May 08 Walmart raises minimum age to buy tobacco in its stores to 21 By Joseph Pisani, Associated Press The world's largest retailer said the new rules will take effect in July in an effort to combat tobacco sales to minors. Continue reading
May 07 Why parents are struggling to find mental health care for their children By Bernard J. Wolfson, Kaiser Health News The U.S. faces a growing shortage of mental health professionals trained to work with young people at a time when depression and anxiety are on the rise. Continue reading
May 06 Safety concerns mount over neonicotinoid pesticides in unexpected places By Jim Daley, Scientific American As scientists discover neonicotinoid pesticides in unexpected locations and associated with health problems, a growing body of research challenges the assumption these are safer and less likely to spread than other types of pesticide. Continue reading
May 05 FDA to end program that hid millions of reports on faulty medical devices By Christina Jewett, Kaiser Health News In the wake of a Kaiser Health News investigation, the agency will no longer let device makers file reports of harm outside a widely used public database. Continue reading
May 04 Watch 16:55 Facebook moderators battle hate speech and violence Facebook has banned several high-profile accounts it says engage in “violence and hate." The move also follows several recent acts of violence livestreamed on the company's site. Facebook employs thousands of people known as moderators, who are on the frontlines… Continue watching
May 03 What the new religious exemptions law means for your health care By Nsikan Akpan, Gretchen Frazee, Courtney Norris Advocates for reproductive and LGBTQ rights are questioning whether the administration’s rule is constitutional, and worry it will lead to women and LGBTQ people being denied health care. Continue reading
May 03 Watch 5:13 Trump aims to expand religious and philosophical exemptions for health workers President Trump intends to expand rules that allow health care workers to opt out of participating in certain services on religious or moral grounds. While conservatives celebrated what they call “conscience protections,” LGBTQ and women’s advocates warned the change would… Continue watching
May 02 Jury says drug firm founder guilty of bribing doctors to push opioid By Alanna Durkin Richer, Associated Press A pharmaceutical company founder accused of bribing doctors across the U.S. to prescribe a highly addictive fentanyl spray was convicted Thursday in a case that exposed such marketing tactics as using a stripper-turned-sales-rep to give a physician a lap dance. Continue reading
May 02 WATCH: Trump touts new religious exemption allowing clinicians to refuse abortions The rule would likely require that hospitals, universities, clinics and other institutions that receive funding from federal programs certify that they comply with some 25 federal laws protecting conscience and religious rights. Continue reading
May 01 Trump, GOP states ask appeals court to kill the Affordable Care Act By Kevin McGill, Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, Associated Press Taking a harder line on health care, the Trump administration joined a coalition of Republican-led states Wednesday in asking a federal appeals court to entirely overturn former President Barack Obama's signature health care law — a decision that could leave… Continue reading