Pennsylvania confirms 1st case of avian influenza
The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture confirmed on Saturday the state’s first positive case of the Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in domestic poultry. Positive samples were detected in a flock of commercial layer chickens at an East Donegal Township, Lancaster County poultry farm, the department said. The farm and commercial poultry...
Flu cases, colds up in Western Pa. as people relax covid-19 precautions
Influenza cases now outnumber covid-19 cases in some areas of Western Pennsylvania, though they remain far below pre-pandemic numbers, experts say. “Over the last couple weeks, there has certainly been a surge in noncovid-related illnesses in the region. Chief among these pathogens has been the yearly influenza virus,” said Dr....
FDA authorizes 1st breath test for covid-19 infection
WASHINGTON — The Food and Drug Administration on Thursday issued an emergency use authorization for what it said is the first device that can detect covid-19 in breath samples. The InspectIR covid-19 Breathalyzer is about the size of a piece of carry-on luggage, the FDA said, and can be used...
Washington, D.C., man stops in Pittsburgh on his 3,400-mile e-bike journey to raise money for charity
The wooden shoes on the back of the trailer attached to the electric bicycle are more than footwear – they symbolize the home country of the rider. And the clogs are making a 3,400-mile trek with him. Gregory Maassen, a native of the Netherlands, is riding an e-bike from Washington,...
Bill proposal would allow medical marijuana edibles in Pa. dispensaries
Pennsylvania medical cannabis patients currently have access to tinctures, pills, oils, topicals, and dry leaf to vaporize. A new bill will soon be introduced by state Sen. Dan Laughlin, R-Erie, to possibly expand those options and allow patients to purchase medical cannabis edibles. Launglin said that 25 other states already...
Can cancer blood tests live up to promise of saving lives?
Joyce Ares had just turned 74 and was feeling fine when she agreed to give a blood sample for research. So she was surprised when the screening test came back positive for signs of cancer. After a repeat blood test, a PET scan and a needle biopsy, she was diagnosed...
Treatment for opioid addiction often brings discrimination
PHILADELPHIA — Danielle Russell was in the emergency department at an Arizona hospital last fall, sick with covid-19, when she made the mistake of answering completely when she was asked what medications she was on. “I said yes, I was taking methadone,” said Russell, a doctoral student who also was...
Pittsburgh public health advocates attend Affordable Care Act event at White House
Two public health advocates from Pittsburgh attended a White House ceremony Tuesday celebrating the 12th anniversary of the Affordable Care Act. Amy Raslevich, a doctoral candidate at the University of Pittsburgh’s School of Public Health, and Adrianne Sapienza, a Pitt alumna and diabetes educator at UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh,...
Nursing home care, funding system need overhaul, report says
NEW YORK — Nursing home residents are subjected to ineffective care and poor staffing, while facility finances are shrouded in secrecy and regulatory lapses go unenforced, according to a report Wednesday that called for wholesale changes in an industry whose failures have been spotlighted by the pandemic. To anyone who...
Biden orders push on long covid, pandemic’s shadowy mystery
WASHINGTON — Confronting the pandemic’s lasting shadow, President Joe Biden on Tuesday ordered a new national research push on long covid, while also directing federal agencies to support patients dealing with the mysterious and debilitating condition. Biden assigned the Department of Health and Human Services to coordinate an urgent new...
U.S. health care system ‘consistently fails’ women of reproductive age
The U.S. health care system “consistently fails” to meet the basic needs of reproductive-age women, which may partly explain why women are more than three times as likely to die during pregnancy or shortly after childbirth in the country compared to other high-income countries, according to new research from the...
Obama, back at White House with Biden, celebrates his signature health care law’s anniversary
WASHINGTON — Former President Barack Obama will return to the White House Tuesday for the first time since leaving office to celebrate the 12th anniversary of his landmark health care law, which President Joe Biden is planning to bolster with two new actions. Biden will sign an executive order to...
Bruce Willis’ aphasia battle: Living in a country where you don’t speak the language
Living with aphasia has been compared to living in a country where you don’t speak the language. Gestures, sign language or other forms of communication may not be much help. And the people who want to help you struggle to understand. “You know what things are. You are the person...
