Public/Global Health

Americans younger than 65 are more likely to die from a lack of timely healthcare than their peers in France, Germany or the United Kingdom, according to a new study.

Research published in Health Affairs looked at the rate of "potentially preventable" deaths — deaths before age 75 that could be avoided with timely and effective healthcare — and found that the United States lags behind its U.K. and European peers.

The United States was also less effective than France, Germany and the United Kingdom in remedying the problem between 1999 and 2007, study authors wrote. 

Health officials warned Wednesday that the current outbreak of West Nile virus is still breaking records and prompting deaths in many states.

The number of reported U.S. cases has reached 1,590 this year, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The figure includes 66 deaths, 30 of which occurred in Texas. 

Federal health officials on Wednesday announced new programs worth about $50 million to train public health workers.

The notice comes as outbreaks of whooping cough and West Nile virus are grabbing state and national headlines.

"Public health workers are on the front lines, educating their community members and doing the hard work to ensure we stay healthy and can respond to public health challenges when they arise," said Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) Administrator Mary K. Wakefield.

The two new programs are sponsored by HRSA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Read more...

The platform committee chairman said it was no "surprise" that Republicans were a "pro-life party."

The appellate court found the label requirement from the FDA violates the free-speech rights of tobacco companies.

U.S. West Nile cases, deaths jump in latest week.

A Q-and-A looks at the virus. 

Dallas sees run on bug spray.

Cases confirmed in Canada.

At 55 and 53, couple is split by Romney Medicare plan. 

The Health and Human Services Department announced $68 million in new grants to support comprehensive HIV/AIDS care for women, infants and youth.

The disbursements will help 114 hospitals, health departments and community organizations care for HIV/AIDS patients with limited or no access to treatments, the department stated.

Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Kathleen Sebelius praised the funding as an investment that will "target our resources to the communities that need them most."

Fewer than half of U.S. adults get enough exercise to improve their health, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said Tuesday.

Adults are, however, getting better about walking. Sixty-two percent of adults say they walk at least 10 minutes per day, up from 56 percent in 2005, the CDC said.

The CDC recommends two and a half hours per week of "moderately intense aerobic physical activity," such as walking.

Even with the recent gains in walking, though, only 48 percent of U.S. adults get enough physical activity to improve their health, according to data from the CDC's National Health Interview Survey.

“It is encouraging to see these increases in the number of adults who are now walking,” said Joan M. Dorn, branch chief of the Physical Activity and Health Branch in CDC’s Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity. 

More action is needed to combat unsafe injection practices, which can lead to outbreaks of viral hepatitis, a new report urges.

Investigators with the Government Accountability Office (GAO) found that costs for such outbreaks "can be substantial for those affected" — both patients and the healthcare system — but that comprehensive data on the trend is lacking.

According to the Centers for Disease Control, there were at least 18 outbreaks of viral hepatitis associated with unsafe injections between 2001 and 2011.

Doctors slam Komen cancer group for ads backing mammograms.

Rights group: U.S.-backed study exploited China prisoners.

January is the target for Ariz. Gov. Jan Brewer's decision on Medicaid.