Health A-Z Features
- Hospital Care: Does Your State Rate?
All states -- even ones at the bottom of the barrel when it comes to hospital care -- have good hospitals and bad hospitals. What do you look for in a good hospital?
- America Unprepared for Disaster
It couldn't happen here. Before 9/11, that's what we used to think. We've known better for two years. Yet America remains unprepared to deal with disaster.
- Electronic Records, Private Lives
How private are online medical records?
- Power to the People
Online management tools and other technology put patients in control of their health.
- 10 Ways to Raise Food-Smart Kids
Want your children to eat healthy foods? Create a nutritional home. Begin here.
- Vitamin Pills: Popping Too Many?
Americans are popping more vitamins than ever before -- not to mention all the vitamin-fortified foods hitting store shelves. Is this a dangerous habit or are we throwing our money away?
- Biological and Chemical Terror History
Timeline of events in biological and chemical terror history
- Advice on Preparing for Disaster
Federal government presents a disaster preparedness plan in case of terrorist attack.
- Thrill-Seekers Thrive on the Scary
Exploring the 'dark side' may be a psychological need that's met when the scare is actually over.
- Docs at Front Line of Terror War.
Is the U.S. healthcare system prepared for another attack?
- Docs at Front Line of Terror War
Is the U.S. healthcare system prepared for another attack?
- Bush Backs Strictly Limited Stem Cell Research
U.S. funding only permitted for cells already taken from embryos.
- Direct-to-Consumer Drug Ads Come Under Fire
Direct-to-consumer, or DTC, advertisements for prescription drugs may negatively impact the doctor/patient relationship.
- RX Errors on the Rise
As the number of prescriptions soars, so too does the number of mistakes. For patients, the consequences can be serious.
- Medical Mistakes
Medication errors happen more often, causing housands of deaths from preventable errors.
- Save for a Rainy Medical Day.
Medical Savings Accounts an Alternative to Managed Care -- for Some
- Prescription Discount Cards Latest Medicare Reform Tactic
President George W. Bush is expected to announce a discount card plan as an immediate way of keeping prescription drug prices down for seniors.
- Hospitals: Disclose Errors to Patients or Risk Losing Accreditation
Hospitals must either tell patients they have sustained treatment-related injuries or risk losing what amounts to their Good Housekeeping seal of approval.
- Hospitals Alarmed at Shortage of Nurses and Pharmacists
As the baby boom generation ages, the nation is facing an unprecedented explosion in its elderly population.
- Who Will Take Care of Us?
Eeport details ER overflow, as a nursing shortage threatens to worsen.
- Florida Case Spotlights the Need for Advance Directives
Experts Urge Family Members to Discuss Their Wishes for End-of-Life
- Getting the Care You Need.
A strong relationship with your doctor doesn't just make office visits more pleasant -- it's key to having better health.
- Bush Health Budget: FDA Gets More, CDC Gets Less.
Taking a key early step in the annual Washington budget negotiations dance, the administration Monday officially delivered to Congress hundreds of pages of documents containing its proposals for national spending for 2002.
- Like a Rocket: 'Direct-to-Consumer' Drug Ad Spending.
Drug company spending on direct-to-consumer advertising rocketed 39% last year, and experts predict it's not going to slow down.
- Ailing U.S. Medical System Fails Patients, Experts Say
Two years ago, a blue-ribbon panel committee dropped a bombshell -- the news that up to 98, 000 Americans die annually from medical errors.
- Living Wills Helpful, but Unlikely to Solve Most End-of-Life Dilemmas
Open Discussion is Important
- How to Choose the Right Doctor for You and Your Family
Whether you're new in town, your insurance coverage has changed, or you're facing a health concern that calls for a specialist, chances are that you'll be looking for a new doctor at some point.
- Are Shorter Doctors' Visits Just a Myth?
The frustrations confronting patients and doctors.
- Secretary of Health Nominee Tied to Tobacco
President-elect Bush's pick to head the nation's health and human services department is being criticized for his relations with the tobacco industry.
- Small Wonders: Micro-Machines in Medicine
In the 19th century, the tools of progress were coal, oil, and steel. In the 21st century, they will be atoms, microscopic tubes carrying drugs, and miniature disease-fighting robots, say small-thinking scientists with big ideas.
- How Far Should We Go?
Few medical or scientific issues have stirred up more controversy in recent years than the idea of using cells and tissue from human embryos in medical research.
- Crusade for a Cure
Battling a rare genetic disorder called pseudoxanthoma elasticum, or PXE.
- Protection During Pregnancy
You're a working woman in a physically demanding job. And, you're expecting a baby. What are your workplace rights?
- Why Washington Isn't Solving Our Health Care Woes
I predicted at the start of the year that Congress would not enact any significant health care legislation this year. While there is still time for Congress to prove me wrong, I think my prediction will hold up.
- My Kid Is Drug-Free
Should schools have the right to test your kids for drugs? One father said no -- and his decision has embroiled him in a high-stakes legal battle over constitutional rights.
- How Far Would You Go for Cheaper Drugs?
Thousands of Americans are crossing the border to get the best deal on their prescriptions.
- Getting Cheap Drugs Without Crossing the Border
As more Americans trek to Canada or Mexico to buy critical prescription drugs they cannot afford here, some U.S. doctors have a devised a system they say will help.
- Forced to Live
Marshall Klavan wanted to die. His physicians wanted him to live. Who had the right to decide?
- Making Your Last Wishes Known
Making Your Last Wishes Known
- Making Your Last Wishes Known
Laws in every state have made it clear: You have the fundamental right to make a decision in advance about whether to accept or refuse medical treatment if you become gravely ill.
- Private Cord Blood Banking: Who Owns the Blood?
Once tossed in the trash, umbilical cord blood is now worth big money, thanks to medical discoveries and entrepreneurial efforts like private for-profit blood banks.
- Denied Medical Care?
Nothing can be more frustrating or confusing than to show up at your doctor's office with symptoms of a health problem, only to be told you can't get the diagnostic test you want, a referral to a specialist, or a specific medical treatment.
- As Texas Goes, So Goes the Nation?
The agreement reached last month in the lawsuit brought by the State of Texas against Aetna U.S. Healthcare may have solved the company's problems there, but two other key states, New York and Connecticut, are moving forward with probes aimed at reviewing the insurance giant's practices.
- How Do You Know Your Doctors Are Listening? (And What to Do if They're Not)
Here are some situations that might lead you to suspect your doctor is not listening -- and how to find out if you're correct.
- Speaking to Your Doctor
The key to health may be knowing when to talk and when to listen.
- How to Ask for a Second Opinion.
Any time you have a very serious or life-threatening disease is a situation that demands a second opinion.
- Choosing a Doctor You Can Trust
How can you minimize complications in the delivery room, the operating room, or the doctor's office? Find a doctor who will be open with you.
- Ob-Gyns on Trial
The high costs of delivering high-risk care are driving many ob-gyns to leave obstetrical practice.
- Ordering Drugs Online
Shopping for prescription drugs at a legitimate online site is not much different from buying books or sporting goods over the Internet, although you do need your doctor's permission.
- A Cat Can Order Viagra?
Online prescriptions are easy to get. But beware: The drug you buy without medical supervision could be your undoing