As voters make up their minds about this fall’s mid-term races, they may wish to burn into their memories how the Trump Administration has dealt, so far, and especially in recent days, with government social programs that have huge effects on Americans’ health and lives. Take, for example, the late-week, late night announcement by the….
Continue ReadingArchives for June 2018
It’s not just celebrities; CDC warns of public health crisis in suicides
Uncle Sam’s sobering new report about suicide rates rising in all but one state between 1999 and 2016, with fatal increases across age, gender, race and ethnicity, became even more somber and urgent with the shock and grief expressed widely over the self-inflicted deaths of chef-raconteur Anthony Bourdain in France and fashion designer-entrepreneur Kate Spade….
Continue ReadingIs there a doctor aboard? While flying this summer, you may hope so
With tens of millions hopping on jets to get to summer vacation destinations, it’s worth noting that medical emergencies aloft aren’t as rare as many travelers might imagine — and it may be beneficial if a doctor happens to be aboard when the need arises. The nation’s top doctor, U.S. Surgeon General Jerome Adams, of….
Continue ReadingStigma inflicts harsh toll on mentally ill, but society pays too
Although Americans keep making progress toward ending the stigma associated with mental disorders, including trying to put public funding for the diseases’ treatment on a more even footing, patients with serious mental illness suffer unfairly and harshly still due to their conditions. Dhruv Khullar, a doctor at NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital and a researcher at the Weill….
Continue ReadingBe skeptical of cancer society’s call for earlier colorectal screenings
If you’ve got a shaker of salt, you may want to empty it on recent news coverage of the American Cancer Society’s announcement about its new guidelines on the age to start colorectal screening. That’s because the organization’s advisory and more than a few health journalists show a shaky grasp of basic disease statistical math…..
Continue ReadingWith more legal pot and a raging opioid crisis, deadly drugged driving spikes
There’s been a deadly side to the nation’s opioid drug abuse crisis and increasing number of states’ legalization of marijuana: A leading safety group says the number of drugged drivers killed in car crashes is rising dramatically. The Governors Highway Safety Association reported that 44 percent of fatally injured drivers tested for drugs had positive….
Continue ReadingVirginia expands Medicaid coverage, as Obamacare foes lose another state
Hundreds of thousands of poor, middle-class, old, sick, and young Virginians will get increased access to health care as the Commonwealth, joining 33 states and the District of Columbia, saw the crumbling of five years of fierce GOP-led opposition to an expansion of Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare. Partisans, who reviled an….
Continue ReadingStars helping to shed a light on struggles with mental health
With all the excesses, abuses, and nonsense that pro athletes and pop stars can get into these days, it’s gotten rarer that commentators can point to positive actions these influential personalities can take. But a growing number of them deserve credit for publicly discussing their struggles with mental health issues, helping to reduce widespread stigma….
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