AllHealthcare

WASHINGTON - Limits on medical malpractice lawsuits would lead doctors to order up fewer unneeded tests and save taxpayers billions more than previously thought, budget umpires for Congress said Friday in a reversal that puts the issue back in the middle of the health care debate. The latest analysis from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office estimates that government health care programs ...

ATLANTA - U.S. health officials have lost track of how many illnesses and deaths have been caused by the first global flu epidemic in 40 years. And they did it on purpose. Government doctors stopped counting swine flu cases in July, when they estimated more than 1 million were infected in this country. The number of deaths has been sitting at ...

ATLANTA - Health officials said Friday that 76 U.S. children have died of swine flu, including 19 new reports in the past week - more evidence the new virus is unusually dangerous for the young. The regular flu kills between 46 and 88 children a year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That suggests deaths from the new ...

Despite the growing obesity epidemic, some physicians find it difficult to talk to heavy patients about their weight — and even harder to help them lose weight. A patient's weight is often the white elephant in the examining room. Both patient and doctor know it's a problem, but often neither party wants to talk about it, says internist William Bestermann Jr., ...

Diffuse Optical Tomography could one day lead to at home breast cancer screening kits Researchers are looking for new ways to detect and treat cancer across the world. The research includes new treatment methods like delivering medications directly to cancer cells. A pair of researchers – Taufiquar Khan from Clemson University and Peter Maass from the University of Bremen, Germany – ...

HARTFORD, Conn. - The nation's nursing homes are perilously close to laying off workers, cutting services - possibly even closing - because of a perfect storm wallop from the recession and deep federal and state government spending cuts, industry experts say. A Medicare rate adjustment that cuts an estimated $16 billion in nursing home funding over the next 10 years was ...

PAGO PAGO, American Samoa — The earthquake that shook American Samoa nearly knocked John Newton out of bed. Within minutes he knew a tsunami had hit. "Everything the tsunami touched was just destroyed," says Newton, 66, a publisher who runs websites for the local government. "This thing hit with all its fury." The towering walls of water that slammed into the ...

PADANG, Indonesia (AP) — A second powerful earthquake rocked western Indonesia on Thursday as rescuers struggled to reach survivors of the previous day's quake, which killed more than 500 people and left thousands trapped under collapsed buildings. The death toll from Wednesday's 7.6-magnitude earthquake off Sumatra island was expected to rise as rescuers dig through the rubble, sometimes by hand, in ...

ALBANY — Several hundred health-care workers, civil libertarians and members of anti-vaccine groups on Tuesday railed against a mandate that medical professionals get seasonal and swine-flu vaccines. But the state health commissioner said their arguments are baseless. Nurses and other health-care workers said they shouldn't be forced to get a vaccine that they don't believe has been tested appropriately as a ...

WASHINGTON - Shona Holmes is the Harry and Louise of this year's health care debate, only unlike the fictional folks who memorably trashed the Clinton-era health plan in advocacy ads 15 years ago, Holmes is real. But her story? It's not quite the slam-dunk indictment of socialized medicine that's been portrayed by Republican lawmakers and their allies. [widget:1140] Holmes, a Canadian ...

With Typhoon Ketsana brewing in the Pacific and drenching storms flooding southeast America, death tolls are rising as the need for disaster relief aid intensifies in these areas. If you live in one of these storm-tossed areas, be sure to follow these tips to stay safe, healthy and most importantly, alive. Flood-Related Injuries and Safety Guidelines Flood-related injuries and illnesses reported ...

MANILA, Philippines - Rescuers pulled more bodies from swollen rivers and debris-strewn streets Tuesday to bring the death toll from massive flooding in the northern Philippines to 240, while two new storms brewing in the Pacific threatened to complicate relief efforts. The homes of nearly 1.9 million people in the capital and surrounding areas were inundated by flooding unleashed when Tropical ...

HANOI, Vietnam - Typhoon Ketsana roared into central Vietnam on Tuesday, killing at least 23 people as it brought flooding and winds of up to 90 mph (144 kph), disaster officials said. Some 170,000 were evacuated from its path. Ketsana left more than 200 dead across the northern Philippines as a weaker tropical storm. After gathering strength over the South China ...

AUSTELL, Ga. -- On a Tuesday finally filled with welcome sunshine, flood-ravaged Georgians returned home to survey the damage and begin wrestling with insurance issues. For some, homecoming was heartbreaking. Chris Payne, 43, a construction company superintendent, was shocked when he saw the rooftop of his house on Powder Springs Road in Austell. "My house floated away! It's supposed to sit ...

WASHINGTON - More than 35 million people around the world are living with Alzheimer's disease or other types of dementia, says the most in-depth attempt yet to assess the brain-destroying illness - and it's an ominous forecast as the population grays. The new count is about 10 percent higher than what scientists had predicted just a few years ago, because earlier ...

A University of Chicago molecular genetics professor studying the origins of harmful bacteria died last weekend after contracting an infection linked to the plague, officials said Saturday. University hospital officials said there "does not appear to be a threat to the public" following the death of Malcolm J. Casadaban, 60, at the campus' Bernard Mitchell Hospital on Sept. 13. None of ...

NEW HAVEN, Conn. -- Raymond Clark III appeared in court and was charged with murder Thursday hours after his arrest in the killing of a graduate student whose body was found stuffed in the wall of the research building where they both worked. Raymond Clark III, 24, kept his head bowed during the three-minute appearance in the death of Annie Le, ...

One of the most prestigious prizes in medicine is being awarded this year to scientists working on stem cells and leukemia -- and to New York's mayor for his fight to cut tobacco use. The Lasker Awards, which are announced today, have been given since 1945. They recognize the contributions of scientists, physicians and public servants internationally working to cure, treat ...

NEW YORK - Seeking to cut costs and bring new drugs to market more quickly as its best-sellers go off-patent, drugmaker Eli Lilly & Co. said Monday it will eliminate 5,500 jobs over two years and reorganize into five business units. The Indianapolis company said it will reduce its work force by nearly 14 percent, to 35,000 from the current 40,500, ...

Early results from the first trial of a pandemic flu vaccine suggest that just one dose is likely to provide "robust" protection from the new H1N1 strain, also dubbed swine flu, researchers said Thursday. The study, sponsored by Australia-based CSL Limited, showed that nearly 97% of volunteers given a standard dose of the vaccine produced antibody levels that typically protect against ...