Trump announces Pfizer price cuts as White House presses drugmakers
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Tuesday said Pfizer will cut the price of all prescription drugs in the Medicaid program for low-income Americans and sell new prescription drugs at a “most favored nation” price in exchange for tariff relief. Trump also said he expects other drugmakers to follow suit....
Older, disabled Pennsylvanians bear brunt of home care staffing crisis
Lisa Sprague does what she can on her own, but nerve damage caused by multiple sclerosis means she needs help getting out of bed, bathing and completing other daily tasks. The state pays for 13 hours of care every day at her Harmar home, a bungalow retrofitted with a wheelchair...
Europe banned certain gel nail polishes. Will the U.S. follow suit?
A common chemical found in gel nail polish was banned in Europe. Will the United States do the same? It’s unlikely, experts say. The European Union banned the chemical trimethylbenzoyl diphenylphosphine oxide, or TPO, in May because of a possible link to fertility problems based on animal studies, the New...
Giant Eagle plans to invest $100M in strategic push amid heavy competition
Flush with cash after selling GetGo for $1.6 billion, Giant Eagle is prepared to spend more than $100 million to renovate stores and show customers it’s serious about lowering prices. The investment spree started Thursday and will run through 2026, marking the start of a “new era” for Giant Eagle,...
Trump’s touting of an unproven autism drug surprised many, including the doctor who proposed it
WASHINGTON — When President Donald Trump’s administration announced it would repurpose an old, generic drug as a new treatment for autism, it came as a surprise to many experts — including the physician who suggested the idea to the nation’s top health officials. Dr. Richard Frye told The Associated Press...
Florida docs can turn away unvaccinated patients; Gov. Ron DeSantis wants to change that
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — In Florida, you can’t turn away a patient on the basis of their race, color, sex, religion or national origin. But a doctor can turn someone away if they’re unvaccinated. Gov. Ron DeSantis and Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo want to end that. In a news conference earlier...
Pa. families risk higher premiums as leaders urge feds to save insurance tax credits
Indiana County resident Tony Gonzales and his wife are just two of the almost half a million Pennsylvanians who could be hit with sharp health insurance price hikes next year. The college professor said he and his wife enrolled in Pennie, Pennsylvania’s Affordable Care Act (ACA) health insurance exchange, about...
‘Nightmare bacteria’ cases increasing in the U.S.
NEW YORK — Infection rates from drug-resistant “nightmare bacteria” rose almost 70% between 2019 and 2023, according to a new report from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention scientists. Bacteria that are difficult to treat due to the so-called NDM gene primarily drove the increase, CDC researchers wrote in an...
Doctors turn to each other, not CDC, for medical advice
Most of the medical community once looked to an influential federal vaccine panel for guidance on immunizations. But after the discussions and recommendations from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention vaccine panel veered from scientific consensus last week — and toward the vaccine-skeptical beliefs of Health and Human Services...
Pa., wary of federal guidance, turns to medical groups for vaccine advice
Pennsylvanians should get vaccine advice from professional medical associations, not Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s Department of Health and Human Services, state officials said Monday. The Pennsylvania Department of Health is telling patients and doctors to consult three organizations for guidance on shots: the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American Academy...
Dr. Trump? The president reprises his covid era, this time sharing unproven medical advice on autism
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump isn’t a doctor. But he played one on TV Monday, offering copious amounts of unproven medical advice that he suggested — often without providing evidence — might help reduce autism rates. Trump repeatedly implored pregnant women to avoid taking the painkiller Tylenol, the bestselling form...
Darfur cholera cases rising at an ‘alarming’ rate as death toll in Sudan tops 3,000, says WHO
GENEVA — The number of reported cholera cases is increasing in Darfur and more than 3,000 people across all of Sudan have died from the illness over the last 14 months of civil war, the U.N. health agency said Tuesday. The current outbreak of the bacterial infection caused by contaminated...
What is known about autism’s causes and any potential link to Tylenol
WASHINGTON — Many doctors and scientists were reeling Monday after President Donald Trump went on TV to insist that pregnant women should never take Tylenol and revive debunked theories about vaccines and autism. Trump went beyond his own Food and Drug Administration’s more modest advice that doctors “should consider minimizing”...
