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Latest Health Headlines

September 23

Nikki Haley's approach to abortion is rooted in her earliest days in South Carolina politics

Nikki Haley is gaining attention in the GOP race with her calls for “consensus” around abortion, an unusual tone in a campaign where Republican White House hopefuls often prefer to highlight their eagerness to fight President Joe Biden and other Democrats
September 23
FILE - Republican presidential candidate and former U.N. Ambassador Nikki Haley speaks at the Iowa Faith & Freedom Coalition's fall banquet, Sept. 16, 2023, in Des Moines, Iowa. Haley is gaining attention in the GOP race with her calls for “consensus” around abortion, an unusual tone in a campaign where Republican White House hopefuls often prefer to highlight their eagerness to fight President Joe Biden and other Democrats. (AP Photo/Bryon Houlgrave, File)
September 22

Surgeon general on new COVID vaccine rollout

ABCNL's Elizabeth Schulze sits with U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy and our panel to discuss the resurgence of COVID and the new booster shot.
September 22
VIDEO: Surgeon general on new COVID vaccine rollout
September 22

Health Alert: Work stress linked to increased risk of heart disease in men

ABC News contributor Dr. Alok Patel discusses a new study that finds a link between work stress and increased risk for heart disease in men.
September 22
VIDEO: Health Alert: Work stress linked to increased risk of heart disease in men
September 22

RSV vaccine recommended during pregnancy as a second option to protect newborns

U.S. health officials are recommending RSV vaccinations for moms-to-be as a second option to protect newborns
September 22
FILE - This photo provided by Pfizer in August 2023 shows their RSV vaccine Abrysvo. On Friday, Sept. 22, 2023, U.S. health officials are recommending RSV vaccinations for moms-to-be as a second option to protect newborns. (Pfizer via AP, File)
September 22

How hospitals have been coping as COVID rates rise

Hospital staff say lessons learned have made them better prepared.
September 22
Hospital staff say lessons learned have made them better prepared.
September 22

CDC recommends 1st maternal RSV vaccine to help protect babies

The vaccine would provide protection to babies before they're born.
September 22
A woman holds her pregnant belly in this undated stock photo.
September 22

How hospitals have been coping with COVID as number of admissions tick up

Hospital staff say lessons learned have made them better prepared.
September 22
COVID-19 antigen home tests indicating a positive result are photographed in New York, April 5, 2023.
September 22

Minneapolis plans to transfer city property to Native American tribe for treatment center

Minneapolis officials plan to transfer two city-owned properties to the Red Lake Band of Chippewa
September 22
September 22

Surgeons perform second pig heart transplant, trying to save a dying man

Surgeons have transplanted a pig’s heart into a dying man in a bid to prolong his life
September 22
CORRECTS BYLINE TO MARK TESKE, NOT DEBORAH KOTZ - In this photo provided by the University of Maryland School of Medicine, surgeons perform a pig heart transplant into Lawrence Faucette at the school's hospital in Baltimore, Md., in September 2023. Two days after the transplant, Lawrence was cracking jokes and able to sit in a chair, doctors said Friday, Sept. 22, 2023. (Deborah Kotz/University of Maryland School of Medicine via AP)
September 22

Maryland surgeons for the second time have transplanted a pig’s heart into a dying man

Maryland surgeons for the second time have transplanted a pig’s heart into a dying man
September 22
September 22

Dr. Alok Patel answers viewers questions about your pre-workout

Plus, what you need to know about your immune system and COVID.
September 22
Dr. Alok Patel answers viewers questions about your pre-workout
September 22

Medicaid expansion to begin soon in North Carolina as governor decides to let budget bill become law

Some adults in North Carolina will soon get Medicaid coverage because Gov. Roy Cooper says he'll let the state budget bill become law
September 22
Republican North Carolina Senate leader Phil Berger speaks to reporters about the state budget, Friday, Sept. 22, 2023, on the Senate floor in Raleigh, N.C. (AP Photo/Hannah Schoenbaum)
September 22

