Health

The devastating, underdiagnosed toll of toxic stress on children

By Dr. Nadine Burke Harris

When a child's flight-or-fight response is activated too often, from abuse, neglect or parental addiction, it can change the structure of a developing brain. It's called toxic stress, and pediatrician Nadine Burke Harris believes every medical professional in the country…

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Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam says U.S. should ban bump stocks, raise age to buy AR-15

By Matt Vasilogambros, Stateline

“It’s just crazy to me that you can’t buy a beer at 19, but you can buy an AR-15,” Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam said during an event in Washington, D.C. Friday.

Why Trump's new insurance proposal may put essential health benefits at risk

By Laura Santhanam

Here's a look at why Obamacare requires insurance companies to offer essential health benefits, and what losing them might mean for your insurance plan.

Opioid overdose deaths dropped in these 14 states, prompting cautious optimism

By Christine Vestal, Stateline

In an opioid epidemic that began in the late 1990s, drug deaths have been climbing steadily every year, in nearly every state. A break in that trend, even if limited to just 14 states, has prompted cautious optimism among some…

Will my private insurer drop me if I don't get Medicare?

By Philip Moeller

A mother writes that the treatment facilities that treat her adult daughter's disorder do not take Medicare. What should they do?…

5 medical stories you might have missed

By Dr. Amber Robins, Laura Santhanam

It’s easy for politics to dominate our news feeds these days. But there are many important stories in the health and medical communities, too. Here’s what we’re reading now.

Trump administration unveils short-term medical plans with cheaper premiums, fewer benefits

By Ricardo Alonso-Zaldivar, Associated Press

The plans would come with a disclaimer that they don't meet the Affordable Care Act's consumer protections, such as guaranteed coverage, or the requirement to offer robust benefits.

Trump said mental illness leads to gun violence. Here's why doctors disagree

By Associated Press

Mental health professionals welcome more resources and attention, but they say the administration is ignoring the real problem — easy access to guns, particularly the kind of high-powered highly lethal assault weapons used in many of the most recent mass…

Analysis: How defeatism undermines tougher gun laws

By Alec MacGillis, ProPublica

Congress has failed repeatedly to pass any gun-control measures after past calamities, even the 2012 massacre of 20 first-graders and six teachers at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.