Trump promotes unproven ties between Tylenol, vaccines and autism without new evidenceVideo
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump on Monday used the platform of the presidency to promote unproven and in some cases discredited ties between Tylenol, vaccines and autism as his administration announced a wide-ranging effort to study the causes of the complex brain disorder. “Don’t take Tylenol,” Trump instructed pregnant women...
How to get a covid-19 shot and ensure it’s covered by your insurance
Drugstores are ready to deliver updated covid-19 vaccines this fall and insurers plan to pay for them, even though the shots no longer come recommended by an important government committee. On Friday, vaccine advisers picked by Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. declined to specifically recommend the shots but said...
Kennedy’s vaccine advisers change covid shot guidance, calling them an individual choice
ATLANTA — Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s new vaccine advisers added confusion Friday to this fall’s covid-19 vaccinations — declining to recommend them for anyone and leaving the choice up to those who want a shot. Until now, the vaccinations had been recommended as a routine step in the...
Experts weigh in on new federal childhood vaccine guidance
A federal recommendation against giving youngsters a single catchall shot for measles, mumps, rubella and chickenpox falls in line with existing practices, medical experts told TribLive Friday. The combined vaccine, abbreviated as MMRV, should no longer be given to children under 4 years old, the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices...
Pa. joins northeast state health coalition as CDC shakeups concern experts
Pennsylvania has joined a coalition of northeastern states in an effort to develop public health and immunization guidelines amid concerns about the direction of federal health agencies. The group will meet regularly to coordinate on public health efforts such as emergency preparedness and the creation of immunization guidelines. “Pennsylvania is...
A robot programmed to act like a 7-year-old girl works to combat fear and loneliness in hospitals
Days after Meagan Brazil-Sheehan’s 6-year-old son was diagnosed with leukemia, they were walking down the halls of UMass Memorial Children’s Medical Center when they ran into Robin the Robot. “Luca, how are you?” it asked in a high-pitched voice programmed to sound like a 7-year-old girl. “It’s been awhile.” Brazil-Sheehan...
Kennedy’s advisory panel recommends new restrictions on MMRV vaccines
ATLANTA — U.S. Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s hand-picked vaccine advisory committee on Thursday recommended the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention adopt new restrictions on a combination shot that protects against chickenpox as well as measles, mumps and rubella. The panel advised that the vaccine known as MMRV...
Fetterman breaks with party over tactics to keep Obamacare subsidies
Congressional Democrats won’t get any help from U.S. Sen. John Fetterman as they risk a government shutdown in a bid to extend expiring Obamacare subsidies. The Braddock Democrat, who has a habit of breaking with his party at inopportune times, said Tuesday his philosophical opposition to shutdowns comes before his...
Amazon spends $1 billion to increase pay and lower health care costs for U.S. workers
NEW YORK — Amazon says it’s making a $1 billion investment to raise wages and lower the cost of health care plans for its U.S. fulfillment and transportation workers. The Seattle-based company said Wednesday the average pay is increasing to more than $23 per hour and said that some of...
Highmark study: Surgery beats drugs like Ozempic for those looking to lose weight
Weight loss surgery is a cheaper and more effective way than medications like Ozempic for obese patients to shed pounds, according to a Highmark Health study released Wednesday that tracked thousands of people. Patients with severe obesity lost 28% of their weight on average, compared to just 10% with the...
Fired CDC chief will testify Kennedy pressed her to endorse vaccine recommendations without evidence
WASHINGTON — Fired Centers for Disease Control and Prevention director Susan Monarez will tell senators that Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. pressured her to endorse new vaccine recommendations before seeing scientific evidence, according to a copy of the testimony she plans to give during a hearing Wednesday. According to...
FDA takes aim at Hims and other telehealth services in drug advertising blitz
WASHINGTON — For the first time, federal health officials are taking aim at telehealth companies promoting unofficial versions of prescription drugs — including popular weight loss medications — as part of the Trump administration’s crackdown on pharmaceutical advertising. The Food and Drug Administration on Tuesday posted more than 100 letters...