What the CDC says about the updated COVID vaccine

Immunity wanes after anywhere from three to six months, experts say.
September 22
Deborah Sampson, left, a nurse at a University of Washington Medical Center clinic in Seattle, gives a Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine shot to a 20-month-old child, June 21, 2022, in Seattle.
September 22

Some providers are dropping gender-affirming care for kids even in cases where it's legal

Some medical providers are dropping continuing gender-affirming care for minors, even though it remains legal
September 22
Becky Hormuth holds a vial of testosterone Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023, in Wentzville, Mo. Hormuth has been carefully dosing the drug given to her 16-year-old because she is fearful of losing care for her son who came out as transgender about four years ago as some states have worked to ban gender-affirming for minors. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)
September 21

Medicaid coverage restored to about a half-million people after computer errors

About a half-million people are regaining Medicaid coverage after the federal government says they were dropped inappropriately by states
September 21
FILE - The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services building is seen, April 5, 2009, in Washington. About 500,000 people who recently lost Medicaid coverage are regaining their health insurance while states scramble to fix computer systems that didn't properly evaluate people's eligibility after the end of the coronavirus pandemic, federal officials said Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)
September 21

Biden aiming to scrub medical debt from people's credit scores, which could up ratings for millions

Vice President Kamala Harris says the Biden administration is beginning the process to remove medical bills from people’s credit scores
September 21
Vice President Kamala Harris laughs as she speaks at Hampton University on Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, in Hampton, Va. (AP Photo/John C. Clark)
September 21

Some are reporting canceled COVID-19 vaccine appointments or insurance issues

Pfizer and Moderna say they have sent out millions of doses of the new COVID-19 vaccines in the past week
September 21
September 21

California sues anti-abortion organizations for unproven treatment to reverse medication abortions

California Attorney General Rob Bonta has sued an anti-abortion group and a chain of anti-abortion counseling centers, saying the organizations misled women when they offered unproven treatments to reverse medication abortions
September 21
FILE - California Attorney General Rob Bonta fields questions during a press conference Monday, Aug. 28, 2023, in Los Angeles. Bonta has sued an anti-abortion group and a chain of anti-abortion counseling centers, saying the organizations misled women when they offered them unproven treatments to reverse medication abortions. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File)
September 21

Appeals court takes up transgender health coverage case likely headed to Supreme Court

A federal appeals court is considering cases out of North Carolina and West Virginia that could have significant implications on whether individual states are required to cover health care for transgender people with government-sponsored insurance
September 21
FILE - Connor Thonen-Fleck addresses reporters while his parents stand by his side, Monday March 11, 2019, in Durham, N.C., at the announcement of a lawsuit against North Carolina officials over how the state health plan is run. A federal appeals court is considering cases out of North Carolina and West Virginia that could have broad-ranging implications on whether individual states are constitutionally required to cover healthcare for transgender people with government-sponsored insurance. (AP Photo/ Jonathan Drew, FIle)
September 21

Mississippi GOP governor says his plan would aid hospitals; Democrat pushes for Medicaid expansion

Mississippi Republican Gov. Tate Reeves has released a plan to try to ease some financial problems for hospitals
September 21
A protester holds a sign during a response by Mississippi Democratic Party Chairman State Rep. Cheikh Taylor, D-Starkville, to Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves' announcement of a proposal that he says should alleviate financial problems for hospitals, Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023, in Jackson, Miss. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
September 21

Mississippi GOP governor says his plan would aid hospitals; Democrat pushes for Medicaid expansion

Mississippi Republican Gov. Tate Reeves has released a plan to try to ease some financial problems for hospitals
September 21
A protester holds a sign during a response by Mississippi Democratic Party Chairman State Rep. Cheikh Taylor, D-Starkville, to Mississippi Gov. Tate Reeves' announcement of a proposal that he says should alleviate financial problems for hospitals, Thursday, Sept. 21, 2023, in Jackson, Miss. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis)
September 20

Illinois man pleads guilty to trying to burn down planned abortion clinic

Prosecutors say a 73-year-old man has pleaded guilty to driving a car into a planned abortion clinic in eastern Illinois and trying to set the building on fire earlier this year
September 20
September 20

An Idaho man has measles. Health officials are trying to see if the contagious disease has spread.

