog

Nursing Homes' Arbitration Agreements Can Contain Hidden Risks

Consumer advocates say people who sign the agreements pay higher fees and may get smaller awards than they would if the case were to go to court. Read More...

Published Tue, Sep 18 2012 8:49 AM by Shots - Health Blog

Link Between BPA And Childhood Obesity Is Unclear

In a study, researchers found that among white kids and teens, higher BPA levels were associated with more than twice the risk of obesity. But higher BPA levels didn't affect childhood obesity risk for blacks and Hispanics. Read More...

Published Tue, Sep 18 2012 1:48 PM by Shots - Health Blog

How's Your Cholesterol? The Crowd Wants To Know

As more people get interested in managing their own health and experimenting with new diets, some are testing their cholesterol on their own, and posting results in online forums where they get feedback on how to improve their scores. Read More...

Published Fri, Sep 14 2012 9:51 AM by Shots - Health Blog

Death Toll Climbs In Congo Ebola Outbreak

The number of deaths from an Ebola outbreak in the Democratic Republic of Congo surged in the past week, prompting concern that the outbreak was spreading. A spokesman from the World Health Organization says the outbreak is not out of control. Read More...

Published Thu, Sep 13 2012 1:54 PM by Shots - Health Blog

Disease Detectives Catch Deadly African Virus Just As It Emerges

So far only three people in the Democratic Republic of Congo are known to have contracted Bas-Congo hemorrhagic fever, two of whom died. But the small number means that scientists may have found an emerging disease very soon after it made its jump from...

Published Thu, Sep 27 2012 2:56 PM by Shots - Health Blog

Teachers' Expectations Can Influence How Students Perform

Teachers' expectations about their students' abilities affect classroom interactions in myriad ways that can impact student performance. Students expected to succeed, for example, get more time to answer questions and more specific feedback. But...

Published Mon, Sep 17 2012 12:36 AM by Shots - Health Blog

Insurer's Files Show Big Cost Differences For Same Illnesses

Some of the cost variations from a UnitedHealthcare database are startling. For treating a basic asthma episode, cases in the 10th percentile of distribution cost $98 each while those in the 90th percentile the cost was $1,535 per case. Read More...

Published Wed, Sep 05 2012 8:06 AM by Shots - Health Blog

Doctors Take Aim At Epidemic Kidney Stones With Lasers

A recent study found one in 10 American men and one in 14 women has had a kidney stone. Being obese or diabetic seems to raise the risk of getting them. Now lasers are becoming the treatment-of-choice for kidney stones in academic medical centers. Read...

Published Mon, Sep 10 2012 12:27 AM by Shots - Health Blog

Zanzibar Shows Cholera Vaccine Can Protect Even The Unvaccinated

The results comes from Zanzibar, an island state of Kenya, where half the people in six rural and urban areas received two doses of oral cholera vaccine. The vaccinations led to fewer bacteria circulating, lowering the infection risks even for those who...

Published Tue, Sep 04 2012 10:23 AM by Shots - Health Blog

High Blood Pressure: Often Recognized, But Still Poorly Controlled

Most adults with high blood pressure are being treated these days. But more than half of all Americans with hypertension still haven't got it under control. Read More...

Published Tue, Sep 04 2012 2:06 PM by Shots - Health Blog

Mini-Counseling Sessions Can Curb Problem Drinking

Patients who had multiple counseling sessions lasting 10 to 15 minutes were 12 percent more likely to quit binge drinking a year later, says a federal task force. Those benefits are enough to justify primary care doctors screening all adult patients for...

Published Tue, Sep 25 2012 1:57 PM by Shots - Health Blog

September 2012 - NPR Health Blog

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