Biden made ‘Obamacare’ cheaper, now sign-up deadline is here
With the Obama health care law undergoing a revival under President Joe Biden, this Sunday is the deadline for consumers to take advantage of a special sign-up period for private coverage made more affordable by his covid-19 relief law. A strong close would bolster Biden’s case that Congress needs to...
Extra covid vaccine OK’d for those with weak immune systems
WASHINGTON — U.S. regulators on Thursday said transplant recipients and others with weakened immune systems can get an extra dose of the covid-19 vaccine to better protect them as the delta variant continues to surge. The announcement by the Food and Drug Administration applies to millions of Americans who are...
Out-of-state covid hot spots ‘desperate’ to transfer patients to Western Pa. hospitals
Overburdened health care systems from Texas to Florida are pleading with Western Pennsylvania hospitals to take on transfer patients at record-high rates as beds and ventilators reach capacity in covid-19 hot spots across the country. “They’re running out of space, and they’re looking for help in trying to deal with...
A heartfelt message: Joe Beretta Foundation hosting fundraising cruise
The family of Joe Beretta family knows all too well how difficult it is to have a loved one suffering from heart failure. When the heart weakens, it often causes a build-up of fluid in the patient’s lungs. That causes trouble breathing and weakness, which often requires multiple hospital stays....
FDA set to clear 3rd covid-19 shot for immunocompromised patientsVideo
WASHINGTON — U.S. drug regulators are set to clear a third dose of covid-19 vaccines for people with weak immune systems as a new study showed the benefits of an extra shot in transplant patients. A third dose of Moderna Inc.’s vaccine significantly raised antibody levels against the coronavirus in...
CDC urges covid vaccines during pregnancy as delta surges
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention urged all pregnant women Wednesday to get the covid-19 vaccine as hospitals in hot spots around the U.S. see disturbing numbers of unvaccinated mothers-to-be seriously ill with the virus. Expectant women run a higher risk of severe illness and pregnancy complications from the...
Pa. patients swear by cannabis as tool to fight opioid addiction. The research still isn’t there.
Spotlight PA is an independent, nonpartisan newsroom powered by The Philadelphia Inquirer in partnership with PennLive/The Patriot-News, TribLIVE/Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and WITF Public Media. Sign up for our free newsletters. BERNVILLE — The back pain started when Luke Shultz was a teenager, and it got worse. When he was in his...
Yes, that was a 21-foot tall soap bottle at Giant Eagle Market District in RobinsonVideo
Kim Machi deals with nearly half a million products as health, beauty and wellness manager for Giant Eagle Market District in Settlers Ridge in Robinson. But she hadn’t seen anything like the 21-foot-tall, 2,500-pound bottle of soap at the store Wednesday. It was made by Soapbox, a company that donates...
Q&A: Outdoor transmission of delta is still unclear. Here’s what experts think about covid-19 risk
As the delta variant pushes covid-19 case counts upward again, people are being more careful about wearing masks and distancing indoors. But what about the outdoors, which has been a refuge from the pandemic isolation because of reduced transmission risk? Last weekend, photos of maskless revelers at Lollapalooza, an outdoor...
Community Health Clinic’s new medical van delivers health care to Westmoreland County residents
Community Health Clinic’s new medical van is bringing health care to people in Westmoreland County, offering covid-19 vaccinations and tests along with primary care. Headquartered in New Kensington with additional locations in Vandergrift and Greensburg, the Community Health Clinic provides low-cost health care, offering a sliding payment scale for residents...
Magee-Womens, Pitt join study of pregnant and new moms’ responses to covid vaccines
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists announced Friday that it “recommends that all eligible persons, including pregnant and lactating individuals, receive a covid-19 vaccine or vaccine series. “ Obstetrician-gynecologists and other women’s health care practitioners should lead by example by being vaccinated and encouraging eligible patients to be vaccinated...
Health officials to release new covid-19 data
NEW YORK — U.S. health officials are expected to release new data about the spread of covid-19 on Friday that led to their decision to recommend that vaccinated people wear masks in some situations, a reversal of previous guidance. The report, to be released by the Centers for Disease Control...