An Idaho man has contracted measles, and health officials are working to contact anyone who may have been exposed to the highly contagious disease
September 20
September 20

Federal appeals court reverses ruling that found Mississippi discriminated in mental health care

A federal appeals court has overturned a lower court ruling that found Mississippi relies too much on institutionalizing people with mental health conditions rather than providing care in their communities
September 20
FILE - Mississippi Republican Attorney General Lynn Fitch speaks at the Central Mississippi Correctional Facility, May 9, 2023, in Pearl, Miss. Fitch on Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023, praised a federal appeals court for overturning a federal district court judge's ruling that found Mississippi relies too much on institutionalizing people with mental health conditions. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File)
September 20

Seattle City Council OKs law to prosecute for having and using drugs such as fentanyl in public

The Seattle City Council has adopted an ordinance that makes illegal drug use and possession a gross misdemeanor, after rejecting a similar measure earlier this summer
September 20
September 20

Senate confirms chairman of joint chiefs as GOP senator still blocking hundreds of military nominees

The Senate has confirmed Gen. CQ Brown as the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, putting him in place to succeed Gen. Mark Milley when he retires at the end of the month
September 20
FILE - Air Force Gen. CQ Brown, testifies during a Senate Armed Services Committee hearing July 11, 2023, on Capitol Hill in Washington. The Senate has confirmed Brown as the next chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, putting him in place to succeed Gen. Mark Milley when he retires at the end of the month. (AP Photo/Mariam Zuhaib, File)
September 20

Family of man who died while being admitted to psychiatric hospital agrees to $8.5M settlement

The family of a man who died while handcuffed and pinned to the floor for about 11 minutes as he was being admitted to a Virginia pscyhiatric hospital has reached an $8.5 million settlement with the state, county and the sheriff whose deputies were inv...
September 20
September 20

Family of man who died after he was pinned while being admitted to a psychiatric hospital agrees to an $8.5M settlement

Family of man who died after he was pinned while being admitted to a psychiatric hospital agrees to an $8.5M settlement
September 20
September 20

Biden administration announces $600M to produce COVID tests and will reopen website to order them

The Biden administration has announced that it is providing $600 million in funding to produce new at-home COVID-19 tests and is restarting a website allowing Americans to again order up to four free tests per household
September 20
FILE - COVID-19 antigen home tests indicating a positive result are photographed in New York, April 5, 2023. The Biden administration has announced that it is providing $600 million in funding to produce new at-home COVID-19 tests and is restarting a website allowing Americans to again order up to four free tests per household. (AP Photo/Patrick Sison, File)
September 20

Biden administration announces $600M to produce COVID tests and will reopen website to order them

The Biden administration has announced that it is providing $600 million in funding to produce new at-home COVID-19 tests and is restarting a website allowing Americans to again order up to four free tests per household
September 20
FILE - COVID-19 antigen home tests indicating a positive result are photographed in New York, April 5, 2023. The Biden administration has announced that it is providing $600 million in funding to produce new at-home COVID-19 tests and is restarting a website allowing Americans to again order up to four free tests per household. (AP Photo/Patrick Sison, File)
September 20

Abortion-rights group rebrands to Reproductive Freedom for All in post-Roe world

The influential abortion-rights group NARAL Pro-Choice America has changed its name to Reproductive Freedom for All
September 20
FILE - Abortion-rights activists protest outside of the Supreme Court on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday, June 23, 2022. The influential abortion rights group NARAL Pro-Choice America announced Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023, that it has changed its name to Reproductive Freedom for All to better reflect how people think about abortion access ever since the U.S. Supreme Court revoked the constitutional right to abortion little more than a year ago. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
September 20

Gates Foundation commits $200 million to pay for medical supplies and contraception

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation pledged $200 million to help save the lives of mothers and children during childbirth
September 20
FILE - Bill and Melinda Gates pose for a photo in Kirkland, Wash., Feb. 1, 2019. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation threw its weight behind a call to save the lives of women in child birth and their children on Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023, at its annual Goalkeepers conference on the side lines of the U.N. General Assembly in New York. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson, file)
September 20

