Big Medicine can paper over its troubles with basic fairness by slapping fancy terms on them: take “health and gender disparities,” for instance. But doctors, hospitals, and the rest of us can’t make medical care more equitable, accessible, safe, and affordable without looking at inequities, square on. That’s why the New York Times, Washington Post,….
Continue ReadingBirth Injury
Harsh new glare falls on fertility clinics’ booming business after major mishaps
Equipment failures in two clinics in Cleveland and San Francisco not only resulted in the loss of thousands of frozen human embryos and eggs, the incidents also have raised new concerns about safeguards and regulation of booming and costly fertility programs. Experts said the mishaps were uncommon, and they were hard pressed to explain how advanced….
Continue ReadingSleep deaths and other evidence show U.S. has far to go on kids’ health
Many grown-ups may love to grin, coo, and snuggle with babies and little kids, telling themselves that they’d bust through walls for the sake of adorable youngsters’ well-being. But evidence indicates the nation has a far way to go to better children’s health. Although the U.S. spends more per capita than most wealthy, democratic nations….
Continue ReadingWhat’s a key factor in black moms’ high death rates? Segregated hospitals
The bad news for expectant black moms isn’t confined to those living in the nation’s capital: A new investigation has found higher risks of harm for women in New York, Florida, and Illinois when they deliver at hospitals that disproportionately serve black mothers. ProPublica, a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative site, analyzed two years of hospital inpatient….
Continue ReadingNew disclosures deepen scandal over DC hospital’s risky obstetrics care
Doctors and hospitals across the country push the frontiers of medical science every day, finding new ways to improve health care and to change and save lives. But at the same time, some of medicine’s basics—like delivering babies safely and protecting mothers’ well being—also keep getting botched, especially for poor and black women. It’s a….
Continue ReadingWay Too Many American Moms Still Die in Childbirth
A new investigation of one of the great shames of American medical care raises big questions about why labor and delivery is more dangerous to new mothers in the U.S. than just about anywhere else in the civilized world. To their considerable credit, National Public Radio and Pro Publica, a Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative news site, have joined….
Continue ReadingPot may be more legal and common, but it’s still unwise for pregnant moms
Although marijuana is marching toward legalization across the United States, expectant moms may wish to think long and hard still about smoking or ingesting a substance that has become as ubiquitous in some households as aspirin or a bottle of chardonnay. The New York Times has delved into this discussion, even as other news outlets….
Continue ReadingNew cautions issued on babies and anesthesia, newborn screenings
Some new cautions have been issued on some key aspects of children’s health care. The federal government is increasing its warnings on anesthetic use for children and expectant moms, while a newspaper investigation is raising issues with common newborn screenings and their inconsistency and inaccuracy. Meantime, a health news site is adding to questions about….
Continue ReadingZika grabs headlines but herpes-related CMV harms more babies
Although awareness has grown about viruses like Zika that can devastate the unborn, cytomegalovirus (CMV), a much more common and equally harmful prenatal viral infection, doesn’t get discussed with pregnant moms as much as it should. Medical counseling, testing, and administration of anti-viral medications could save more babies and their families from a lifetime of….
Continue ReadingFDA approves trial for zika vaccine
Federal officials have advanced a key way to combat the zika virus, permitting clinical trials of a vaccine against the tropical infection. The Food and Drug Administration has approved the preliminary testing of GLS-5700, an experimental vaccine by Inovio, of Plymouth Meeting, Pa., and GeneOne Life Science, of Seoul, South Korea. It is the….
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