FDA allows automatic ‘generic’ swap for brand-name insulin
U.S. regulators took action Wednesday that will make it easier to get a cheaper, near-copy of a brand-name insulin at the drugstore. Doctors now have to specifically prescribe what’s called a biosimilar or OK substituting it for a more expensive brand-name insulin. Wednesday’s move by the Food and Drug Administration...
UPMC President Jeffrey Romoff to retire
Jeffrey Romoff, the architect of UPMC’s vast empire of hospitals in Western Pennsylvania and beyond, is set to retire Aug. 1, officials announced Wednesday. Romoff will be succeeded by Leslie C. Davis, who most recently served as executive vice president of UPMC and president of the health services division, where...
Facing headwinds on new Alzheimer’s drug, Biogen launches controversial campaign
Do you sometimes lose your train of thought or feel a bit more anxious than is typical for you? Those are two of the six questions in a quiz on a website co-sponsored by the makers of Aduhelm, a controversial new Alzheimer’s drug. But even when all responses to the...
FlyBy 5K back on at Pittsburgh International Airport
People will again have a chance to run or walk on the tarmac at Pittsburgh International Airport. The fifth annual FlyBy 5K and 2-Mile Fun Run/Walk presented by CNX Resources, a natural gas development production company, is Oct. 2. It is back on course after a yearlong hiatus because of...
What is monkeypox? Here’s what you should know about Texas’ first case of the virusVideo
A Dallas resident on Friday was diagnosed with monkeypox, the first case of the virus ever reported in a human in Texas. The patient, whose identity was not released, was in isolation at a Dallas hospital and was stable. City health officials said that the risk posed to the general...
Legalizing marijuana could stem opioid abuse, Pitt study suggests
Legalizing marijuana for recreational use could lead to fewer opioid-spurred health emergencies and overdose deaths, a University of Pittsburgh study has found. Opioid-related emergency department visits dropped by 7.6% within a year of cannabis legalization for adult residents in four states — California, Nevada, Maine and Massachusetts — according to...
Western Pa. among nationwide areas seeing dangerous rise in opioid epidemic
Throughout the height of the covid-19 pandemic, it seemed as if the opioid epidemic had come to a sudden halt — largely because coronavirus headlines dominated newsstands, television broadcasts and everyday conversation. The latest overdose death figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, however, convey a starkly opposite...
Retirement plans should include physical, emotional well-being
Retirement planning often seems to center around finances: How much is in my 401(k)? When should I start drawing Social Security? Will I be able to afford my current lifestyle? But retirement is about more than just money. It’s also about “where you want to go and what you want...
Explainer: Are we going to need covid-19 booster shots?
Just because Pfizer wants to offer covid-19 vaccine boosters doesn’t mean people will be lining up anytime soon — U.S. and international health authorities say that for now, the fully vaccinated seem well protected. Globally, experts are watching closely to determine if and when people might need another shot. At...
Lawsuit says Georgia Medicaid should cover gender-affirming surgeries
ATLANTA — Two Georgians have filed a lawsuit saying their constitutional rights were violated when the state Medicaid program declined to cover the gender-affirming surgeries they say they need to live a full life. At issue is whether the reconstructive or plastic surgeries sought by Shon Thomas and Gwendolyn Cheney...
U.S. overdose deaths hit record 93,000 in pandemic last yearVideo
NEW YORK — Overdose deaths soared to a record 93,000 last year in the midst of the covid-19 pandemic, the U.S. government reported Wednesday. That estimate far eclipses the high of about 72,000 drug overdose deaths reached the previous year and amounts to a 29% increase. “This is a staggering...
Experts: Don’t use Magic Eraser to whiten your teeth
Some trends can be harmless fun — pet rocks, Beanie Babies and the Ice Bucket Challenge, for example. But some trends can be downright harmful — ingesting TidePods, swallowing a spoonful of cinnamon, and the latest: Using Mr. Clean Magic Erasers to whiten your teeth. The trend has been making...
U.S. officials flag ‘small’ reaction risk with J&J vaccine
WASHINGTON — Johnson & Johnson’s covid-19 vaccine may pose a “small possible risk” of a rare but potentially dangerous neurological reaction, U.S. health officials said Monday. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement it has received reports of 100 people who got the shot developing Guillain-Barré...