Mississippi sees 10-fold increase in babies born with syphilis since 2016: Report

Babies with CS were more likely to be premature or have low birth weight.
September 20
September 20

Revolving door redux: The DEA's recently departed No. 2 returns to a Big Pharma consulting firm

Washington’s revolving door kept spinning this week as the Drug Enforcement Administration’s recently departed second-in-command returned for another stint with a high-powered consulting firm where he previously advised OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma
September 20
FILE - DEA Principal Deputy Administrator Louis Milione, right, stands behind Attorney General Merrick Garland during the announcement of an international law enforcement operation targeting fentanyl and opioid traffickers on the Darknet during a news conference at the Department of Justice, Tuesday, May 2, 2023, in Washington. In September 2023, Milione, the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s recently departed second-in-command returned for a new stint with Guidepost Solutions, the high-powered consulting firm where he previously advised Purdue Pharma and a drug distributor fighting sanctions over a deluge of suspicious painkiller shipments. (AP Photo/Nathan Howard, File)
September 20

Ahead of abortion vote, Ohio Supreme Court has ordered a rewrite of some misleading ballot language

The Ohio Supreme Court says a portion of the description of a ballot question enshrining abortion rights in the state constitution is misleading
September 20
FILE - A crowd cheers as Jim Caviezel speaks during a "rosary rally" on Aug. 6, 2023, in Norwood, Ohio. The Ohio Supreme Court says a portion of the description of a ballot question enshrining abortion rights in the state constitution is misleading. In a ruling late Tuesday, Sept. 19 the court ordered the state ballot board to rephrase wording that suggested the amendment headed to November ballots would limit citizens' ability to restrict abortions, when it would actually limit the government's ability. (AP Photo/Darron Cummings, File)
September 20

Wildfire smoke affecting air quality in 75% of states in continental US: Study

Much of the progress made since the start of the century has been reversed.
September 20
CalFire Fighter fighters in action. California Firefighters (CalFire) take on the Rabbit Fire that is currently taking over Moreno Valley, California, July 14, 2023.
September 20

Patel It Like It Is: Sports season kicking into full gear

Dr. Alok Patel breaks down what you need to know about sport injuries and how to protect your kids as events ramp up this school year.
September 20
VIDEO: Patel It Like It Is: Sports season kicking into full gear
September 20

FDA says it needs more research before deciding to approve nasal spray to treat dangerous allergies

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration declined to approve a nasal spray to treat severe allergic reactions, calling for more research on what would have been the first alternative to injections using devices such as an EpiPen
September 20
FILE - A sign for the U.S. Food and Drug Administration is displayed outside their offices, Dec. 10, 2020, in Silver Spring, Md. The FDA declined to approve a nasal spray to treat severe allergic reactions late Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2023, calling for more research on what would have been the first alternative to injections using devices such as an EpiPen. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta, File)
September 20

Michigan's top court won't revive Flint water charges against 7 key figures

The Michigan Supreme Court has rejected a last-ditch effort to revive criminal charges against seven people in the Flint water scandal
September 20
FILE - In this March 21, 2016, file photo, the Flint Water Plant water tower is seen in Flint, Mich. The Michigan Supreme Court has rejected a last-ditch effort to revive criminal charges against seven people in the Flint water scandal. The court on Wednesday Sept. 20 2023 waved away an appeal by prosecutors who have tried to get around an earlier decision that gutted the cases. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)
September 20

Michigan's top court won't revive Flint water charges against 7 key figures

The Michigan Supreme Court has rejected a last-ditch effort to revive criminal charges against seven people in the Flint water scandal
September 20
FILE - In this March 21, 2016, file photo, the Flint Water Plant water tower is seen in Flint, Mich. The Michigan Supreme Court has rejected a last-ditch effort to revive criminal charges against seven people in the Flint water scandal. The court on Wednesday Sept. 20 2023 waved away an appeal by prosecutors who have tried to get around an earlier decision that gutted the cases. (AP Photo/Carlos Osorio, File)
September 20

England's National Health Service operates on holiday-level staffing as doctors' strike escalates

