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Long-term exposure to industrial solvent associated with elevated Parkinson's disease risk

Long-term exposure to the industrial solvent trichloroethylene (TCE) outdoors may be linked to an increased risk of Parkinson's disease, according to a large nationwide study published in the October 1, 2025, issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

2 Oct 2025

Medicaid unwinding linked to drop in opioid use disorder treatment

The end of pandemic-era enrollment enhancements for Medicaid was associated with a rise in the number of people ending medication treatment for opioid use disorder, as well as a decrease in the number of people beginning such treatment, according to a new RAND study.

29 Sep 2025

Firearm injuries cost U.S. hospitals billions and strain safety-net centers

The initial hospital treatment of firearm injuries cost the U.S. health care system an estimated $7.7 billion between 2016 and 2021, with the largest share falling on urban trauma center hospitals that serve the highest proportion of Medicaid patients, reports a new study led by Northwestern Medicine.

26 Sep 2025

KFF Health News' 'What the Health?': Public health further politicized under the threat of more firings

In a highly unusual White House news conference this week, President Donald Trump — without evidence — boldly blamed the painkiller Tylenol and a string of childhood vaccines for causing a recent rise in autism.

25 Sep 2025

AI will soon have a say in approving or denying Medicare treatments

Taking a page from the private insurance industry's playbook, the Trump administration will launch a program next year to find out how much money an artificial intelligence algorithm could save the federal government by denying care to Medicare patients.

25 Sep 2025

Three in five U.S. children enroll in Medicaid and many experience uninsurance by age 18

By age 18, three in five U.S. children have enrolled in Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP), and two in five have experienced a period of being uninsured, according to a microsimulation model developed by researchers at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

24 Sep 2025

She had a broken arm, no insurance — and a $97,000 bill

As soon as she fell, Deborah Buttgereit knew she couldn't avoid going to the hospital.

24 Sep 2025

Scheduling combined visits improves wellness care and reduces no shows

A recurrent barrier to Medicare annual wellness visits, which provide preventative medicine guidance for older and disabled patients, occurs when patients introduce medical concerns to physicians during these preventative visits.

23 Sep 2025

Hurricane Sandy survivors face elevated heart risks long after the storm

Researchers studying Medicare beneficiaries found that Hurricane Sandy–related flooding modestly increased cardiovascular disease risk for up to five years. Heart failure drove much of the rise, particularly in New Jersey, with short-term and delayed spikes observed.

21 Sep 2025

$Kennedy’s take on vaccine science fractures cohesive national public health strategies$

Kennedy’s take on vaccine science fractures cohesive national public health strategies

Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. has had a busy few months. He fired the director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, purged the agency's vaccine advisory committee, and included among the group's new members appointees who espouse anti-vaccine views.

19 Sep 2025

Exactech will pay $8M to settle lawsuits over defective knee implant parts

19 Sep 2025

Health care cuts threaten homegrown solutions to rural doctor shortages

Olivia Owlett chose to do her primary care residency in this Northern California college town largely because it faces many of the same health care challenges she grew up with.

18 Sep 2025

CHEST advocacy prompts major changes in COPD ventilation coverage

The American College of Chest Physicians (CHEST) announces a critical milestone in its long-standing advocacy to ensure patients with COPD receive timely access to the most appropriate noninvasive ventilation (NIV) therapies.

17 Sep 2025

Team Trump’s answer to ballooning Obamacare premiums: Less generous coverage

Trump administration officials, looking at the possible impact of large insurance premium increases for millions of next year's Obamacare customers, want more people to consider plans with less generous benefits and high deductibles.

17 Sep 2025

Projected surge in uninsured will strain local health systems

Jake Margo Jr. stood in the triage room at Starr County Memorial Hospital explaining why a person with persistent fever who could be treated with over-the-counter medication didn't need to be admitted to the emergency room.

17 Sep 2025

Why are more older people dying after falls?

For a while, walking the dog felt hazardous. Earl Vickers was accustomed to taking Molly, his shepherd-boxer-something-else mix, for strolls on the beach or around his neighborhood in Seaside, California. A few years ago, though, he started to experience problems staying upright.

15 Sep 2025

Acupuncture improves pain and function in older adults with chronic low back pain

According to a study funded by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), older Americans with chronic low back pain who received acupuncture had greater improvement in physical function and reduced pain than those who received usual medical care only, generally prescribed medications or physical therapy.

13 Sep 2025