Scientists finally finish decoding entire human genome
Scientists say they have finally assembled the full genetic blueprint for human life, adding the missing pieces to a puzzle nearly completed two decades ago. An international team described the first-ever sequencing of a complete human genome — the set of instructions to build and sustain a human being —...
Poll: Americans ease up on masks, coronavirus safeguards
Many Americans have taken significant steps back from once-routine coronavirus precautions, with less than half now saying they regularly wear face masks, avoid crowds and skip nonessential travel. Americans are letting down their guard even as experts warn a new wave of covid-19 cases is coming. A new poll from...
Pennsylvania legislators urge support for bill requiring insurance to cover donor breast milkVideo
Pennsylvania legislators will join community advocates Wednesday to promote a bill that would authorize insurance coverage for medically prescribed pasteurized donor breast milk to infants with serious health conditions. “Without human donor breast milk, I don’t know where my babies would be,” said Jessica Rhodes of West Mifflin. “The alternative...
Payments to begin for UPMC employees who fell victim to data breach
UPMC on Thursday will begin making payments to 66,000 employees who were victims of a 2014 data breach — as part of a settlement approved late last year. Employees were notified via an email on Monday that they will receive a payment notification with a link to claim it electronically....
UPMC Matilda H. Theiss Health Center returns to Pittsburgh’s Hill District
The UPMC Matilda H. Theiss Health Center will begin seeing patients in Pittsburgh’s Hill District again on Friday. The clinic moved out of the Hill District last August because of structural problems at its prior facility, and it operated temporarily in the South Side, according to Dr. Jonathan Yadlosky, the...
Moderna says its low-dose covid shots work for kids under 6
Moderna’s covid-19 vaccine works in babies, toddlers and preschoolers, the company announced Wednesday — and if regulators agree it could mean a chance to finally start vaccinating the littlest kids by summer. Moderna said in the coming weeks it would ask regulators in the U.S. and Europe to authorize two...
Planning Commission approves UPMC plan for 363-bed hospital in Oakland
Pittsburgh’s Planning Commission signed off on UPMC’s plans for a new 363-bed hospital in Oakland on Tuesday, paving the way for finalized plans to go to the city’s zoning administrator for approval. UPMC said the new hospital, planned for the former Children’s Hospital site at the corner of Fifth Avenue...
Highmark reports $22B in revenue
Highmark Health reported Tuesday that its health care system earned $22 billion in revenue last year, up $301 million from the year before. Highmark employs 37,000 people and provides health insurance coverage to patients in the Mid-Atlantic region. It is the parent company of Allegheny Health Network, which operates 14...
U.S. adult smoking rate fell during first year of pandemic
NEW YORK — The first year of the covid-19 pandemic saw more Americans drinking heavily or using illicit drugs — but apparently not smoking. U.S. cigarette smoking dropped to a new all-time low in 2020, with 1 in 8 adults saying they were current smokers, according to survey data released...
Diabetes & covid-19: Scientists explore potential connection
When their 11-year-old son started losing weight and drinking lots of water, Tabitha and Bryan Balcitis chalked it up to a growth spurt and advice from his health class. But unusual crankiness and lethargy raised their concern, and tests showed his blood sugar levels were off the charts. Just six...
4th covid shot will be ‘necessary,’ says Pfizer CEO
Covid-19 shots could soon become an annual item on your to-do list. Due to waning effectiveness, particularly on variants like omicron, a fourth covid vaccine shot will be needed to keep hospitals and morgues quiet, Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said Sunday. “Right now, the way that we have seen, it...
Patients divided over Alzheimer’s drug: Is it a ‘risk I’m willing to take’ or just a ‘magic pill’?
If you listen to the nation’s largest Alzheimer’s disease advocacy organizations, you might think everyone living with Alzheimer’s wants unfettered access to Aduhelm, a controversial new treatment. But you’d be wrong. Opinions about Aduhelm (also known as aducanumab) in the dementia community are diverse, ranging from “we want the government...