Britain’s state-owned health service is operating on holiday-level staffing in England as doctors in the early stages of their careers joined their more senior colleagues in their first-ever joint strike action
September 20
Junior doctors and medical consultants stand on the picket line outside University College Hospital in London, amid their dispute with the government over pay, on Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023. (Stefan Rousseau/PA via AP)
September 20

Virginia is the next big battleground for abortion rights and may send a signal for 2024

One of the biggest fights over abortion rights this year is in Virginia, where all of the state House and Senate seats are up for reelection
September 20
Virginia state Senate candidate Russet Perry, joins campaign volunteers during a campaign stop in the Cascades area of Sterling, Va., Sept. 16, 2023. Democratic candidate Perry, a prosecutor and former CIA officer, is running for a seat that could decide control of the Virginia state Senate in November. Saturday, Sept. 16, 2023. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)
September 19

Parkland school shooting survivor develops Joy, an app built on AI that helps people heal

Kai Koerber was a junior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School when a gunman murdered 14 students and three staff members on Valentine’s Day in 2018
September 19
Kai Koerber poses for a photograph Thursday, July 27, 2023, in Berkeley, Calif. Koerber was a junior at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School when a gunman murdered 14 students and three staff members on Valentine's Day in 2018. Seeing his peers — and himself — struggle with returning to normal, he says he wanted to do something to help people manage their emotions on their own terms. The result was Joy, an app built on AI that helps people struggling with sadness, grief or anger to find help in short, bite-sized prompts and tools. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)
September 19
Actor Michael J. Fox, right, speaks with Hillary Clinton during a panel at the Clinton Global Initiative, Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2023, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Nikhinson)
September 19

Suspect in University of North Carolina shooting is not competent for trial, his attorneys say

Attorneys for a University of North Carolina graduate student say he is not competent to stand trial in the killing of his academic advisor
September 19
FILE - Law enforcement respond to the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill campus in Chapel Hill, N.C., Aug. 28, 2023, after the university locked down and warned of an armed person on campus. Two shooting 30 years apart at the University of North Carolina show how much has changed. Some alumni who remember a deadly shooting in 1995 now have children enrolled at their alma mater in Chapel Hill, where an associate professor was shot to death Aug. 28. In some ways, the era of campus shootings has come full circle though there have been vast changes in the way information spreads. (AP Photo/Hannah Schoenbaum, File)
September 19

COVID hospitalizations reach 20,000 for 1st time since March but vaccine could help

COVID hospitalizations are still below the peak level during the omicron wave.
September 19
Healthcare workers treat a Covid-19 patient on the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) floor at Hartford Hospital in Hartford, Conn., Jan. 31, 2022.
September 19

Colombian leader summons intense oratory for a bleak warning: that humanity is making itself extinct

Colombian President Gustavo Petro has delivered an ominous prophecy with grandiose language
September 19
Colombia's President Gustavo Petro addresses the 78th session of the United Nations General Assembly, Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2023. (AP Photo/Richard Drew)
September 19

Sacramento prosecutor sues California’s capital city over failure to clean up homeless encampments

Sacramento’s top prosecutor is suing the city’s leaders over failure to cleanup homeless encampments, escalating a monthslong dispute with leaders in California’s capital city
September 19
Sacramento County District Attorney Thien Ho stands with supporters and victims of alleged crimes by homeless residents on Tuesday, Sept. 19, 2023, at a news conference announcing that his office is suing the city of Sacramento. A group of residents and business owners also filed a companion lawsuit against the city. The prosecutor had threatened in August to file charges against city officials if they didn't implement changes within 30 days. Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg says Ho is politicizing the issue instead of being a partner with the city.. (Hector Amezcua/The Sacramento Bee via AP)
September 19

Sacramento prosecutor sues California’s capital city over failure to clean up homeless encampments

Sacramento prosecutor sues California’s capital city over failure to clean up homeless encampments
September 19
September 19

Unlicensed New York City acupuncturist charged after patient's lungs collapsed, prosecutors say

Prosecutors have charged a New York City man with performing acupuncture without a license after they say he punctured a woman’s lungs during treatment, sending her to a hospital for emergency surgery
September 19