HealthBeat
Tenn. inmates undergo vasectomies to shave off jail time
Inmates in one Tennessee county are having their sentences reduced in exchange for undergoing vasectomies or receiving long-term birth control. Jail inmates in White County, Tenn., can receive 30 days off of their sentence if they undergo a birth control procedure. The judge who signed the order said it’s a way for inmates to take […]
July 20, 2017 3:16 pm
Vancouver ranks among most stressed cities
Hey Vancouver, relax. An analysis by WalletHub of the most stressed cities across the country ranked Vancouver as No. 54. That makes Couv residents less stressed than people living in Tacoma (No. 51) but more stressed than those in Spokane (No. 77), Portland (No. 89) and Seattle (No. 119). WalletHub compared a sample of the […]
July 20, 2017 1:12 pm
Experimental Zika virus vaccines protect against congenital damage
Two experimental vaccines have been found to restrict Zika virus transmission from pregnant mice to their fetuses and prevent damage to the placenta and fetal demise. Scientists from the National Institutes of Health, Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis and the University of Texas Medical Branch tested a live-attenuated vaccine candidate and an […]
July 14, 2017 8:00 am
Senate Republicans’ health care bill, take two
Senate Republicans on Thursday introduced a revised version of their Obamacare replacement bill. And Senate Democrats from Washington were quick to pounce. “Well, if President Trump called the House bill ‘mean’ in a rare moment of honesty – can you imagine what he is going to say about this new Senate bill?,” said Sen. Patty […]
July 13, 2017 4:55 pm
Incidence of cardiac arrest dropped under ACA
A new study shows the incidence of cardiac arrest dropped “significantly” under the Affordable Care Act. The incidence of sudden cardiac arrest declined among previously uninsured, middle-aged adults who acquired health insurance through the ACA, according to the study published in the Journal of the American Heart Association. Most of the adults in the study […]
July 6, 2017 5:18 pm
Poll: Majority support free birth control
The majority of people, regardless of political party affiliation, support the requirement for private health plans to cover the full cost of birth control, according to a recent poll. The June Kaiser Health Tracking Poll looked at the support for the Affordable Care Act requirement that makes employers cover the full cost of prescription birth […]
July 5, 2017 3:35 pm
Lead detected in baby food
Parents don’t only have to worry about lead in their kids’ drinking water. Now they may need to give their baby food a second thought. An environmental watchdog group’s analysis found detectable levels of lead in 20 percent of baby food samples. The Environmental Defense Fund analyzed 11 years of Food and Drug Administration food […]
June 15, 2017 4:50 pm
Herrera Beutler pushes legislation for counties without health plans
State Insurance Commissioner Mike Kreidler recently announced that eleven insurers had filed 71 health plans for the 2018 insurance exchange. The problem? No insurers signed up to provide plans in two counties, Klickitat and Grays Harbor. That means 1,119 people living in Klickitat County will no longer have their current health plan and won’t have […]
June 14, 2017 1:10 pm
FDA seeks removal of opioid due to abuse risk
For the first time, the Food and Drug Administration has asked a drug manufacturer to remove a pain medication from the market over concerns of drug abuse. On Thursday, the FDA asked Endo Pharmaceuticals to remove the opioid pain medication, Opana ER, from the market. In explaining the move, the agency said it believes the […]
June 9, 2017 9:49 am
Study: Refined grains during pregnancy linked to increased obesity in kids
Children born to women with gestational diabetes and who had diets high in refined grains have a higher risk of obesity, according to a new study. The National Institutes of Health study found those children had a higher risk of obesity by age 7 compared to children born to women with gestational diabetes but who […]
June 7, 2017 2:54 pm